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Associations of stressors and uplifts of caregiving with caregiver burden and depressive mood: a meta-analysis
Pinquart M, Sörensen S.. The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences, 2003-03-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
In the present meta-analysis, we integrated findings from 228 studies on the association of six caregiving-related stressors and caregiving uplifts with burden and depressed mood. Care recipients' behavior problems showed stronger associations with caregiver outcomes than other stressors did. The size of the relationships varied by sample characteristics: Amount of care provided and care receivers' physical impairments were less strongly related to burden and depression for dementia caregivers than for caregivers of nondemented older adults. For spouse caregivers, physical impairments and care recipients' behavior problems had a stronger relationship to burden than for adult children. Furthermore, we found evidence that the association of caregiver burden with the number of caregiving tasks, perceived uplifts of caregiving, and the level of physical impairment of the care receiver were stronger in probability samples than in convenience samples.
Key findings
- Furthermore, we found evidence that the association of caregiver burden with the number of caregiving tasks, perceived uplifts of caregiving, and the level of physical impairment of the care receiver were stronger in probability samples than in convenience samples.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis of 228 studies found that care recipients' behaviour problems had the strongest links to caregiver burden and depressed mood, with relationships varying by caregiver and sample characteristics. It does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Study designmeta-analysis
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 63/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a meta-analysis pooling many studies. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported and studied in people because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | The Journals of Gerontology Series B: journal h-index 225 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 12 / 12 | A meta-analysis pooling many studies |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2003 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | A review of other studies — randomisation is not credited here |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,108 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 44.3 citations a year over 25 year(s) since 2003 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 1.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 31 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 130 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Silvia Sörensen: h-index 39 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Rochester Medicine: institution h-index 953 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 12646594) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 63 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Pinquart, M., & Sörensen, S. (2003). Associations of stressors and uplifts of caregiving with caregiver burden and depressive mood: a meta-analysis. The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/58.2.p112
Vancouver
Pinquart M, Sörensen S. Associations of stressors and uplifts of caregiving with caregiver burden and depressive mood: a meta-analysis. The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences. 2003. doi:10.1093/geronb/58.2.p112. PMID: 12646594.
BibTeX
@article{pinquart2003-12646594,
author = {Pinquart, M. and Sörensen, S.},
title = {{Associations of stressors and uplifts of caregiving with caregiver burden and depressive mood: a meta-analysis}},
journal = {The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences},
year = {2003},
doi = {10.1093/geronb/58.2.p112},
pmid = {12646594},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/58.2.p112}
}
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