抄録
Entering the era of the super-aging population, care for the elderly is a critical problem in Japan. Although there is a consensus that all of society must participate in care for the elderly, the needs and expectations for family care seem to be increasing. This thesis examines three viewpoints by surveying the literature on family caregivers and families caring for the elderly: (1) the factors that have positive and negative mental/physical effects on family caregivers, (2) the life cycle of family caregivers over a life span, and (3) gender-sensitive family psychology and family therapy. The third is considered the most important and includes several points: the family life cycle of family caring for the elderly, sharing care functions within the family, gender issues concerning the concepts of care and family, and specific experiences and changes in family caring for the elderly. To understand the suffering involved and the implications of family caring for the elderly, it is necessary to see this as a system and to incorporate a gender-sensitive perspective. Support based on (3) is discussed by referring to systems theory, integrative family therapy, and the narrative therapy approach. Finally, the ethics of research in this field, the need to reconsider the concept of care, and sensitivity to the consequent functions of this kind of support are discussed.
Entering the era of the super-aging population, care for the elderly is a critical problem in Japan. Although there is a consensus that all of society must participate in care for the elderly, the needs and expectations for family care seem to be increasing. This thesis examines three viewpoints by surveying the literature on family caregivers and families caring for the elderly: (1) the factors that have positive and negative mental/physical effects on family caregivers, (2) the life cycle of family caregivers over a life span, and (3) gender-sensitive family psychology and family therapy. The third is considered the most important and includes several points: the family life cycle of family caring for the elderly, sharing care functions within the family, gender issues concerning the concepts of care and family, and specific experiences and changes in family caring for the elderly. To understand the suffering involved and the implications of family caring for the elderly, it is necessary to see this as a system and to incorporate a gender-sensitive perspective. Support based on (3) is discussed by referring to systems theory, integrative family therapy, and the narrative therapy approach. Finally, the ethics of research in this field, the need to reconsider the concept of care, and sensitivity to the consequent functions of this kind of support are discussed.
