ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the concept of expressed emotion (EE) (Brown et al., 1958) and its application to carers of the dementing elderly. The EE literature is reviewed in brief, and the use of the patient rejection scale (PRS) (Kreisman et al., 1979) as a reliable measure of hostility and criticism is addressed. The coping literature is also briefly reviewed with particular reference to carers. Expressed emotion and coping techniques were investigated in a pilot study with carers of the dementing elderly and results are reported here. Clinical implications of this research are discussed.
