Caregiving Across the Life Course: Life History Findings from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS)

Informal caregiving, defined as unpaid care provided to a relative or friend with some sort of special need, is a topic of research across different disciplines. Previous research highlights the prevalence and heterogeneity of caregivers in terms of their age, gender, relationship with the care recipient, and the duration of care provision. However, most research focuses on a specific episode of caregiving. Little is known about the people who provide care to multiple recipients throughout their own life. To fill this gap, we examined data from the HRS Spring 2017 Life History Mail Survey (N = 3520; age range 50-101 yrs). Participants reported their relationship with people to whom they had provided unpaid care for ≥ 6 months (max 5) and listed the start and end years of care. Compared with people who had not provided care, caregivers (N = 1000, 28%) were more likely to be women, white, and currently widowed. They cared for their parents (67%), spouses (22%), children (11%), or other relatives (16%) and 30% reported providing care two or more times (M = 1.44, SD = 0.81). Respondents, who reported multiple episodes of caregiving were more likely to be women, widowed, aged between 25 and 50 at the time of first providing care. People who first cared for their spouse were less likely to report multiple caregiving episodes comparing with those who cared for parents or children. Future research will examine the health and well-being consequences associated with caregivers’ histories of providing unpaid care to others.

Keeping families afloat: Foster carer’s parenting experiences during COVID-19 in Ghana and implications for practice

Formal foster care is a relatively new phenomenon in Ghana. The practice is in conformity with international and national policy guidelines to deinstitutionalize and strengthen family-based care for children without adequate parental care. In addition to the known challenges of foster parenting in Ghana (stigma, financial challenges and emotional strain, inexperience of the foster parents), the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19 restrictions may worsen caregivers’ burden and negatively affect children in care. This study explored how foster parents are meeting their caregiving demands during the COVID-19 pandemic in the face of existing and new challenges. Following a participatory practice research approach, a co-constructed interview guide by the researchers and a practitioner was used to conduct in-depth telephone interviews with 13 foster parents. Findings from thematic analysis of the interviews showed challenges, including increased cost of caregiving and multiple caregiving duties as challenges facing foster parents whereas children’s knowledge about the virus, informal support and religious beliefs collectively enhanced caregiving during the pandemic. The findings provide learning about ways to alleviate parenting challenges for foster parents during and after the pandemic. Specifically, interventions that view children as actors for change and strengthen community and religious bodies to deliver psychosocial services would be useful to improve foster parenting.

A NEW FEATURE OF JAPANESE CAREGIVING? COMPOUND CAREGIVING OF OLDER ADULTS IN AN AGING SOCIETY WITH FEWER CHILDREN

Due to the combined effects of longevity of aging parents, fewer children, and caregiving traditions, family members face multiple caregiving responsibilities in Japan. This study examined the emergence of compound caregiving--providing care to multiple adults-- and the relationship of caregiving status to burden, depression, and social support. Data were from the Fukui Longitudinal Caregiver Study, a survey of family caregivers to older Japanese adults who received long-term care services. We analyzed data from 2,025 caregivers whose mean age was 63 years old. Results showed that 9.5% of caregivers provided care for more than two care recipients. Compared to single caregivers, compound caregivers were more significantly burdened. Compound caregivers who reported higher instrumental and informational support from live-in family and higher emotional support from friends showed significantly lower caregiving burden. We discuss how traditional caregiving norms and demographic changes lead to new needs for family support in Japan’s aging society.

The Effect of California’s Paid Family Leave Program on Employment Among Middle-Aged Female Caregivers

Background and Objectives This study examined the effect of a Paid Family Leave program in California (CA-PFL) on employment among middle-aged female caregivers. We also examined differences in the relationship between the availability of paid family leave (PFL) and employment in socioeconomic subgroups of midlife women. Research Design and Methods Data came from multiple years (2000‒2014) of the Current Population Survey (CPS) (N = 68,773 individuals). Applying a Difference in Differences (DiD) approach to removing potential selection biases related to program participation, we used a logistic regression to estimate the effects of PFL. Results There was a significant increase in the likelihood of working based on CA-PFL. This positive effect, however, was found only among the early middle-aged, the near-poor, and those had the highest level of education. Discussion and Implications Among the late middle-aged, caregiving burden may not affect decisions on whether to exit the labor market, and PFL may not significantly mitigate the well-known negative effects of intense and multiple caregiving roles (parents, spouse, and/or children with disabilities). Future studies should examine PFL effects and their correlates such as age-cohorts, caregiving intensity, and retirement patterns. The unexpected null findings of CA-PFL’s effect on employment outcomes for the poor and those with low education levels suggests these vulnerable groups might not be able to fully benefit from the originally intended goal of the policy, instead being left more vulnerable compared to the near poor. Such a possibility increases the importance of focused research and policymaking attention for this group.