• Huei-Ling Huang, Yea-Ing Lotus Shyu, Sien-Tsong Chen, and Wen-Chuin Hsu.
• School of Nursing, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
• J Clin Nurs. 2009 Sep 1; 18 (18): 2588-95.

Aims And ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between family caregivers' self-efficacy for managing behavioural problems of older people with dementia and their behavioural problems in Taiwan.BackgroundOlder people with dementia commonly have at least one behavioural problem, which caregivers complain is difficult to handle. To provide interventions that can help caregivers more effectively manage the behavioural problems of care receivers with dementia, caregivers' self-efficacy on managing behavioural problems must be assessed. However, it is not clear yet how these behavioural problems of older people with dementia may influence caregivers' self-efficacy for managing behavioural problems.DesignA prospective, correlational study.MethodEighty dyads of older people with dementia and their family caregivers were recruited from neurological clinics of a medical centre in Taiwan. Care receivers were assessed for behavioural problems using the Chinese version of Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory, community form. Caregivers' self-efficacy for managing care receivers' agitation was measured by the research team-developed Agitation Management Self-Efficacy Scale.ResultsCaregiver self-efficacy for managing behavioural problems was significantly and positively associated with more caregiver education, greater duration of caregiving and with care receivers' less physically non-aggressive behaviours. When caregiver characteristics were controlled for in hierarchical regression analysis, physically non-aggressive behaviours explained 6% of the variance in caregiver self-efficacy.ConclusionsResults of this study contradict the general belief that physically aggressive behaviours of elders with dementia are more difficult for family caregivers to handle than other behavioural problems. Clinicians need to address physically non-aggressive problem behaviours.Relevance To Clinical PracticeNurses could assess older patients with dementia for physically non-aggressive behaviours and train less educated caregivers to improve their self-efficacy for managing problem behaviours, thus enhancing the quality of life for both caregivers and care receivers.

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