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Personality Change Pre- to Post- Loss in Spousal Caregivers of Patients with Terminal Lung Cancer.

ABSTRACT: Personality is relatively stable in adulthood but could change in response to life transitions, such as caring for a spouse with a terminal illness. Using a case-control design, spousal caregivers (n=31) of patients with terminal lung cancer completed the NEO-FFI twice, 1.5 years apart, before and after the patient's death. A demographically-matched sample of community controls (n=93) completed the NEO-FFI on a similar timeframe. Based on research and theory, we hypothesized that bereaved caregivers would experience greater changes than controls in interpersonal facets of extraversion (sociability), agreeableness (prosocial, nonantagonistic), and conscientiousness (dependability). Consistent with hypotheses, bereaved caregivers experienced an increase in interpersonal orientation, becoming more sociable, prosocial, and dependable (Cohen's d = .48-.67), though there were no changes in nonantagonism. Changes were not observed in controls (ds ? .11). These initial findings underscore the need for more research on the effect of life transitions on personality.

SUBMITTER: Hoerger M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4299658 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Personality Change Pre- to Post- Loss in Spousal Caregivers of Patients with Terminal Lung Cancer.

Hoerger Michael M Chapman Benjamin P BP Prigerson Holly G HG Fagerlin Angela A Mohile Supriya G SG Epstein Ronald M RM Lyness Jeffrey M JM Duberstein Paul R PR

Social psychological and personality science 20140801 6

Personality is relatively stable in adulthood but could change in response to life transitions, such as caring for a spouse with a terminal illness. Using a case-control design, spousal caregivers (<i>n</i>=31) of patients with terminal lung cancer completed the NEO-FFI twice, 1.5 years apart, before and after the patient's death. A demographically-matched sample of community controls (<i>n</i>=93) completed the NEO-FFI on a similar timeframe. Based on research and theory, we hypothesized that b ...[more]

PMID: 25614779

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Project description:ObjectiveHome-visit nurses play a key role in supporting the spouses of terminal cancer patients and encouraging positive perspectives of the caregiving experience. This study aimed to develop a scale to support nurses in self-assessing their practice around this important role.DesignCross-sectional questionnaire study.SettingThe Home Nursing Scale to Help Spousal Caregivers (HNS-HSC) questionnaire for self-assessment of home-visit nursing to spouses was developed based on interviews with spouses and literature reviews.ParticipantsOverall, 1500 home-visit nurses nationwide who had experience in supporting spousal caregivers and their patients in the predeath and postdeath periods were approached for participation.Main outcome measurePlanned exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to assess the underlying dimensions of the HNS-HSC; Cronbach's ? was used to determine the reliability. The Japanese version of Frommelt Attitude Toward Care of the Dying Scale Form B (FAT-COD-B-J) and Grief Care scale were administered to assess convergent and discriminant validity.ResultsExploratory and confirmatory factor analyses identified 26 items on five factors: 'helping spouses plan their futures' 'helping caregivers alleviate any regrets regarding their care', 'understanding the bond between a couple', 'providing support for anticipatory grief', and 'addressing spousal caregivers' emotions after their spouses' deaths'. The final model showed acceptable goodness-of-fit indices. The Cronbach's ? for the entire scale was 0.949 and exceeded 0.822 for each factor. The correlation coefficient with the FAT-COD-B-J, which served as an external validation, was 0.35. The correlation coefficients for the three grief care scales were 0.64, 0.45 and 0.72, respectively.ConclusionsThis scale is a reliable and valid tool for visiting nurses to self-assess their knowledge, skills and practice around helping spousal caregivers. By using this scale, it is expected to change nursing practice in pursuit of improving quality of life of spouses.

Project description:BackgroundSeveral studies have characterized the experiences of family members caring for patients undergoing chemotherapy; however, information about the experiences of older spousal caregivers with intensive caregiving burdens is unclear. Recently, more older patients have been diagnosed with cancer due to the aging population worldwide. Therefore, this study evaluated the patterns in the experiences of older spousal caregivers of patients undergoing palliative chemotherapy for advanced cancer.MethodsQualitative research using semi-structured interviews was used in this study involving 10 older spousal caregivers of patients undergoing palliative chemotherapy at a hospital providing advanced cancer care in Japan. The data obtained were analyzed qualitatively and inductively using thematic analysis by Braun and Clarke.ResultsFour themes were identified from the narratives of the participants in this study. The first theme was "getting used to living with the disease," indicating that the older spouses gradually became accustomed to living with the patient through continued caregiving. The second theme was "deepening view of life and death," indicating that the older spouses' views of life and death were deepened by being confronted with patients' quality of life until death. The third theme was "anxious about the future," indicating the fear regarding the patient's progressive diseases and anxiety pertaining to continuing care for the patient while dealing with their health problems. The final theme was "desire for a better rest of life," indicating that the couple felt their bond was strengthened through caregiving and wishes to live well for the rest of their lives.ConclusionsThe patterns in the experience of older spousal caregivers caring for patients undergoing palliative chemotherapy indicated an aspect of rebuilding their lives as they became accustomed to caregiving, while strengthening their marital bond. The caregiving process involved a mix of emotions, including anxiety about the spousal caregiver's health problems worsening. However, the caregivers recognized the value of their remaining time. Therefore, they had deep concern for the patient's comfort, concealing their feelings so that the patient would feel comfortable. This study can contribute to understanding the challenges faced and support needed by older spousal caregivers.

Dataset Information

Personality Change Pre- to Post- Loss in Spousal Caregivers of Patients with Terminal Lung Cancer.

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Personality Change Pre- to Post- Loss in Spousal Caregivers of Patients with Terminal Lung Cancer.

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