Double child and elder care responsibilities and emotional exhaustion of an older sandwiched generation: The mediating effect of self-care

Background: The number of informal caregivers over the age of 50 who care for multiple family members including children and elderly relatives – a practice termed 'double care' – has steadily increased in Asian countries. Despite the rise in depression and stress among such caregivers, few studies have examined factors that may mitigate their emotional exhaustion. Methods: This research examines relationships between care responsibilities and emotional exhaustion, and the mediation effects of self-care on people in their 50s through 70s who provide care to multiple family members including children and elderly parents or relatives. The participants of this study were 183 people who were providing double care. The authors used care responsibilities as the independent variable, self-care as a mediator, and emotional exhaustion as the dependent variable. Results: Results indicate that care responsibilities significantly affect emotional exhaustion, and that emotional exhaustion is mediated by self-care. Conclusions: The findings suggest that attention to self-care may reduce emotional exhaustion among caregivers in this older age group.