Background: Self-efficacy (SE) can be used to explain informal caregivers' ability to cope with the challenges of caregiving. Although SE impacts informal caregivers' subjective well-being, its effects have not yet been studied from the perspective of telecare use. This study aimed to explore informal caregivers' perceptions of and associations between SE and subjective well-being when using different telecare functionalities.
Methods: A four-month intervention study using a qualitative research design was conducted. In-depth interviews were conducted with 22 informal caregivers of older people who tested one of two telecare devices in their homes.
Results: Five task-specific dimensions of caregiver SE were identified that were shaped by telecare use: controlling upsetting thoughts about the care recipient, managing protective vigilance, obtaining support in emergency situations, managing caregiving, work, family life, and responding in a timely manner to changes in the care recipient's daily routine. These SE dimensions were associated with caregivers' subjective well-being.
Conclusions: Telecare use may contribute to greater caregiver SE and higher subjective well-being. Therefore, future studies should pay more attention to these potential benefits of telecare. Additional dimensions of caregiver SE should be included in existing caregiver SE scales when examining caregiver SE related to telecare use.
Keywords: aging society; assistive technologies; home monitoring devices; informal caregiving for older people; self-efficacy dimensions; subjective well-being.