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Families, Work, and Care

How do daughters interpret care as a public issue? Exploring identity, emotion and discourse in the narratives of activist-inclined carers of older parents

ORCID Icon &
Pages 455-470 | Received 07 Jan 2019, Accepted 09 Oct 2019, Published online: 13 Nov 2019
 

ABSTRACT

This paper starts from the premise that family care work is more than an individual struggle – it is a public issue requiring collective engagement towards structural change. But how do carers themselves become engaged in forms of activism designed to achieve such change? In this paper, we present findings from an exploration into how five activist-inclined carers of older adults (all daughters) interpret the meaning of care work. We examine whether and how their narratives manifest an understanding of care as a public issue and responsibility. Cases were theoretically sampled from a larger qualitative dataset; each woman participated in 2–3 interviews over a 2-year period. Findings illuminate the complexities of identity, emotion and broader discourses as these intersect in the daughters’ narratives. Echoing the invisibility of carer needs and of the gendered nature of family care work, participants’ activist inclinations tended to foreground the needs of older adults; to the extent that they supported structural changes to help families, this was to assist carers in their primary responsibility for parent care. Moreover, none of the women framed their efforts as part of a feminist struggle. Discussion addresses implications for the empowerment and engagement of carers within broader advocacy movements.

RÉSUMÉ

Cet article part du principe que les activités de soins à la famille sont plus qu’un combat individuel – c’est un enjeu public qui nécessite une implication collective en faveur d’un changement structurel. Mais comment les proches aidantes elles-mêmes se mobilisent-elles sous la forme d’un militantisme visant à réaliser un tel changement? Dans cet article, nous présentons les résultats d’une étude portant sur le sens que cinq proches aidantes (toutes des filles) ayant une tendance au militantisme et s’occupant de personnes âgées donnent à la prestation de soins. Nous examinons si, et de quelle façon, leur récit démontre qu’elles entrevoient les soins de santé comme un enjeu et une responsabilité publics. Des cas ont été échantillonnés en théorie à partir d’un plus vaste ensemble de données qualitatives; chaque femme a participé à 2 ou 3 entretiens sur une période de deux ans. Les résultats font ressortir la complexité de l’identité, de l’émotion et des discours plus larges puisque ceux-ci s’entrecroisent dans les récits des filles. Faisant écho à l’invisibilité des besoins des proches aidantes et à la nature genrée des soins à la famille, la propension au militantisme des participantes avait tendance à céder la place aux besoins des personnes âgées. Dans la mesure où elles appuyaient les changements structurels permettant d’aider les familles, cela permettait d’aider les proches aidantes à accomplir leur principale responsabilité dans la prestation de soins à leurs parents. De plus, aucune des femmes n’associait ses efforts à une lutte féministe. La discussion porte sur les implications en matière d’autonomisation et de mobilisation des proches aidants au sein de mouvements de défense des intérêts plus vastes.

Acknowledgements

We appreciate the contributions of interviewers Sheila Novek, Erin Scott and Lisette Dansereau, as well as the insights and candour of the participants.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

These data are not available because participants did not consent to make their interview transcripts publicly available.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Research Manitoba through an Establishment Award for Dr. Funk.

Notes on contributors

Laura Megan Funk

Laura Funk is an Associate Professor of Sociology who examines how paid and unpaid carers make sense of their experiences, preserve valued identities, and negotiate normative ideals and emotions. In this work, she explores how these processes engage and reproduce broader discourses surrounding age, care and responsibility.

Wanda June Hounslow

Wanda Hounslow is a graduate student and UMGF doctoral fellow. Her multidisciplinary research addresses issues of social justice through feminist and critical analysis of structural, systemic and institutional marginalization.

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