Psychometric properties of a modified version of the caregiver reaction assessment scale measuring caregiving and post-caregiving reactions of caregivers of cancer patients

Most care received by cancer patients is provided in the community by informal or unpaid caregivers. The unrelenting care demands can lead to physical, emotional, social, and financial reactions; furthermore, studies indicate that the effects of caregiving may endure after the patient's death. A need therefore exists for instruments measuring both caregiving and post-caregiving reactions. Among available instruments, the Caregiver Reaction Assessment (CRA) is a multi-dimensional, 5-factor measure designed to assess the negative and positive aspects of caregiving. The current study examined the psychometric properties and factor structure of responses to a modified Hebrew version of the CRA aimed at measuring caregiving and post-care-giving reactions. Although the scale was modified, it was assumed that, similar to the original CRA, a 5-factor structure would be supported by means of confirmatory factor analysis. A total of 236 bereaved primary caregivers of cancer patients from central and southern regions of Israel were recruited over a period of 18 months. As hypothesized, results provide support for a 5-factor structure of responses to this modified version of the CRA. The concurrent validity of responses to the scale was also supported. Replication of the findings with randomly derived and larger sample sizes is needed.