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Prevalence and impact of caregiving: a detailed comparison between dementia and nondementia caregivers
Ory MG, Hoffman RR, Yee JL, Tennstedt S, Schulz R.. The Gerontologist, 1999-04-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Analyzing data from more than 1,500 family caregivers from the 1996 National Caregiver Survey, this study documents the ways in which dementia care is different from other types of family caregiving. Not only do dementia caregivers spend significantly more hours per week providing care than nondementia caregivers, they also report greater impacts in terms of employment complications, caregiver strain, mental and physical health problems, time for leisure and other family members, and family conflict. Differential impacts remain even after controlling for intensity of caregiving involvement and sociodemographic factors. Study findings suggest the need to tailor programs and services to the unique challenges faced by dementia caregivers.
Key findings
- Not only do dementia caregivers spend significantly more hours per week providing care than nondementia caregivers, they also report greater impacts in terms of employment complications, caregiver strain, mental and physical health problems, time for leisure and other family members, and family conflict.
Why it matters
Comparing over 1,500 family caregivers, dementia caregivers spent more hours caring and reported greater strain, health problems and family conflict than other caregivers. This is about the impact of caregiving, not about treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 53/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The Gerontologist) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | The Gerontologist: journal h-index 238 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1999 — 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 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 990 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 34.1 citations a year over 29 year(s) since 1999 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 14.0× 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 57 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Richard Schulz: h-index 116 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | National Institutes of Health: institution h-index 2,723 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 10224714) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 53 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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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
Ory, M. G., Hoffman, R. R., Yee, J. L., Tennstedt, S., & Schulz, R. (1999). Prevalence and impact of caregiving: a detailed comparison between dementia and nondementia caregivers. The Gerontologist. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/39.2.177
Vancouver
Ory MG, Hoffman RR, Yee JL, Tennstedt S, Schulz R. Prevalence and impact of caregiving: a detailed comparison between dementia and nondementia caregivers. The Gerontologist. 1999. doi:10.1093/geront/39.2.177. PMID: 10224714.
BibTeX
@article{ory1999-10224714,
author = {Ory, M. G. and Hoffman, R. R. and Yee, J. L. and Tennstedt, S. and Schulz, R.},
title = {{Prevalence and impact of caregiving: a detailed comparison between dementia and nondementia caregivers}},
journal = {The Gerontologist},
year = {1999},
doi = {10.1093/geront/39.2.177},
pmid = {10224714},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/39.2.177}
}
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