Cynthia L. Schultz

Psychoeducational Support for Parents of Children with Intellectual Disability: An Outcome Study

The pressures frequently encountered by the parents of children with chronic conditions and the concomitant impact on family life have been well‐documented. Family‐focussed interventions have been advocated to address parents’ difficulties. The present evaluation study was undertaken to ascertain long‐term outcomes of the psychoeducational support program, Caring for Parent Caregivers. The aim of the program is to empower the individual and thereby strengthen family resources. Quantitative and qualitative analytical procedures, which included the written evaluations of treatment subjects, were employed to examine program effectiveness. For the fathers and mothers of children with disabilities, psychological health and well‐being was assessed on the General Health Questionnaire, using a pretest and follow‐up control group design. Results showed a statistically significant difference between groups, 12 months after treatment, with program participants displaying less emotional distress than control group su...

Non‐finite loss and challenges to communication between parents and professionals

Elizabeth Bruce PhD, a psychologist in private practice, and Cynthia Schultz PhD, honorary associate at LaTrobe University, both live and work in Australia. Their work on supporting parents who have children with special needs, however, has been published around the world. In this article Bruce and Schultz explore the notion of ‘non-finite loss’, defined as the ongoing sense of grief experienced by parents caring for children with severe disabilities. The authors discuss the issues that professionals need to consider when working with parents in these circumstances. The article closes with a set of recommendations for promoting more effective partnerships between parents and professionals.

Caring for Family Caregivers in Australia: A Model of Psychoeducational Support

The present paper describes and traces the emergence of an innovative psychoeducational model of support for family caregivers of dependent elderly persons, its associated systematic evaluation and leadership training process, provides details of a small group programme and its underlying philosophy, and reports on outcome evaluation research ascertained from both quantitative and qualitative data analyses. Details of these analyses are presented within the context provided by a three-level model of support, which recruits and trains professionals from a range of disciplines to help families in caregiving situations. The 72 treatment and 29 waiting-list control subjects were assessed at pretreatment and at posttest on measures of anxiety and psychological well-being. Statistically significant differences emerged between the treatment and waiting-list control groups on these measures. Positive changes for programme participants were further demonstrated by contextual analysis of evaluative responses. Implications for practitioners, educators, and policy specialists, as well as for research and programme development are discussed.

Longitudinal Outcomes of Psychoeducational Support for Family Caregivers of Dependent Elderly Persons

Abstract The present study investigated the long-term impact of a small-group psychoeducational program on 51 individuals who were providing unpaid care for a dependent elderly relative or friend. As well, 13 caregivers in a comparable wait-list control group were followed up 12 months after pretesting. Quantitative and qualitative analytic procedures were used to assess the effectiveness of the program. Overall, psychological and behavioural indicators were found to be positive for program participants.

Caring for family caregivers: A replication study

The aim of this study was to replicate previous findings of positive outcomes, which had emerged from a small group program designed to provide psychosocial and emotional support for those caring for a dependent elderly person. The self-selected subjects were 57 females and 11 males, with ages ranging from 35 to 84 years. The pretest, posttest, and follow-up design permitted measurement over an 18-week period of affect balance, level of strain, and state and trait anxiety scores of the 44 treatment group subjects when compared with the wait-list control group. The results replicate the gradual improvement for treatment subjects found in the original study. The provision of effective, adequate, and economically viable health care services in an ageing society represents a challenge for researchers and practitioners alike.

Differences between Anglo-Celtic and Italian Caregivers of Dependent Elderly Persons: a Pilot Study

This paper describes a preliminary investigation of differences in family caregiving in Australia. Forty-eight Italian-born family caregivers of dependent elderly persons were compared with 461 caregivers of Anglo-Celtic origin on measures reflecting psychological health and well-being, and on a range of socio-demographic variables. The latter had participated in the national Caring for Family Caregivers (CFC) group programme; the former are residents of the Melbourne metropolitan area. Statistical tests were conducted on measures which included the Affect Balance Scale (Bradburn and Noll 1969) and the Spielberger State and Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger et al . 1983) and its translation (Pedrabassi and Santinello 1989). Findings indicated that Italians reported experiencing significantly less trait anxiety than Anglo-Celtic caregivers. Furthermore, significantly more Italians used community supports, were employed full-time, had lower levels of education, and reported better levels of general health than Anglo-Celtics. Implications for research and practice are drawn.

Caring for fathers and mothers of children with intellectual disability: A pilot study

The present outcome evaluation study was undertaken to obtain information pertinent to the formative stages of the psychoeducational programme “Caring for Parent Caregivers”. Quantitative and qualitative analytical procedures, which included the written evaluations of 39 treatment subjects, were employed to examine programme effectiveness and associated issues such as content specific to fathers and mothers. For 24 fathers and 33 mothers of children with disabilities, perceptions of family functioning and subjective distress were assessed, using a pretest-posttest control group design. Quantitative data analyses, from which demonstrable programme effects were not found, suggested that, in contrast to fathers, mothers were likely to have more frequent occurrences of intrusive thoughts regarding their children and were more likely to acknowledge realistic concerns. The themes which emerged from qualitative evaluations of the small group intervention reflected generally positive behavioural and attitudinal o...