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Impact of informal caregiving on depressive symptoms among a national cohort of men

Published Date: 7.4.2024

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Theme: Carer health and wellbeing

Sub-theme: Mental health

Carer recognition Mental health Gender Longitudinal Quantitative data

Verification Statement

This publication / resource is hosted on a publicly available external link. If the full text is not publicly accessible, summary points are included and a contact method for the author(s) is provided, where available.

The summary information presented is based on content submitted by an author or other user
, along with publicly available information about the publication / resource added by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team.

All content is reviewed, edited and approved by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team, in line with our Submission Guidelines.


To report an issue or request a change, please complete our Feedback Form.

 

Theme: Carer health and wellbeing

Sub-theme: Mental health

View Publication Carer recognition Mental health Gender Longitudinal Quantitative data

Verification Statement

This publication / resource is hosted on a publicly available external link. If the full text is not publicly accessible, summary points are included and a contact method for the author(s) is provided, where available.

The summary information presented is based on content submitted by an author or other user
, along with publicly available information about the publication / resource added by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team.

All content is reviewed, edited and approved by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team, in line with our Submission Guidelines.


To report an issue or request a change, please complete our Feedback Form.

 

Impact of informal caregiving on depressive symptoms among a national cohort of men

Published Date: 7.4.2024

  • Author/ Authors

    Tania L. King, Yamna Taouk, Peter P. Vitaliano, Humaira Maheen

  • Suggested citation (APA 7th edition)

    King, T. L., Vitaliano, P. P., Maheen, H., & Taouk, Y. (2024). Impact of informal caregiving on depressive symptoms among a national cohort of men. Journal of epidemiology and community health, jech-2023-221814. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2023-221814

Long Summary

This article examines the negative effects that caregiving can have on the mental health of male caregivers. Given that worldwide, most informal carers are women, most existing research and evidence largely relates to female caregivers. As such, there is limited research looking at how caregiving impacts the mental health of male caregivers. One issue this study highlights is the disproportionate levels of caregiving carried out by women, with growing calls to shift the distribution of care more equally between the genders.

    Key Messages for Carers


  • Taking on a caregiving role is associated with higher depressive symptoms among men.
  • Society's gendered expectations of caregiving may compound stress and depressive symptoms among men.
  • As such, recognising the value and contribution of care, as well as normalising male caregiving with benefit both men and women.

  • Key Messages for Policy Makers


  • One of the key takeaways is the need to increase recognition and support for informal carers overall, both men and women. Well considered policy initiatives such as non-transferable leave for fathers in Norway can help aid this development.
  • Informal carers contribute immensely to Australia. The replacement cost of informal care to the economy in 2020 was an estimated $77.9 billion, which is what the economy would be paying the formal care sector if there was no informal care provision.
  • Given the growing participation of men in caregiving roles, this reinforces the importance of examining the subsequent mental health impacts of informal caregiving.

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The Carer Knowledge Exchange is led by Carers NSW and proudly funded by the NSW Government. It was established as a partnership between Carers NSW and the Institute for Public Policy and Governance (IPPG) at the University of Technology Sydney from 2021-2024. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn and work.