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Who Cares for the Caregivers? A Gerontologist Analyzes the Growing Phenomenon in Argentina and the World
🇦🇷 Argentina /Culture & Society

Who Cares for the Caregivers? A Gerontologist Analyzes the Growing Phenomenon in Argentina and the World

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Gerontologist Claudia Viascán Castillo highlighted the growing phenomenon of the "sandwich generation" in Argentina and globally, where middle-aged adults care for both children and aging parents simultaneously.
  • This dual responsibility creates sustained psychological and social pressure on adults, a situation exacerbated by increased life expectancy, later parenthood, and women's employment.
  • Viascán Castillo pointed out that the caregiving system, particularly in Argentina, is ill-equipped to handle this burden, leading to physical, emotional, and psychological desgaste among caregivers, predominantly women.

Adults in their 40s and 50s are increasingly finding themselves caught between the demands of raising children and caring for aging parents, a situation gerontologist Claudia Viascán Castillo describes as the "sandwich generation."

Today everything is mixed because there are generations in the middle of the needs of parents and children.

— Claudia Viascán CastilloExplaining the 'sandwich generation' phenomenon.

This "lasagna generation," as she also calls it, faces sustained pressure due to a confluence of societal shifts. These include increased female participation in the workforce, later-than-usual childbearing, declining birth rates, and a significant rise in life expectancy. The result is a complex family dynamic where multiple generations coexist and require simultaneous attention, a trend Viascán Castillo notes is not unique to Argentina but is a growing global phenomenon.

The care system in Argentina is not good. There is no training, no learning, no public policies.

— Claudia Viascán CastilloOn the inadequacy of support systems for caregivers.

Viascán Castillo expressed strong concern about the inadequacy of current caregiving systems, particularly in Argentina, stating, "The care system in Argentina is not good. There is no training, no learning, no public policies." This lack of support places an immense burden on individuals, leading to what she terms "physical, emotional, and psychological desgaste" for those who provide care.

People who care have physical, emotional, and psychological desgaste.

— Claudia Viascán CastilloDescribing the impact of caregiving on individuals.

Culturally, the responsibility of caregiving continues to fall disproportionately on women. While acknowledging a growing involvement of men, Viascán Castillo observed that their participation is often concentrated on childcare rather than eldercare. She also touched upon the "terrible" task of setting boundaries with parents, highlighting the emotional complexities involved in navigating these familial roles.

It is cultural that the woman is the one who cares. She cares for the child, the husband, the parents.

— Claudia Viascán CastilloOn the cultural assignment of caregiving roles to women.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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