Date of Graduation
5-2015
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Social Work (MSW)
Degree Level
Graduate
Department
School of Social Work
Advisor/Mentor
Ferguson, Alishia J.
Committee Member
Christy, Kameri
Second Committee Member
Henry, Leah J.
Keywords
Social sciences; Psychology; Health and environmental sciences; Alzeimer's disease; Ambiguous loss; Caregiving; Dementia
Abstract
This thesis sought to investigate the relationship between ambiguity tolerance and caregiver grief within the framework of ambiguous loss theory. Thirty-one family caregivers completed a quantitative survey comprising two pre-existing scales and several demographic questions designed to assess level of ambiguity tolerance, level of grief, caregiver age and gender, type of relationship to the care recipient, living situation, length of caregiving career, level of Social support and frequency of difficult behaviors. Quantitative data analysis revealed that while no relationship existed between total ambiguity tolerance and total caregiver grief, a modest, inverse relationship exists between tolerance toward general-type ambiguity and burden, which is one identified aspect of caregiver grief.
Citation
Kale-Cheever, M. (2015). Investigating the Theory of Ambiguous Loss: The Role of Ambiguity Tolerance in Pre-Death Grief for Caregivers of Individuals with Dementia. Graduate Theses and Dissertations Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/1100
Included in
Clinical and Medical Social Work Commons, Clinical Psychology Commons, Social Work Commons
