Table 1 Sociodemographic characteristics of informal caregivers by country (N = 571)
| Â | Total sample (N = 571) | Italy (N = 425) | Switzerland, Ticino (N = 146) | Â |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Variable | N (%) | N (%) | N (%) | p-value* |
Gender | ||||
 Female | 466 (81.6) | 381 (89.6) | 85 (58.2) | p<0.001 |
 Male | 104 (18.2) | 43 (10.1) | 61 (41.8) | |
 Not specified | 1 (0.2) | 1 (0.2) |  |  |
| Â | Â | Â | Â | p-value** |
Age Mean (SD) | 53.54 (11.99) | 51.85 (10.72) | 58.49 (13.99) | p<0.001 |
Years of caregiving Mean (SD) | 6.07 (3.95) | 5.08 (3.68) | 8.83 (3.31) | p<0.001 |
Caregiver as sole occupation | ||||
 Yes | 292 (51.1) | 176 (41.4) | 116 (79.5) | p<0.001 |
 No | 279 (51.1) | 249 (58.6) | 30 (20.5) | |
Employment Status | ||||
 Unemployed/Housewife | 202 (35.4) | 132 (31.1) | 70 (47.9) | p<0.001 |
 Full-time Job | 253 (44.3) | 228 (53.6) | 25 (17.1) | |
 Part-time Job | 30 (5.3) | 25 (5.9) | 5 (3.4) | |
 Retired | 86 (15.1) | 40 (9.4) | 46 (31.5) | |
Relationship with the care-recipient | ||||
 Child | 410 (71.8) | 328 (77.2) | 82 (56.2) | p<0.001 |
 Spouse | 118 (20.7) | 59 (13.9) | 59 (40.4) | |
 Other | 43 (7.5) | 38 (8.9) | 5 (3.4) | |
Education | ||||
 Compulsory education | 107 (18.7) | 70 (16.5) | 37 (25.3) | p<0.001 |
 Higher Secondary education | 322 (56.4) | 231 (54.4) | 91 (62.3) | |
 University education | 142 (24.9) | 124 (29.2) | 18 (12.3) | |
Care recipient type of dementia | ||||
 Alzheimer | 316 (55.3) | 247 (58.1) | 69 (47.3) | p<0.001 |
 Vascular dementia | 95 (16.6) | 82 (19.3) | 13 (8.9) | |
 Parkinson's Disease | 72 (12.6) | 24 (5.6) | 48 (32.9) | |
 Frontotemporal dementia | 44 (7.7) | 44 (10.4) | 0 | |
 Dementia with Lewy Bodies | 19 (3.3) | 17 (4.0) | 2 (1.4) | |
 Other | 25 (4.5) | 11 (2.6) | 14 (9.6) | |
Autonomy in basic function of the care recipient | ||||
 Yes | 116 (20.3) | 105 (24.7) | 11 (7.5) | p<0.001 |
 No | 455 (79.7) | 320 (75.3) | 135 (92.5) | |
Help from others | Â | Â | Â | |
 Yes | 335 (58.7) | 285 (67.1) | 50 (34.2) | p = 0.197 |
 Relative | 184 (32.2) | 159 (55.8) | 25 (50.0) | |
 Professional carers (nurse/domestic worker) | 130 (22.8) | 106 (37.2) | 24 (48.0) | |
 Friends/neighbours | 21 (3.7) | 20 (7.0) | 1 (2.0) | |
 No | 236 (41.3) | 140 (32.9) | 96 (65.8) | |