Depression and Life Satisfaction among Parents Caring for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities in South Korea

Caring for an individual with developmental disabilities can be challenging and time consuming for parents. This study examined the mediating effect of depression in the relationship between caregiving-related stressors (caregiving time and behavior problems) and life satisfaction among parents caring for individuals with developmental disabilities. We performed a secondary analysis of data from the 2011 Survey on the Actual Conditions of Individuals with Developmental Disabilities, conducted by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare. Caregiving time, behavior problems, parental depression, and life satisfaction were measured. The proposed path model showed a good fit to the data: caregiving time and severity of behavior problems in individuals with developmental disabilities influenced parental life satisfaction, and these relationships were partially mediated by depression. These results could help health care providers in developing prevention and treatment programs by providing greater insight into the modifiable factors related to depression and life satisfaction among parents caring for individuals with developmental disabilities.