Caringis Culturally Defined As Being natural For

Caring.is Culturally Defined As Being .natural. For Women. (Finch And Groves, 1983). Critically Disc Essay, Research Paper

An increasing ageing population has led to a greater

emphasis on the role of informal carers in providing support for older and

disabled people (Twigg: 1996).. So what

is caring.. Cancian et al (2000)

describe care giving as feelings of affection and responsibility combined with

actions that provide responsively for an individuals personal needs or well

being.. A carer is anyone, irrespective

of age, whose life is in some way restricted because of the need to take

responsibility for the care of a person who has mental health problems, learning

disabilities, is physically disabled or whose health is impaired by sickness or

who is elderly and frail (Cancian et al 2000)..

Britain has an estimated 5.7 million carers and one in six

households contains a carer.. The

numbers of carers providing support for more than 20 or more hours every week

has increased from 1.5 million to 1.7 million since 1990.. In the Northwest 17% of adults – the highest

proportion in the UK . are carers (General Household Survey: 1995).. It is estimated that there are 51,000 young

people under the age of 18 who are carers..

Accurate figures are difficult to obtain due to the hidden nature of

caring.. The average age for becoming a

carer is between 45 to 64 (Travers: 1996)..

Higher proportions of women (14%) than men (11%) are carers.. Family, friends and relatives are the UK.s

5.7 million carers who provide most health and community care. Social Services

and the NHS rely on carer.s willingness and ability to provide care. This care

is worth an estimated £34 billion per year (General Household Survey: 1995).. This essay will discuss arguments for and against women

carers who are traditionally seen as .natural. carers in both formal and

informal sectors.. A general overview of

caring will be taken and arguments will be from both formal and informal

sectors of caring.. The arguments will

be supported through studies that highlight explanations and evidence for women

carers.. In contrast, a discussion about

men as caregivers and why they are the .forgotten carers. will be

emphasised.. In addition, evidence for

men as caregivers and if apathy towards men carers aggravates women.s roles as

.natural. carers will also be discussed..

In conclusion to this essay, suggestions about how gender inequality can

be reduced in caregiving will be analysed. Caring is closely linked to gender.. Consistent finding on family research

suggests that vast majority of carers for friends and relatives with chronic

disabilities are women.. Despite changes

in society over the past few decades, women still do most of the unpaid and

paid caregiving and their feelings and actions of care are naturally associated

with them (Lee: 1998).. Cancian et al (2000) explains the .naturalness. of women

carers with two explanations: biological and social.. The biological explanation suggests that the sex differences and

deep seated psychological differences that develop in early childhood between

men and women explain why women are culturally seen as.. .natural. carers.. Women have the hormones or instincts to provide emotional and

physical care, whilst men have the hormones or instincts to provide good

economical support within the family..

Marks (1997) also supports this argument by suggesting that men have a

two-fold role within the family..

Firstly they provide the resources needed to make the home a safer place

and secondly a male.s task in later stage of baby.s development is to introduce

the baby to the outside world and help the mother and infant to separate.. However the explanation by Marks (1997) is

of a patronising nature, as she does not appreciate women.s efforts to shift

the patriarchal structures of caregiving especially after

industrialisation.. The social explanation by Cancian (2000) suggests that

cultural beliefs and economic opportunities shape how carers are perceived by

society.. Both men and women would focus

on caring rather than focusing on alternate activities if caring was not

devalued by society and if men carers were seen as a .real man. and women

carers as a .good woman. by the society (Cancian et al: 2000, Walker: 1992).. In contrast, Jones (1994) suggests that

caring is socially constructed activity which is connected to women. s

biology.. Women are exploited as unpaid

carers of children, dependants and male partners and therefore they are

excluded from power and authority in the public domain.. This social justification is found in

essentialist arguments about natural, biological and functions of women.. The patriarchal oppression has also led women

to do majority of caring in both inside and outside the family (Jones 1994). .In contrast to Cancian.s (2000) explanations f

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