Conflict, cultural marginalization, and personal costs of filial caregiving.

This study investigated the role of cultural marginalization as factor mediating the relationship between family conflict and the perceived personal costs associated with caring for an elderly parent. Participants included forty-seven Mexican American filial caregivers residing in Colorado. Using data from structured interviews, the results of regression analysis indicated that family conflict is a significant predictor of the personal costs of caregiving. Adding the variable of cultural marginalization to the regression equation increased the amount of explained variance; supporting an hypothesis that marginalization mediates the influence of family conflict on the perceived costs of caregiving. Practice implications for mental health professionals working with Mexican American caregivers are presented, as are study limitations and suggestions for future research.