Effect of stressors on family adaptation in stroke patients: A parallel multivariable mediation model

The mechanisms underlying how stressors affect family adaptation are unclear. This study determined the relationship between stressors and family adaptation among stroke patients, particularly the parallel mediating role of family function and family resilience.

The study was conducted in the neurology ward of a tertiary hospital in China. A total of 335 stroke inpatients were interviewed face-to-face from August 2020 to March 2021. A questionnaire was administered that included demographic characteristics, the Family Inventory of Life Events and Changes, Family Apgar Index Scale, Family Hardiness Index Scale, and Family Adaptation Scale. The demographic data and correlations among the research variables were analyzed. A bootstrap method using the SPSS PROCESS macro was employed to test a mediation model. Family adaptation was negatively related to stressors (r = -0.291, p < 0.01) and positively related to family function (r = 0.531, p < 0.01) and family resilience (r = 0.393, p < 0.01). Furthermore, family function and family resilience played parallel mediating roles between stressors and family adaptation.

This study elaborated how stressors interacted with family adaptation through the mediation of family function and family resilience. The findings suggest that enhancement of family function and family resilience may help to improve family adaptation among stroke patients.