While women remain the majority of caregivers, gender parity is reported among Millennials, people of color, and LGBTQ caregivers. Such dynamics of care dyads are rarely explored…
Abstract
While women remain the majority of caregivers, gender parity is reported among Millennials, people of color, and LGBTQ caregivers. Such dynamics of care dyads are rarely explored in relationship with caregiver selection, social support, or care outcomes, and without standardized measures we are uncertain whether this trend is associated with youth, demographic changes, or a societal shift. Utilizing the Caregiving in the US 2015 data set, this exploratory, quantitative study examines relationships between gender, primary condition, and two social designations around age (kinship generations and birth cohorts) to develop a preliminary categorization of informal caregivers in the United States by reviewing descriptives and correlations, then testing with multivariate regression. A model combining Millennial caregivers, same-generation dyads, and two primary conditions (mental illness and stroke) successfully predicts variance as to whether a dyad will comprise one woman caring for another woman, the most common dyad. Findings demonstrate the interconnectedness of caregiving generational models, suggesting that categorizing dyads from such variables is viable. This study deepens inquiry into intergenerational caregiving and makes a case for generationality and caregiving to be studied together.
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Watchara Tabootwong and Frank Kiwannuka
Elderly patients requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation are treated with a tracheostomy. Oftentimes, the family caregivers need to participate in the care for elderly patients…
Abstract
Purpose
Elderly patients requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation are treated with a tracheostomy. Oftentimes, the family caregivers need to participate in the care for elderly patients with a tracheostomy during hospitalization. Therefore, this paper was conducted to acknowledge what family caregivers experience while caregiving for hospitalized elderly patients with a tracheostomy.
Design/methodology/approach
This literature review identifies family caregiver participation in caregiving for the elderly patient, the impact of caregiving, and the needs of family caregivers.
Findings
Family caregivers participate in the planning and provision of care to elderly patients. Furthermore, they also collaborate in the therapeutic process for elderly patients as well. Albeit the former sentiments, they experience physical, psychological, social and financial consequences of caregiving. It has been revealed that during the process of caring for their loved ones, family caregivers often experience poor sleep quality, strain, reduction in social interaction and insufficient income. Thus, health-care professionals should support and provide care for the needs of family caregivers. This can be achieved through providing information on prognosis, the care plan, emotional support and collaboration during the therapeutic process to provide better care for elderly patients with a tracheostomy. In addition, family caregivers’ relatives can also provide financial support and rotation of caregiving schedules to avoid burnout.
Originality/value
The paper indicates that family caregivers experience the impacts of caregiving. They should be supported by health-care professionals and their relatives.
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Lindsey Trimble O’Connor, Julie A. Kmec and Elizabeth C. Harris
Discrimination against workers because of their family responsibilities can violate federal law, yet scholars know little about the context surrounding perceived family…
Abstract
Purpose
Discrimination against workers because of their family responsibilities can violate federal law, yet scholars know little about the context surrounding perceived family responsibilities discrimination (FRD). This chapter investigates both the types of caregiving responsibilities that put workers at risk of FRD and the organizational contexts that give rise to perceived FRD.
Methodology/approach
We identify features of FRD which make detecting it particularly difficult and theorize the mechanisms by which caregiving responsibilities and organizational contexts lead to perceived FRD. We draw on data from the 2008 National Study of the Changing Workforce for our empirical analysis.
Findings
Caregivers who provide both child and eldercare are more likely to perceive FRD than caregivers who provide one type of care, as are people who experience high levels of family-to-work interference and who spend more daily time on childcare. Certain family-friendly and meritocratic organizational contexts are associated with lower perceived FRD.
Research limitations/implications
We measure perceptions, not actual discrimination on the basis of family care responsibilities. Our research cannot pinpoint the factors which intensify or lessen actual discrimination, just perceptions of it.
Originality/value
By pinpointing the characteristics of organizations in which perceived FRD occurs, this chapter shows how organizations can create workplaces in which perceived FRD is less likely.
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Nancy Santiago De Jesus and Aurelie Maurice
France, once a pioneer in psychiatry, is now sinking as its population faces major mental health challenges. This includes the 12 Million French individuals with psychiatric…
Abstract
Purpose
France, once a pioneer in psychiatry, is now sinking as its population faces major mental health challenges. This includes the 12 Million French individuals with psychiatric conditions, the lack of appropriate structures and the shortage of skilled mental health professionals, but it also leaves families in critical situations. The purpose of this study is to explore the carers’ caregiving experiences and to suggest ways to organise educational programmes to support mental health carers in France.
Design/methodology/approach
The research was conducted from January 2018 to November 2019. It included French carers of patients with mental conditions. Recorded semi-structured interviews were used and findings were analysed through an inductive thematic analysis and regrouped into key themes.
Findings
Participants had overwhelming negative representations of “mental illness”. The fact that they were excluded from participating in the patient’s health management further added to their misconceptions around mental disability, it limited their communication with their family and amplified their burdens.
Research limitations/implications
There is an urgent need for carer empowerment; carers should be included in educational programmes, they should benefit from French Government subsidies and social-network assistance and receive quality assistance by trained mental health professionals. The critical situation of carers can only be addressed by combining these three steps and through the action of appropriate actors in the field of mental health, thus alleviating the current paradigm of psychiatric care in France.
Originality/value
Thousands of research papers regarding carers have been published in other countries. In addition yet, to the knowledge, only a few investigations on French mental health carers have been conducted to this day. The singularity of this research lies in the rare individual interviews, which provided us with first-hand testimonies of mental health carers in France. This data could be of vital aid for professionals and for policymakers when advocating for better support of carers in mental health.
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Watchara Tabootwong, Katri Vehviläinen-Julkunen, Pornchai Jullamate, Edwin Rosenberg and Hannele Turunen
The purpose of this paper is to describe family caregivers’ experiences of providing care for older people with a tracheostomy during hospitalization.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe family caregivers’ experiences of providing care for older people with a tracheostomy during hospitalization.
Design/methodology/approach
A descriptive phenomenological approach was used in this study. A total of 40 family caregivers were interviewed face-to-face in medical-surgical wards. Data was analyzed using Giorgi’s phenomenological method.
Findings
Family caregivers described meanings of providing care, learning how to provide care, caring activities, impacts of caregiving, support needs and qualities of being a caregiver. Meanings included filial responsibility, spousal attachment and end of life care. Caring activities were varied. Impacts experienced were reported as physical, psychological, social and financial. Caregivers expressed the need for information from the nursing team and assistance from their relatives. Positive caregiver qualities that were described included loving to provide care for older people and confidence and sincerity in caregiving.
Practical implications
Although caring for older people with a tracheostomy was difficult and came with challenging impacts, family caregivers were willing to support their loved ones due to feelings of family responsibility.
Originality/value
The paper addresses family participation in providing care for people with a tracheostomy. They experience physical, psychological, social and financial consequences of caregiving. Therefore, health-care professionals should support family caregivers with education, training and awareness of supports and resources for dealing with problematic impacts and other expressed needs.
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Warren James Donnellan, Kate Mary Bennett and Natalie Watson
Research has shown that informal carers of people living with dementia (PLWD) can be resilient in the face of caregiving challenges. However, little is known about resilience…
Abstract
Purpose
Research has shown that informal carers of people living with dementia (PLWD) can be resilient in the face of caregiving challenges. However, little is known about resilience across different kinship ties. This study aims to update and build on our previous work, using an ecological resilience framework to identify and explore the factors that facilitate or hinder resilience across spousal and adult daughter carers of PLWD.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of 13 carers from North West England and analysed the data using a constructivist grounded theory approach (Charmaz, 2003).
Findings
Adult daughters were motivated to care out of reciprocity, whereas spouses were motivated to care out of marital duty. Spouses had a more positive and accepting attitude towards caregiving and were better able to maintain continuity, which facilitated their resilience.
Research limitations/implications
Resilience emerged on multiple levels and depended on the type of kinship tie, which supports an ecological approach to resilience. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Originality/value
This paper makes a novel contribution to the literature as it uses an in-depth qualitative methodology to compare resilience across spousal and adult daughter carers of PLWD. This study adopts an ecological approach to identify not just individual-level resilience resources but also interactive community- and societal-level resources.
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Kuljit Heer, Michael Larkin and John Rose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of culture in shaping the caregiving experiences of British South Asian families caring for a child with developmental…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of culture in shaping the caregiving experiences of British South Asian families caring for a child with developmental disabilities in the UK. In particular it explores how the coexistence of two distinct cultures (British/South Asian) impacts upon these caregiving experiences.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative design using in-depth interviews and interpretative phenomenological analysis was used with seven parents identifying as British South Asian who had been born in the UK or had moved to the UK as young people.
Findings
Three master themes emerged: living with loss, uncertainty and overwhelming responsibility; learning about disability and facing stigma; and having to cope.
Research limitations/implications
Using a relatively homogeneous sample of carers this study provides an insight into how exposure to two different cultures shapes the understanding and adaptations of British South Asian carers in the UK.
Social implications
Issues in the acculturation of these parents emerge which demonstrate the tensions they face in relating to both South Asian and Western cultural influences. The study makes recommendations for how services can work with such families in order to help them make sense of their children’s disability, access culturally appropriate support and cope with the numerous demands of being a caregiver.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to a growing literature on the experience of South Asian parents who care for children with intellectual disabilities. It has important messages for workers about how to support these individuals most effectively.
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Bharati Sethi, Allison Williams and Rachelle Ireson
There is a growing recognition that when employees who are caregivers lack the organizational support/resources to manage their paid work with care responsibilities, it could…
Abstract
Purpose
There is a growing recognition that when employees who are caregivers lack the organizational support/resources to manage their paid work with care responsibilities, it could result in poor job performance, increase absenteeism, and have an impact on their well-being. Very little is known about managers’ perceptions in supporting their employees through workplace initiatives such as caregiver-friendly workplace policies (CFWPs). The purpose of this paper is: to examine managers’ experience(s) with employees that are engaged in formal paid care and informal care; to explore availability of CFWPs; and to explore managers’ standpoints on offering CFWPs to support their employees.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors draw on the findings from semi-structured qualitative interviews with 20 (n=20) managers working in the health care sector in an urban-rural region in Ontario, Canada.
Findings
Intersectionality analysis of participant interviews revealed three key themes: managers’ experiences with employees who are caregivers; knowledge and availability of CFWPs; and balancing business care with staff care.
Practical implications
Data were drawn from health care sectors in one community in Ontario, Canada and may not generalize to other settings. The small sample size and purposive sampling further limits the generalizability of the findings.
Social implications
Study findings can be applied to develop workplace policies and procedures that are responsive to workers who are providing unpaid care.
Originality/value
This study contributes to limited literature on manager’s perspectives in supporting employees through CFWPs.
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Justin Marcus, Eda Aksoy, Oya Inci Bolat and Tamer Bolat
A growing body of research has suggested that the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted vulnerable groups such as working women, parents and older…
Abstract
Purpose
A growing body of research has suggested that the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted vulnerable groups such as working women, parents and older adults. Accordingly, and via the lens of social role and identity theories on gender and age at work, the authors examined the intersection of age, gender and potential caregiving responsibilities on worker well-being, work-family conflict and performance while working remotely during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
In all, 1,174 Turkish job incumbents working from home either full- or part-time responded to a survey measuring self-reported anxiety, depression, stress, work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict and performance in the summer of 2020.
Findings
Despite using Bayesian modeling, good sample variability on age, gender and caregiving responsibilities, data collection timing allowing for the maximization of variance in individual attitudes toward working from home during the pandemic, outcome measures that evidenced excellent reliability and reasonably good data fit, and the inclusion of appropriate covariates and stringent robustness tests, hypothesized effects were overall found to be null.
Practical implications
The authors suggest that if remote work helps level the playing field, then that is impetus for organizations to further transition into such work arrangements.
Originality/value
The authors speculate on these counterintuitive results and suggest implications for future research and practice on the confluence of remote work and workplace diversity, including the potential benefits of remote work for women and older adults, the role of cultural values and the use of Bayesian methods to infer support for the null.
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Eva M. Tomiak, Andre Samson, Sarah A. Miles, Mireille C. Choquette, Pranesh K. Chakraborty and Pierre J. Jacob
Research was conducted on parents’ experience of caring for a child living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The focus of this research was on the key psychological aspects…
Abstract
Research was conducted on parents’ experience of caring for a child living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The focus of this research was on the key psychological aspects of the process of adjustment to the illness of their child (family and spousal relationship, daily life, emotions, career, spirituality, and coping strategies). There was evidence throughout the study of gender‐specific differences in constructing the different aspects of the shared experience. The main findings included major differences in the initial reaction and coping styles between mothers and fathers. These differences could be perceived as a threat or could serve as a source of isolation between parents. Additional findings included the unequal sharing of caregiving tasks between partners: the primary caregiving role usually being assumed by the mother, with the father playing a supportive role. The unique contribution of this study in further describing the lived experience of parents of a child with DMD is its attention to the internal dynamic of the relationship between mothers and fathers. This dynamic is highly dependent on the respective roles of primary and secondary caregiver. This research has implications for the design and implementation of intervention strategies aimed at couples caring for a child with DMD, or with other severe, chronic, and uniformly fatal illnesses.