The Role of Religion/Spirituality in Coping With Caregiving for Disabled Elders

This study examined how religious/spiritual coping was related to specific conditions of caregiving and psychological distress among 127 informal caregivers to community-residing disabled elders. Support was found for the hypothesis that religious/spiritual coping influences caregiver distress indirectly through the quality of the relationship between caregiver and care recipient. Caregivers who used religious or spiritual beliefs to cope with caregiving had a better relationship with care recipients, which was associated with lower levels of depression and role submersion.