Social role

Aims and objectives: To explore the experiences of female spousal caregivers in the care of husbands with severe mental illness. Background: Family involvement in the care of patients with chronic illness is essential to provide a backbone of support for them. However, little is known about how female spousal caregivers are confronted with challenges while taking care of their husbands with severe mental illness. Design: An exploratory qualitative study.

Aim: The objective of this study was to explore family caregivers' experiences with the impact of Huntington's disease (HD) on the family structure and roles in the family.

Methodology: We interviewed 15 family caregivers in families affected by HD, based on a semi-structured interview guide. The participants were recruited through hospital departments and a lay organisation for HD in Norway. Data from the interviews were analysed with systematic text condensation.

It is widely accepted that cancer is an intersubjective experience that impacts upon the psychological well-being of people with cancer and informal carers, as well as on couple relationships. This qualitative study examined the nature and consequences of cancer on the relationship between informal carers and the person with cancer, from the perspective of Australian cancer carers. Sixty-two carers (42 women and 20 men), across a range of cancer types, stages and relationship dyads took part in semi-structured interviews.

This paper examines possible determinants of models of the division of earning and caring activities in Canadian couples. Using the General Social Survey on Time Use, we identify five models of the division of work: complementary-traditional, complementary-gender-reversed, women's double burden, men's double burden, and shared roles. While the complementary-traditional model is declining, it still represents a third of couples. Women's double burden is the second largest category, representing 27 percent of couples in 2005, with men's double burden representing another 11 percent.