The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effects of learned resourcefulness on the relationships between stressful life events, psychiatric care activities, and the burden faced by primary caregivers of schizophrenic adolescents. A total of 81 primary caregivers (M=47.9 years) were interviewed and completed questionnaires at a certain point in time. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to examine the moderating effects of learned resourcefulness. Results showed that 24.5% of the variance (F(subscript (5, 75))=6.20, p<.001) in primary caregivers' burden was explained by the variable of psychiatric care activities and the interaction between the stressful life events and learned resourcefulness. The learned resourcefulness moderated the adverse effects of stressful life events on primary caregivers' burden. The variable of psychiatric care activities, moreover, still had a direct negative effect on caregivers' burden. The results of this study suggest that nursing interventions which focus on teaching and reinforcing the skills of resourcefulness, may help caregivers to cope with stressful life experiences and buffer the caregivers' burden.
The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effects of learned resourcefulness on the relationships between stressful life events, psychiatric care activities, and the burden faced by primary caregivers of schizophrenic adolescents. A total of 81 primary caregivers (M=47.9 years) were interviewed and completed questionnaires at a certain point in time. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to examine the moderating effects of learned resourcefulness. Results showed that 24.5% of the variance (F(subscript (5, 75))=6.20, p<.001) in primary caregivers' burden was explained by the variable of psychiatric care activities and the interaction between the stressful life events and learned resourcefulness. The learned resourcefulness moderated the adverse effects of stressful life events on primary caregivers' burden. The variable of psychiatric care activities, moreover, still had a direct negative effect on caregivers' burden. The results of this study suggest that nursing interventions which focus on teaching and reinforcing the skills of resourcefulness, may help caregivers to cope with stressful life experiences and buffer the caregivers' burden.