The Relationship Between Dyadic Coping and Mental Health in Stroke Survivors and Their Spouse Caregivers: An Actor‐Partner Interdependence Model

AIM: To investigate the relationship among dyadic coping, mental health and the individual and mutual influences on stroke survivors and their spouse caregivers. DESIGN: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in China from November 2019 to August 2020. The STROBE checklist was used to report the present study. METHODS: The analysis included 224 dyads of stroke survivors and their spouse caregivers in China. Data on stroke survivors and their spouse caregivers were collected using the Dyadic Coping Inventory (DCI), the Patient Health Questionnaire nine-item scale (PHQ-9) and the Generalised Anxiety Disorder seven-item scale (GAD-7). The dyadic analysis was conducted based on the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM). RESULTS: Regarding actor effects, spouse caregivers' dyadic coping and perceived dyadic coping had a negative predictive effect on their own anxiety and depression. Stroke survivors' perceived dyadic coping had a negative effect on their own depression. Regarding partner effects, spouse caregivers' perceived dyadic coping also had a negative predictive effect on the depression of the patients. In contrast, stroke survivors' perceived dyadic coping was positively associated with spouse caregivers' anxiety and depression. These findings suggested that mental health of stroke survivors and their spouse caregivers was affected by various dyadic coping dimensions. CONCLUSIONS: Our research has the potential to contribute to the understanding dyadic coping and mental health of stroke survivor-spouse caregiver dyads. The findings reveal that the coping strategies employed by stroke couples are closely related to the mental health of both partners. IMPACT: This study provides evidence for the significant impact of dyadic coping on the psychological well-being of stroke survivors and their spouse caregivers. Therefore, dyadic interventions aiming at strengthening dyadic coping may have positive effects on their mental health. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: This study directly involved the patients and family caregivers in hospital settings.