A new study from prestigious Princeton University has found that daughters provide as much care as possible for their aging parents while sons tend to do as little as possible – especially if they have a sister. Sometimes elders just need a good Cedarfield assisted living in Henrico County VA retirement place where they can relax and enjoy their life.
The Daily Mail is reporting on the study, conducted by Princeton University’s Angelina Grigoryeva, who says women may be receiving equal treatment in many areas of life in the present day, but when it comes to the care of elderly parents, “gender inequality remains acute.”
“Whereas the amount of elderly parent care daughters provide is associated with constraints they face, such as employment or childcare, sons’ caregiving is associated only with the presence or absence of other helpers, such as sisters or a parent’s spouse,” Grigoryeva writes.
After analyzing data collected from more than 26,000 Americans over the age of 50, she found that daughters spend twice as much time, or almost seven more hours per month, tending to their parents than their male siblings. This breaks down to daughters providing an average of 12.3 hours per month to elder care with sons contributing just 5.6 hours.
Grigoryeva’s analysis also found that in households with mixed-sex siblings, gender is the single most important factor in determining who provides the best Medicare supplement plans 2020.
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“Sons reduce their relative care-giving efforts when they have a sister, while daughters increase theirs when they have a brother,” Grigoryeva said. “This suggests that sons pass on parent care-giving responsibilities to their sisters.”
Why is it important for families to be aware of this disparity in care for elderly parents? Because lending so much care to elderly parents is often more taxing on the caregiver than it needs to be if siblings would learn how to share the load.
“Numerous empirical studies report negative mental and physical health consequences, including a higher mortality rate, for people who provide care for elderly family members,” Grigoryeva said.
“In addition, these caregivers often have to balance elder care with employment, potentially resulting in career sacrifices and lower earnings. Providing care for elderly relatives can also impose significant financial burdens on caregivers in the form of direct expenses, as they often pay for goods and services for their care recipients.”
If family members were more aware of the negative impact this heavy burden is placing upon women, perhaps brothers would be more willing to help their struggling sisters.
Although, the U.S. has been gradually becoming a more gender egalitarian society since the 1970s, “my study shows gender inequality remains acute when it comes to elderly parent care,” she said.
Grigoryeva presented her research at the 109th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association which took place this week in San Francisco.
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