239
Views
0
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Caregiving in Dementia

Empathy and support exchanges in couples coping with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease

ORCID Icon, ORCID Icon, ORCID Icon & ORCID Icon
Pages 995-1002 | Received 27 Jan 2024, Accepted 27 Feb 2024, Published online: 11 Mar 2024

References

  • Ali, T., Mroz, E. L., Valeika, S., Mendez, E. N., Cohen, A. B., & Monin, J. K. (2023). Navigating the COVID-19 pandemic together: Discussions between persons with early-stage dementia and their adult children. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 38(3), e5905. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.5905
  • Alzheimer’s Association. (2023). 2023 Alzheimer’s disease facts and figures. Alzheimer’s & Dementia, 19(4), 1598–1695. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.13016
  • Arbel, I., Bingham, K. S., & Dawson, D. R. (2019). A scoping review of literature on sex and gender differences among dementia spousal caregivers. The Gerontologist, 59(6), e802–e815. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gny177
  • Bangerter, L. R., Kim, K., Zarit, S. H., Birditt, K. S., & Fingerman, K. L. (2015). Perceptions of giving support and depressive symptoms in late life. The Gerontologist, 55(5), 770–779. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnt210
  • Bannon, S. M., Grunberg, V. A., Manglani, H. R., Lester, E. G., Ritchie, C., & Vranceanu, A.-M. (2022). Together from the start: A transdiagnostic framework for early dyadic interventions for neurodegenerative diseases. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 70(6), 1850–1862. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17801
  • Bartochowski, Z., Gatla, S., Khoury, R., Al-Dahhak, R., & Grossberg, G. T. (2018). Empathy changes in neurocognitive disorders: A review. Annals of Clinical Psychiatry, 30(3), 220–232.
  • Batson, C. D. (2017). The empathy-altruism hypothesis: What and so what. In E. M. Seppälä, E. Simon-Thomas, S. L. Brown, M. C. Worline, C. D. Cameron, & J. R. Doty (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of compassion science (pp. 27–40) Oxford University Press.
  • Berg, C. A., Sewell, K. K., Hughes Lansing, A. E., Wilson, S. J., & Brewer, C. (2016). A developmental perspective to dyadic coping across adulthood. In J. Bookwala (Ed.), Couple relationships in the middle and later years: Their nature, complexity, and role in health and illness (pp. 259–280) American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/14897-014
  • Braun, M., Scholz, U., Bailey, B., Perren, S., Hornung, R., & Martin, M. (2009). Dementia caregiving in spousal relationships: A dyadic perspective. Aging & Mental Health, 13(3), 426–436. https://doi.org/10.1080/13607860902879441
  • Broese van Groenou, M. I., de Boer, A., & Iedema, J. (2013). Positive and negative evaluation of caregiving among three different types of informal care relationships. European Journal of Ageing, 10(4), 301–311. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-013-0276-6
  • Carr, A. R., & Mendez, M. F. (2018). Affective empathy in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia: A meta-analysis. Frontiers in Neurology, 9, 417. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2018.00417
  • Davies, J. C. (2011). Preserving the ‘‘us identity’’ through marriage commitment while living with early-stage dementia. Dementia, 10(2), 217–234. https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301211398991
  • Davis, M. H. (1983). Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for a multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44(1), 113–126. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.113
  • Davis, M. H. (2018). Empathy: A social psychological approach. Routledge.
  • De Waal, F. B., & Preston, S. D. (2017). Mammalian empathy: Behavioural manifestations and neural basis. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 18(8), 498–509. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn.2017.72
  • Decety, J., & Svetlova, M. (2012). Putting together phylogenetic and ontogenetic perspectives on empathy. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 2(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2011.05.003
  • Devoldre, I., Davis, M. H., Verhofstadt, L. L., & Buysse, A. (2010). Empathy and social support provision in couples: Social support and the need to study the underlying processes. The Journal of Psychology, 144(3), 259–284. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223981003648294
  • Eisenberg, N., & Eggum, N. D. (2009). Empathic responding: Sympathy and personal distress. In J. Decety, & W. Ickes (Eds.), The social neuroscience of empathy (pp. 71–83). The MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/9780262012973.003.0007
  • Falzarano, F., Moxley, J., Pillemer, K., & Czaja, S. J. (2022). Family matters: Cross-cultural differences in familism and caregiving outcomes. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 77(7), 1269–1279. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbab160
  • Fernandez-Duque, D., Hodges, S. D., Baird, J. A., & Black, S. E. (2010). Empathy in frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 32(3), 289–298. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803390903002191
  • Fingerman, K. L., Pitzer, L. M., Chan, W., Birditt, K., Franks, M. M., & Zarit, S. (2011). Who gets what and why? Help middle-aged adults provide to parents and grown children. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 66(1), S87–S98. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbq009
  • Giebel, C. M., Burns, A., & Challis, D. (2017). Taking a positive spin: Preserved initiative and performance of everyday activities across mild Alzheimer’s, vascular and mixed dementia. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 32(9), 959–967. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.4553
  • Grühn, D., Rebucal, K., Diehl, M., Lumley, M., & Labouvie-Vief, G. (2008). Empathy across the adult lifespan: Longitudinal and experience-sampling findings. Emotion, 8(6), 753–765. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014123
  • Han, A. (2020). Interventions for attitudes and empathy toward people with dementia and positive aspects of caregiving: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Research on Aging, 42(2), 72–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0164027519884766
  • Han, A., Kim, T. H., & Hong, H. (2021). A factorial randomized controlled trial to examine separate and combined effects of a simulation-based empathy enhancement program and a lecture-based education program on family caregivers of people with dementia. Aging & Mental Health, 25(10), 1930–1940. https://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2020.1768214
  • Hsieh, S., Irish, M., Daveson, N., Hodges, J. R., & Piguet, O. (2013). When one loses empathy: Its effect on carers of patients with dementia. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology, 26(3), 174–184. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891988713495448
  • Hua, A. Y., Wells, J. L., Brown, C. L., & Levenson, R. W. (2021). Emotional and cognitive empathy in caregivers of people with neurodegenerative disease: Relationships with caregiver mental health. Clinical Psychological Science, 9(3), 449–466. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702620974368
  • Huo, M., Fuentecilla, J. L., Birditt, K. S., & Fingerman, K. L. (2019). Older adults’ empathy and daily support exchanges. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 36(11-12), 3814–3834. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407519837372
  • Jütten, L. H., Mark, R. E., Janssen, B. W. J. M., Rietsema, J., Dröes, R.-M., & Sitskoorn, M. M. (2017). Testing the effectivity of the mixed virtual reality training Into D’mentia for informal caregivers of people with dementia: Protocol for a longitudinal, quasi-experimental study. BMJ Open, 7(8), e015702. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-015702
  • Jütten, L. H., Mark, R. E., & Sitskoorn, M. M. (2019). Empathy in informal dementia caregivers and its relationship with depression, anxiety, and burden. International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 19(1), 12–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijchp.2018.07.004
  • Kim, H., & Han, S. (2018). Does personal distress enhance empathic interaction or block it? Personality and Individual Differences, 124, 77–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.12.005
  • Lee, H. S., Brennan, P. F., & Daly, B. J. (2001). Relationship of empathy to appraisal, depression, life satisfaction, and physical health in informal caregivers of older adults. Research in Nursing & Health, 24(1), 44–56. https://doi.org/10.1002/1098-240X
  • Levesque, C., Lafontaine, M.-F., Caron, A., Flesch, J. L., & Bjornson, S. (2014). Dyadic empathy, dyadic coping, and relationship satisfaction: A dyadic model. Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 10(1), 118–134. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v10i1.697
  • Lyons, K. S., & Lee, C. S. (2018). The theory of dyadic illness management. Journal of Family Nursing, 24(1), 8–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/1074840717745669
  • Martin, M., Peter-Wight, M., Braun, M., Hornung, R., & Scholz, U. (2009). The 3-phase-model of dyadic adaptation to dementia: Why it might sometimes be better to be worse. European Journal of Ageing, 6(4), 291–301. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-009-0129-5
  • Monin, J. K., Schulz, R., & Feeney, B. C. (2015). Compassionate love in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and their spousal caregivers: Associations with caregivers’ psychological health. The Gerontologist, 55(6), 981–989. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnu001
  • Oakley, B., Knafo, A., Madhavan, G., & Wilson, D. S. (2011). Pathological altruism. Oxford University Press.
  • Péloquin, K., & Lafontaine, M.-F. (2010). Measuring empathy in couples: Validity and reliability of the interpersonal reactivity index for couples. Journal of Personality Assessment, 92(2), 146–157. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223890903510399
  • Pinquart, M., & Sörensen, S. (2011). Spouses, adult children, and children-in-law as caregivers of older adults: A meta-analytic comparison. Psychology and Aging, 26(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021863
  • Pozzebon, M., Douglas, J., & Ames, D. (2016). Spouses’ experience of living with a partner diagnosed with a dementia: A synthesis of the qualitative research. International Psychogeriatrics, 28(4), 537–556. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1041610215002239
  • Quinn, C., Nelis, S. M., Martyr, A., Victor, C., Morris, R. G., & Clare, L. (2019). Influence of positive and negative dimensions of dementia caregiving on caregiver well-being and satisfaction with life: Findings from the IDEAL study. The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 27(8), 838–848. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jagp.2019.02.005
  • Rapp, S. R., & Chao, D. (2000). Appraisals of strain and of gain: Effects on psychological wellbeing of caregivers of dementia patients. Aging & Mental Health, 4(2), 142–147. https://doi.org/10.1080/13607860050008664
  • Rovine, M. J., von Eye, A., & Wood, P. (1988). The effect of low covariate criterion correlations on the analysis-of-covariance. In E. J. Wegmen (Ed.), Computer science and statistics: Proceedings of the 20th symposium of the interface (pp. 500–504). American Statistical Association.
  • Sallim, A. B., Sayampanathan, A. A., Cuttilan, A., & Ho, R. C.-M. (2015). Prevalence of mental health disorders among caregivers of patients with Alzheimer disease. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 16(12), 1034–1041. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2015.09.007
  • Smith, J., Fisher, G., Ryan, L., Clarke, P., House, J., & Weir, D. (2023). Psychosocial and lifestyle questionnaire 2006–2022. Survey Research Center.
  • Thomas, J. (2013). Association of personal distress with burnout, compassion fatigue, and compassion satisfaction among clinical social workers. Journal of Social Service Research, 39(3), 365–379. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2013.771596
  • Tsoy, E., Kiekhofer, R. E., Guterman, E. L., Tee, B. L., Windon, C. C., Dorsman, K. A., Lanata, S. C., Rabinovici, G. D., Miller, B. L., & Kind, A. J. (2021). Assessment of racial/ethnic disparities in timeliness and comprehensiveness of dementia diagnosis in California. JAMA Neurology, 78(6), 657–665. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2021.0399
  • Verhofstadt, L., Devoldre, I., Buysse, A., Stevens, M., Hinnekens, C., Ickes, W., & Davis, M. (2016). The role of cognitive and affective empathy in spouses’ support interactions: An observational study. PLoS One, 11(2), e0149944. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0149944
  • Weisberg, H. I. (1979). Statistical adjustments and uncontrolled studies. Psychological Bulletin, 86(5), 1149–1164. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.86.5.1149
  • Whitlatch, C. J., Heid, A. R., Femia, E. E., Orsulic-Jeras, S., Szabo, S., & Zarit, S. H. (2019). The support, health, activities, resources, and education program for early stage dementia: Results from a randomized controlled trial. Dementia, 18(6), 2122–2139. https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301217743033
  • Zarit, S. H., Polenick, C. A., DePasquale, N., Liu, Y., & Bangerter, L. R. (2019). Family support and caregiving in middle and late life. In B. H. Fiese, M. Celano, K. Deater-Deckard, E. N. Jouriles, & M. A. Whisman (Eds.), APA handbook of contemporary family psychology: Applications and broad impact of family psychology (pp. 103–119) American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000100-007
  • Zhang, F., Ho, Y. W., & Fung, H. H. (2015). Learning from normal aging: Preserved emotional functioning facilitates adaptation among early Alzheimer’s disease patients. Aging and Disease, 6(3), 208–215. https://doi.org/10.14336/ad.2014.0620

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.