Application of an attribution-affect-action model of caregiving behavior

An attribution model was used to examine how staff perceptions of behavior of a resident with Alzheimer's disease influenced the way the behavior was managed. A sample of 54 female nursing staff members responded to a vignette describing a caregiving situation of a demented resident who was not feeding himself or herself. Caregiver attribution of resident behavior to reversible causes significantly predicted expectations for improved self-feeding in the future, and future expectations for self-feeding were significantly related to caregiving behavior to encourage self-feeding. Caregivers expected greater participation in self-feeding by female residents than by male residents.