Filial piety, Caregiving Self-Efficacy, and Caregiver Burden in Sandwich Generation Caregivers: What Are the Relationships?

This article examines how filial piety—defined as respect and duty toward elderly parents—affects caregiver burden among sandwich generation caregivers who simultaneously care for aging parents and dependent children. It focuses on caregiving self-efficacy (CSE), specifically three dimensions: self-efficacy in obtaining respite (SE-OR), controlling upsetting thoughts (SE-CUT), and responding to disruptive behaviors (SE-RDB), as mediators between filial piety and caregiver burden. Surveying 202 Singaporean caregivers, the study found that higher filial piety is linked to greater CSE, which in turn reduces caregiver burden through SE-OR and SE-CUT, while SE-RDB unexpectedly correlates with increased burden. These findings highlight the complex, domain-specific roles of self-efficacy in caregiving and suggest tailored support strategies that address emotional coping and respite access to better assist caregivers within cultural contexts valuing filial piety.