Resilience, Self-Efficacy, and the Lived Experiences of Caregiving for Family Members with Schizophrenia
Date of Award
Fall 2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Healthcare Administration (DHA)
Committee Chair
Bora Pajo
Committee Member
Jesse Florang
Committee Member
Evan Chaloupka
Abstract
Caregiving for a family member diagnosed with schizophrenia is a very deep, intimate, challenging, and demanding experience that reshapes daily routines and family dynamics. While much of the existing research and studies have greatly focused on caregiver burden, this qualitative narrative study sought to understand how caregivers define their roles, find strength, and adjust and adapt over time. Through in-depth interviews, family caregivers described detailed both emotional and physical challenges they faced, from the initial onset of symptoms to the continuing efforts of navigating unpredictable behaviors and facing complex mental health care systems.
The caregivers’ stories also revealed the support system that helped them be resilient to survive, access to necessary information, guidance and support from professionals, connection with other resources, insights they gained through lived experiences, and for them to finally seek variety of strategies and mechanisms they coped with stress, including therapeutic support and self-care approaches, as well as meaningful relationships. In their personal stories, resilience emerged as the main central vehicle, which is reflected in the caregivers’ ability to adjust, maintain hope while staying committed to their family members despite continuous ongoing uncertainty. These narratives not only portray the caregivers as individuals who face challenges, but act as a resourceful source and adaptive partners in caregiving for a family member with schizophrenia. The caregivers’ personal experiences underscore the desperate need for mental health systems that recognize and support, while collaborating with caregivers as vital contributors to the well-being of individuals living with schizophrenia.
Recommended Citation
Le, Tiffany, "Resilience, Self-Efficacy, and the Lived Experiences of Caregiving for Family Members with Schizophrenia" (2025). All Doctoral Student Dissertations. 237.
https://fuse.franklin.edu/docpub/237
