Different Types of Childhood Experience With Mothers and Caregiving Outcomes in Adulthood

• Published date: 01 October 2021
• Author: Jooyoung Kong,Lynn M. Martire,Ashley M. Tate,Bethany C. Bray,David M. Almeida
• Date: 01 October 2021
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12511

J K University of Wisconsin Madison

L M. M  A M. T The Pennsylvania State University

B C. B University of Illinois at Chicago

D M. A The Pennsylvania State University

Different Types of Childhood Experience With

Mothers and Caregiving Outcomes in Adulthood

Objective and Background: The current study

examines the types of childhood experiences

with mothers (i.e., maternal abuse, affection,

discipline) among caregivers of aging mothers

and investigates whether membership in specic

latent classes, particularly maternal maltreat-

ment, is associated with psychological function-

ing among caregivers.

Method: Using data from the Midlife in the

United States (MIDUS), we used the Bolck,

Croon, and Hagenaars approach of latent class

analysis to predict distal outcomes.

Results: Weidentied four latent classes (preva-

lence rate noted): “Affectionate and authori-

tative” (65%), “affectionate and permissive”

(11%), “emotionally abusive and neglectful”

(8%), and “emotionally/physically abusive and

authoritative” (16%). Caregivers in the “emo-

tionally/physically abusive and authoritative”

class endorsed high probabilities of both mater-

nal affection and abuse and were most neg-

atively affected across the three psychologi-

cal functioning outcomes (i.e., self-rated mental

health, psychological distress, and psychologi-

cal well-being).

University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Social

Work, 1350 University Avenue, Madison, WI 53706

(jkong7@wisc.edu).

KeyWords: caregiving,latent class analysis, maternal abuse,

maternal warmth, psychological health.

Conclusion: In support of the life course per-

spective, our ndings emphasized the impor-

tance of examining adult children caregivers’

early life experiences with aging mothers and

how those experiences can impact the psycho-

logical effects of caregiving.

Implications: This study suggests specic prac-

tice implications; for example, assessment tools

for evaluating caregiver burden should consider

life course factors, such as caregivers’childhood

experiences with aging parents.

According to a recent survey report, an esti-

mated 34 million Americans provide care to an

older adult, commonly an aging parent (National

Alliance for Caregiving & AARP Public Pol-

icy Institute, 2015). With an increase in life

expectancy and the aging of the population

globally, the need for family caregiving is likely

to increase substantially (National Academies

of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine, 2016).

Family caregivers are critical national health

care resources; however, caregiving can be

a chronic stressor that results in detrimen-

tal psychological health effects (Schulz &

Sherwood, 2008). A well-established research

literature has identied several risk factors

associated with undermining caregivers’ health

and well-being, including role conicts (Gor-

don et al., 2012), current relationship quality

with a care recipient (Merz, Schuengel, &

1090 Family Relations 70 (October 2021): 1090–1101

DOI:10.1111/fare.12511