AUTHOR=Wang Haoran , Cui Hongmei , Wang Meng , Yang Chunyan 

TITLE=What You Believe Can Affect How You Feel: Anger Among Caregivers of Elderly People With Dementia

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.633730

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2021.633730

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background and Purpose:</bold> Anger has been recognized as a commonly experienced emotion among caregivers of elderly people with dementia. While several cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)-based intervening methods have been developed, limited research has systematically examined the associations between dementia-related cognition and caregiving anger. Currently, we focused on three representative and well-studied cognitive constructs, <italic>person-centered attitude</italic> (PCA), <italic>dementia representation</italic> (DR), and <italic>empathy</italic>, exploring how they related to caregiving anger.</p><p><bold>Methods &amp; Results:</bold> In total, 327 caregivers (239 female) participated in the study and finished online questionnaires. Multi-variable regression analyzes showed that PCA (β<sub>PCA</sub> = −0.22<sup>**</sup>) and empathy (β<sub>empathy</sub> = −0.18<sup>**</sup>) could negatively predict caregiving anger. However, all DR dimensions had no influence on caregiving anger except <italic>coherence</italic> (β<sub>coherence</sub> = −0.24<sup>**</sup>) in the current study.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> Generally, lower caregiving anger was associated with: (1) being more empathic; (2) having a person-centered attitude; and (3) having a comprehensive understanding of dementia. The results of this study provide detailed suggestions for the development of anger management programs for caregivers of people with dementia.</p>