Caregiving Styles: A Cognitive and Behavioral Typology Associated With Dementia Family Caregiving

Purpose: An increasing number of elderly individuals are diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders (ADRD), many of whom receive daily caregiving from spouse or adult child. Caregiving is a "cultural activity," and as such it is strongly influenced by sociocultural beliefs about caregiving and how it should be enacted. Understanding this thinking-action process has important implications for future research and service. Reasoned action theory provides empirical evidence that attitudes and beliefs, as they are influenced by the social environment, predict intentions to act. In turn, behavioral intentions can reliably predict behaviors. This grounded theory study describes a typology of caregiving styles relevant to family members of an individual with ADRD, where caregiving style is defined as a culturally based pattern in thinking and action. The goal of this study was to characterize the relationship between caregiver intentions and care strategies. Methods: Study participants included 97 individuals residing in the Washington, DC, area, who provide daily care for a family member with ADRD. Narrative data were collected from each caregiver during three 1-hr interview sessions. A subset of 30 caregiver-care recipient (CR) dyads was videotaped during typical interactions. Results: Four caregiving styles were identified (facilitating, balancing, advocating, and directing), which differ primarily in the intended focus of care and preferred interactions with the CR. Implications: The results provide a foundation for future studies of the relationships between sociocultural context, caregiving styles and strategies, and ensuing outcomes for caregiver-CR dyads.