Men and Women Caring for Elderly Family Members

Current data show that most elderly care in the Czech Republic, as well as worldwide, is provided by family members and in most cases women. Men also provide care, but they are less likely to do so, the intensity of the care they do provide is not as great, and the care activities they engage in are of a different type than those performed by women. This article seeks to answer two questions: What share of Czech women and men are caring for an elderly member in the family? Do the experiences of sons and daughters as caregivers differ? For this purpose the article presents a quantitative analysis of the Wave 5 of the SHARE 2013 dataset and a qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with men and women caring for their frail elderly mother (and father). The results indicate that although the share of men providing some care in the CR is similar to the share of women, as carers men spend less time providing care, and they are more likely to care for their wife or partner than for other family members. Daughters are more likely to be the ones who provide care when an elderly parent needs more intensive help. Qualitative data indicate that when caring for their parents, men and women tend to 'do gender', if not in their care practices, then in their narrations of care. Men tend to provide care that is 'good enough' (instead of 'the best' care) and to use managerial and expert discourse when talking about care.