Who’s On Your Team? Classifying Dementia Caregiving Networks and Associations With the Well-being of Caregivers and Care Recipients With Dementia

ObjectivesWhile caregivers are typically enmeshed in broad networks of family and friends assisting with care, this network has been neglected in favor of examining a “primary” caregiver. This study examines types of family and unpaid friend networks for individuals with dementia and how one’s network type relates to the well-being of care recipients with dementia and their caregivers.MethodsData are drawn from the nationally representative 2017 National Health and Aging Trends Study and associated National Study of Caregiving. The sample includes 336 dementia care networks (network size mean = 2.9). We first identified network types using latent class analysis and then examined the extent to which network type is associated with the well-being of care recipients with dementia (sleep, depressive symptoms) and their caregivers (emotional difficulty, overload, social support from family and friends) using ANOVA and linear regressions adjusting for demographics.Results3 network types were identified: “Siloed”—small networks, limited task sharing (29.8% of networks); “Small but Mighty”—small networks, high task sharing (23.0% of networks); and “Complex”—large networks, diverse membership, members who share and specialize in task assistance (47.2%). Individuals with dementia with a “Siloed” network had significantly poorer sleep quality and caregivers in “Siloed” networks reported receiving less social support from family and friends than those in “Small but Mighty” and “Complex” networks.DiscussionCaregiver networks that are less collaborative may need supports to reduce isolation among caregivers and improve health outcomes for individuals with dementia.