IT IS HARD TO GUARD THE AGED - ROLE STRAIN OF MALE AND FEMALE GUARDIANS

Although there is widespread concern about the welfare of aged wards, there has been little attention to the intrusiveness of the responsibi lities of guardianship in the lives of guardians. Rather, guardians of the aged are sometimes profiled as unscrupulous and a threat to the w ell-being of the ward. Data were analyzed from 387 men and women to as sess correlates of role strain experienced in their capacities as guar dians. Many similar factors predicted role strain of men and women. Bo th graphically described the need for more information and training in guardianship procedures. Among the correlates of strain, provision of more systematic instruction to guardians seems most amenable to inter vention.