Sons who care: examining the experience and meaning of filial caregiving for married and never-married sons.
In filial caregiving, women typically provide more care than men. The numerical predominance of female caregivers has been explained such that diversity among male caregivers has been overlooked. That is, "internalist" explanations, which emphasize the differing socialization experience of females and males, tend to homogenize each gender's caregiving experience. "Externalist" explanations, which emphasize various factors that push or pull women and men into caregiving, reduce the actors involved to passive agents whose subjective understanding of caregiving over time is ignored. Both explanations divert attention from the diversity in male caregiving. This article presents qualitative data derived from interviews with 48 caregiving sons to provide evidence of that diversity. Some themes are common to both married and never-married male caregivers, yet there are also systematic differences between the two groups of caregivers. For example, caregiving for married sons was more limited; caregiving for never-married sons was a more central element in their lives.
Campbell
Lori D
LD
Sociology and Health, Aging and Society, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. lcambe@mcmaster.ca
D000368:Aged; D017028:Caregivers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage; D008875:Middle Aged; D009679:Nuclear Family / Q000523:psychology*; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012847:Single Person / Q000523:psychology*