Perspectives on Caregiving Across the Life Span: Current Status and Future Directions

Abstract

Although the division of this book into two parts is consistent with a general perception that caring for children is a process distinct from that of caring for adults, the common elements of the caregiving experience become clear when we pay attention to the themes that emerge from all of the chapters. The unique experiences and challenges of caregiving that parents and other caregivers encounter as children develop and mature from infancy through late childhood were described in Part I. These chapters also identify several aspects of the caregiving experience that are shared by caregivers who attend to the needs of children across the spectrum of developmental stages. Similarly, the chapters in Part II of the book focused on the unique and common experiences of caregivers who attend to the needs of adults in early, middle, and old age, including those who are at the end of life. The insights about the unique challenges associated with each stage of life highlight the ubiquitous change that characterizes the caregiving experience while the elements of caregiving identified as common to all groups provide a foundation for understanding caregiving as normative familial role that prevails across the life span. Here we summarize six themes that highlight the extent to which the role of caregiver is assumed and experienced in a similar manner regardless of the characteristics of the care recipient.