Effects of Teaching Resourcefulness and Acceptance on Affect, Behavior, and Cognition of Chronically Ill Elders

This clinical trial examined changes in affect, behavior, and cognition in 176 chronically ill elders who were randomly assigned to Resourcefulness Training (RT), Acceptance Training (AT), or Diversional Activities (DA). The RT group improved on affect (t(1,42) = 4.91; p \u3c .001) and cognition (t(1,42) = 2.03; p\u3c .05) and these effects lasted 12 weeks. The AT group improved on affect (t(1,36) = 3.08; p \u3c .01), but this improvement did not persist. The RT and AT groups both showed positive behavior changes after six weeks. There were no changes in the DA group. The findings suggest that teaching elders resourcefulness and acceptance of chronic conditions may promote healthy functioning and improve their quality of life

Parenting Stress: A Comparison of Grandmother Caretakers and Mothers

Parenting stress in grandmother caretakers has not been directly compared with a matched sample of mothers in the caretaker role. This study examined the main and interaction effects of caretaker status, employment, and race on parenting stress and whether these factors affect parenting stress in a convenience sample of grandmothers raising grandchildren (n = 86) and a sample of mothers of preschoolers (n = 86), matched for women’s partner status, race, and employment. Grandmothers raising grandchildren reported more overall parenting stress and parental distress than mothers. Non-employed women reported more negative perceptions of their children and more difficult interactions with them. When controlling for contextual variables, grandmother caretakers showed greater parenting distress, but employment was not related to parenting stress. Being Caucasian and caretaking of older children affected overall parenting stress, parent-child interactions, and perceptions of one’s children. Future research needs to consider the effect of outside influences on grandmothers’ stress

Interpreting bodily changes as illness: a longitudinal study of older adults

Research on elders' health behavior has largely ignored the stage between experiencing a bodily change and defining it as an illness. This paper addresses the question of what explains such definitions of bodily complaints as illness symptoms. The issue is examined in a longitudinal study with a random sample of 350 community dwelling persons aged 65 and over. Multiple regression was used to analyze the effects of external stresses, psychological factors and health attitudes as well as contextual variables, on three types of illness representations. These consisted of giving the bodily changes an illness label, initiating contact with a physician, and/or using some form of self care. These illness representations were treated as outcome variables singularly and in combination. The findings revealed that the overall frequency of a person's bodily changes was the best predictor of an illness designation. Other significant predictors at Time 4 of the study included belief in the seriousness of a complaint, the occurrence of prior illness representations and self-assessed health. This research study on the elderly is unique in that it seeks to explain, within a longitudinal design, the intermediate step between the experience of a bodily change and the definition of the change as an illness.elders perceived illness bodily changes

Supporting grandchildren\u27s remote instruction during COVID-19: Experiences of custodial grandmothers

While negative impacts of COVID-19-related remote instruction on children continue to emerge, it appears that vulnerable students will disproportionately bear the burden. One such vulnerable population is children being raised by grandparents. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to gain insight into custodial grandmothers\u27 (CGMs) experiences of their grandchildren\u27s remote instruction, as well as individual and contextual factors associated with these experiences. A national sample of 315 CGMs, drawn from two randomized clinical trials, completed an online survey in Spring of 2020. Results of a thematic analysis and supplemental quantitative analyses revealed three themes. First, access to technology and instructional supports were critical to the success of remote instruction, with barriers being difficulties using technology and poor-quality remote instruction. Next, grandchild socioemotional difficulties, and fit with remote instruction, were central to their engagement and success with remote instruction. Finally, CGMs experienced multiple stressors related to managing the demands of remote instruction, work, and family. Challenges associated with remote instruction were related to pre-pandemic difficulties such as grandchild problems and CGM depressive symptoms. Collectively, the results highlight how multiple adversities may have amplified grandchildren\u27s existing vulnerability to negative outcomes. Implications are addressed, including strategies for supporting children raised by grandparents beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.</p

Recurrent symptoms: well-being and management

Although most older adults report one or more symptoms of a chronic health problem, little attention has been paid to the report of these symptoms over time and whether different symptom patterns affect well-being and symptom management in community-dwelling elders. Therefore, this study examined whether community-dwelling older adults in Ohio, U.S.A. who experience consistently recurring (a) arthritis or (b) cardiopulmonary symptoms report more depression and worse self-assessed health and show more symptom management than those who report inconsistent symptoms and if there are differences in well-being and symptom management over time. This secondary analysis used longitudinal data collected from a random sample of 387 older adults who reported their health complaints in four interviews over 27 months time. Subjects were included in this analysis if they reported either arthritis (n=321) or cardiopulmonary (n=232) symptoms at one or more times during 27 months, and then were classified as having either consistent (occurring at all four time points) or intermittent/inconsistent (occurring at three or fewer time points) symptoms. Data analysis included t-tests, chi-square tests, and Repeated Measures ANOVA. Results indicate that those with consistent symptoms reported greater depression and worse self-assessed health than those with less consistent symptoms. Specifically, those with consistent cardiopulmonary symptoms became more depressed over time. Those with consistent cardiopulmonary complaints were more likely than those with an inconsistent pattern to use an illness label to describe their symptoms. Those with consistent arthritis symptoms tended to use more self-care at all time points, to label their symptoms as an illness, and were more likely to consult a physician as their symptoms persisted. The implications of symptom recurrence on well-being, symptom management and the concept chronicity are discussed.Symptoms Illness management Older adults Chronic illness United States

Grandmothers and Caregiving to Grandchildren: Continuity, Change, and Outcomes Over 24 Months

Purpose: Transitions in caregiving, such as becoming a primary caregiver to grandchildren or having adult children and grandchildren move in or out, may affect the well-being of the grandmother. Design and Methods: This report describes caregiving patterns at 3 time points over 24 months in a sample of 485 Ohio grandmothers and examines the effects of stability and change in grandmother caregiving roles (raising a grandchild, living in a multigenerational home, or not caregiving to grandchildren). Drawing on the Resiliency Model of Family Stress, the study examined caregiving stress and reward, intrafamily strain, social support, resourcefulness, depressive symptoms, mental and physical health, and perceived family functioning. Caregiver group, time of measurement, switching between caregiver groups, and baseline age, race, education, work status, and marital status were considered as independent variables within the context of a one-way treatment structure in a mixed-model multivariate analysis. Results: There were significant caregiver group effects for all variables, except mental health and resourcefulness. Grandmothers raising grandchildren reported the most stress, intrafamily strain, and perceived problems in family functioning, the worst physical health and more depressive symptoms, and the least reward and subjective support. Across groups, there were significant time effects, with worsening physical health and increased stress over time. Switching to higher levels of caregiving was associated with worsening physical health and increases in stress, intrafamily strain, and perceived problems in family functioning. Implications: Recommendations for research and for practice, especially during times of caregiving transition or for grandmothers raising grandchildren, are discussed