Caregiving and volunteering among older people in Sweden - prevalences and profiles

This study examines the role of older people in Swedish society by exploring the prevalence of their informal caregiving and volunteering and by analyzing the profiles of these contributors of unpaid work. Data were collected by means of telephone interviews in a Swedish representative survey conduc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of aging & social policy 2009, Vol.21 (4), p.352
Main Authors: Jegermalm, Magnus, Jeppsson Grassman, Eva
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
civil society
informal care
INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH AREAS
older people
Older people and ageing
SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP
SOCIAL SCIENCES
TVÄRVETENSKAPLIGA FORSKNINGSOMRÅDEN
volunteering
welfare state
Äldre och åldrande
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Summary:This study examines the role of older people in Swedish society by exploring the prevalence of their informal caregiving and volunteering and by analyzing the profiles of these contributors of unpaid work. Data were collected by means of telephone interviews in a Swedish representative survey conducted in 2005. Our analysis reveals three distinct profiles of people involved in unpaid activities. One of these consists of those involved both in informal helpgiving and volunteering, a group that has been labeled “super helpers” or “doers” in earlier research. It is important for social policy planners to recognize these groups of older people and better understand the dynamics of their unpaid work in order to ascertain whether they might need support as providers and to enhance their well-being. There does not seem to be any simple contradiction between the parallel existence of a universal welfare model of the Swedish kind and an extensive civil society in which older people play important roles as active citizens.
ISSN:0895-9420
1545-0821
DOI:10.1080/08959420903167066