Suchergebnisse

Using a social exchange perspective and data from a national sample of 978 spouse and child caregivers of older family members, this study assessed the association between caregiver relationship and gender and the costs and rewards of caregiving. We also evaluated whether relationship and gender moderate the effects of helpfulness on caregiver costs and rewards. Results supported the hypotheses that women, whether wives or daughters, experience more caregiving costs than do men, and that adult children experience more rewards than do spousal caregivers. In addition, care recipient helpfulness was associated with greater increases in rewards for spousal caregivers than for adult children caregivers.

The responsibilities associated with looking after grandchildren can be a source of considerable worry for grandparents if they are their primary caregivers. Most of the research on this topic has been conducted in the United States with grandparents who are caring for grandchildren because of family crisis. In contrast, this study focuses on grandparents in Thailand who are caring for grandchildren due to the migration of their adult children seeking income. Interviews were conducted with 48 grandparents from three provinces in Thailand. Using thematic analysis, we identified the major kinds of worries experienced by these grandparents: family relationships, finances, the risky behavior and safety of their grandchildren, and the future. We explore each of these worries in depth and contrast Thai grandparents' experiences with those of grandparents in the United States.

The authors describe intergenerational approaches to family treatment. The theories of five intergenerational practitioners are briefly discussed. Findings from a research project that examined the relative effectiveness of two different intergenerational approaches are provided.

The help that elders provide to their adult children has received limited attention in the caregiving literature. To address this gap, data were drawn from two samples of caregiving couples: 63 focus group participants and 618 survey respondents. Survey results indicated that help from aging parents is associated with a complex pattern of benefits and costs. Focus group data identified the kinds of help provided by older parents (i.e., financial, emotional, child care, and household tasks) and illuminated why caregivers experience such help as a mixed blessing. Suggestions are offered for practitioners who work with caregivers.

This qualitative study explores the perspectives of aging mothers to understand the ways in which respect is experienced in relationships involving aging mothers and adult daughters with mental illness. Data came from audiotaped personal interviews with a purposive sample of 21 mothers (ages 52–90) of adult daughters with a serious mental illness. An interpretative phenomenological approach was used to analyze transcripts and identify the forms of respect described by aging mothers. Aging mothers and their daughters with mental illness experience multiple forms of respect; however, the meanings of respect vary by generation. These findings have practice, educational, and research implications for social workers serving aging families dealing with mental illness.

Exploring how caregivers juggle their responsibilities of work and family, the authors of this volume suggest that dependant care needs to be addressed as a corporate, family and community concern. Drawing from literature as well as from their own extensive research, they present a thorough investigation of the stress factors experienced by workers caught between the frequently conflicting demands of these two roles. Policies, benefits and services reviewed range from approaches that intervene in the caregiving process to those that change the world of work with such alternatives as flexible w