The Effect of Caregiver Burden on Quality of Life in Informal Family Caregivers: A Meta-Analysis

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Örs M.

12th International Conference on Lifelong Education and Leadership for All-ICLEL 2026, Olomouc, Çek Cumhuriyeti, 7 - 09 Temmuz 2026, cilt.12, ss.108, (Özet Bildiri)

  • Yayın Türü: Bildiri / Özet Bildiri
  • Cilt numarası: 12
  • Basıldığı Şehir: Olomouc
  • Basıldığı Ülke: Çek Cumhuriyeti
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.108
  • Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
  • Akdeniz Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

This meta-analysis aims to quantitatively synthesize the magnitude and direction of the association between caregiver burden and health-related quality of life (QoL) in informal family caregivers.

Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were systematically searched by the author between 1 March and 31 May 2026, covering 2006–2026. A random-effects model with REML estimation and Hartung–Knapp adjustment was applied; methodological quality was assessed using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale and AXIS and certainty of evidence via the GRADE approach. Heterogeneity was examined via subgroup analysis and six-moderator meta-regression; robustness via leave-one-out sensitivity analysis; and publication bias through Egger's test and Trimnand Fill correction.

Across 38 independent samples (N = 8,167), the pooled effect was r = −0.438 (95% CI: −0.470, −0.404; Hartung–Knapp), p < .001. Heterogeneity was moderate (I² = 69.8%). Leave-one-out analysis showed the pooled r remained within a narrow range (−0.441 to −0.427); a sensitivity analysis by effect-size derivation method also yielded comparable estimates for directly reported (r = −0.462) and converted (r = −0.418) studies. Meta-regression identified country income level (p = .037) and sample size (p = .036) as significant moderators. Between-group differences were not statistically significant (Q_between p = .255); although the psychiatric subgroup showed the numerically largest effect (r = −0.507), this estimate should be interpreted cautiously given the limited number of studies (k = 2). Trim and Fill correction yielded r = −0.433, indicating robustness against publication bias. 92.7% of studies were rated as high quality. Caregiver burden consistently and substantially undermines quality of life. Findings support recognizing family caregivers as a secondary target group of healthcare services. This meta-analysis synthesized data from 38 studies and 8,167 informal family caregivers and showed a moderate-to-strong negative association between caregiver burden and quality of life (r = −0.438). The pooled effect size indicates that quality of life significantly decreases as caregiver burden increases; this pattern is consistently observed across different diagnostic groups, measurement tools, and geographies.