Intolerance of uncertainty and sleep quality among palliative caregivers

This study examined the relationship between uncertainty and sleep quality among palliative caregivers. The caregivers of patients treated in the palliative services of two hospitals participated in the cross-sectional research design. Data were collected using the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Inventory (PSQI). Statistical analyses were performed using correlation and hierarchical regression analysis. The mean IUS total score was 38.30 ± 8.39, and the mean PSQI total score was 8.47 ± 2.91. The correlation coefficient showed that intolerance of uncertainty was not associated with overall sleep quality scores (r = 0.117, p > 0.05) and had a weak positive association with subjective sleep quality scores (r = 0.277, p < 0.05). Hierarchical multiple-regression analysis showed that 46.6% of the variance in sleep quality scale scores was explained by factors including demographic characteristics, care process, psychosocial support, and intolerance of uncertainty. The results of this study demonstrated that sleep quality and intolerance of uncertainty are largely closely related to psychological processes such as caregiving burden, perceived responsibility, control, and role burden.