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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychol.
Sec. Health Psychology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1518136

An Ecological Approach to Caregiver Burnout: Interplay of Self-Stigma, Family Resilience, and Caregiver Needs among Mothers of Children with Special Needs

Provisionally accepted
Catherine So-Kum Tang Catherine So-Kum Tang *Isaac Chun-Yeung Yu Isaac Chun-Yeung Yu Kai-Hang Ng Kai-Hang Ng Helen Sin-Hang Kwok Helen Sin-Hang Kwok
  • Hong Kong Shue Yan University, North Point, Hong Kong, SAR China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction: Using an ecological framework, this study investigated how individual perceptions (self-stigma), family dynamics (family resilience), and external support systems (caregiver needs) interacted with each other to impact caregiver burnout among mothers of children with special needs (SN) in Hong Kong. Methods: A total of 250 Chinese mothers of children with SN in Hong Kong completed an online survey.Results: Pearson correlation analyses indicated that high levels of caregiver burnout were significantly related to high levels of self-stigma, high levels of unmet caregiver needs, and low levels of family resilience. Multiple regression analysis revealed significant main effects and a 3-way interaction effect of these three factors on caregiver burnout. The significant 3way (self-stigma X family resilience X caregiver needs) interaction effect showed that in conditions of low self-stigma, the highest level of caregiver burnout was found among mothers with low family resilience and high caregiver needs. Conversely, in conditions of high self-stigma, the highest level of burnout was observed among mothers with high family resilience and high caregiver needs.The findings of this study underscore the necessity of a holistic and culturally sensitive approach to effectively reducing the caregiving burden among Chinese mothers of children with SN. Addressing caregiver burnout in these mothers requires simultaneous efforts to reduce self-stigma through psychological support, educate families to manage expectations and alleviate pressure, and enhance society resources to meet caregiver needs.

    Keywords: Parental Caregiver Burnout, Mothers with SN Children, self-stigma, family resilience, Caregiver Needs Support

    Received: 28 Oct 2024; Accepted: 28 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Tang, Yu, Ng and Kwok. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Catherine So-Kum Tang, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, North Point, Hong Kong, SAR China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.