IMPACT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS, BURDEN AND HOSTILITY ON CAREGIVERS OF MENTAL ILLNESS

Abstract

The aim of the current research is to find out the caregivers psychological distress, burden and hostility on mental illness (schizophrenic, depression, bipolar etc). Study also intended to determine the demographic impact (age, gender, socio economic class impact, education level and marital status, length of contact with the patients) among caregivers of mentally ill patients. 150 caregivers, 67 male caregivers and 83 female caregivers of mental ill patients in the age group of 16 to 55 years were taken as the study sample. The purposive sample was taken from the hospitals of DHQ Haripur, Yahya Welfare Hospital Haripur,  Ayub Medical Complex Abbottabad, INOR Abbottabad, and DHQ Mansehra. Psychological distress, burden and hostility were measured by Caregiving Distress Scale, Zarit Burden Interview, and State Hostility Scale respectively. The results indicated the presence of moderate to high level of psychological distress, burden and hostility among the caregivers of mental illness, within male and female, married and unmarried, working and non working, serving as caregivers from the last 2 years to 30 years to mentally ill patients.

Gender hostility has significant impact on caregivers while psychological distress and burden is non-significantly different with gender affect (Atchley, & Amanda, 2004). For testing working status, hostility has significant impact on caregivers while Psychological distress and burden is non-significantly different with employed status. Results revealed non-significant impact between married and unmarried caregivers, young and old caregivers of mental on burden, hostility and distress. The non-significant impact was found in all demographs of the research except burden in education levels and working status of the career over hostility. On the bases of the results it can be concluded that the caregivers of mental illness has revealed moderate to severe range of distress, burden and hostility due to care of ill patients but this impact is not statistically significant between caregivers of mental illness.