Concept and models for the study of caregiver burden.

Families caring for a mentally ill member experience various degrees of burden. The concept of burden has been studied over the centuries and is seen primarily as an obligation which entails a cost. In very few cases burden has been seen positively. The present article explores the concept of burden as it is presented in the literature, addresses the categories of strain that families caring for mentally ill relatives experience, and presents four models for the study of caregiver burden.