Caregiver Empathy, Caregiver Burden, and Marital Satisfaction Among Spousal Caregivers of Loved Ones with Dementia

<p> This study explores caregiver empathy and caregiver burden among spousal caregivers of loved ones with dementia. Little is known about this quantitative relationship among spousal caregivers of loved ones with dementia, with current information being qualitative. The magnitude of this relationship may vary based on empathy type (cognitive vs. emotional) and marital satisfaction before dementia diagnosis. Understanding this relationship is important in assessment and intervention with this population. Participants recruited online completed measures of demographics, empathy (i.e., Modified Interpersonal Reactivity Index [IRI]: Empathic Concern [EC] and Perspective Taking [PT] scales), caregiver burden (i.e., Zarit Burden Interview [ZBI]), and pre-dementia diagnosis marital satisfaction (i.e., Modified Positive Affect Index [PAI]). Descriptive statistics analyzed demographic variables. Pearson’s r Correlation Coefficients calculated the relationship between a) emotional empathy (IRI: EC scale score) and caregiver burden (total ZBI score) and b) the relationship between cognitive empathy (IRI: PT scale score) and caregiver burden. Linear Regression analyses calculated pre-dementia diagnosis marital satisfaction (total PAI score) as a moderator on both the relationship between emotional empathy and caregiver burden and the relationship between cognitive empathy and caregiver burden. Results indicated that emotional empathy and caregiver burden, as well as cognitive empathy and caregiver burden, exist independently from one another. However, the relationships between emotional empathy and caregiver burden, as well as cognitive empathy and caregiver burden, fluctuate depending on the degree to which pre-dementia diagnosis marital satisfaction is present. As such, pre-dementia diagnosis marital satisfaction has a moderating impact on these relationships. </p>