Abstract
Abstract
Introduction: Demographic ageing is producing a prolongation of working life as well as a growth in the number of senior citizens (also over 80) usually affected by chronic conditions and, because of this, often non-self-sufficient. These changes modify the workforce and the family structures as, increasingly, individuals prolonging their work life will have to provide care to elderly relatives as well as minors at the same time: the phenomenon that Ward and Spitze (1998) defined as the Sandwich Generation, as a middle-aged cohorts who are sandwiched between simultaneous responsibilities to the older and the younger generations by combining their role as parents, children, workers and spouses, is therefore overwhelming. Moreover, in countries such as Italy, where senior citizens welfare systems are still inadequate, what survives is a model of care provided by relatives, which manly relies on women. Because of the reforms to the pension system they will remain on the job market until they reach 60-65 years of age. In this way, the perspective on research and intervention concerning life-work balance is altered. Research and intervention processes on work-life balance, that are basically built on family models with mostly child-care responsibilities, are in this sense modifying their studies perspective. AIM OF THE STUDY: Because of the increasing level of complexity, the aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between work and family domains by taking into account both the direction and the quality of reciprocal interactions between the two. Moreover, we took into consideration the presence of children and their age group as well as the family care-load, differentiating between women and men.
Introduction: Demographic ageing is producing a prolongation of working life as well as a growth in the number of senior citizens (also over 80) usually affected by chronic conditions and, because of this, often non-self-sufficient. These changes modify the workforce and the family structures as, increasingly, individuals prolonging their work life will have to provide care to elderly relatives as well as minors at the same time: the phenomenon that Ward and Spitze (1998) defined as the Sandwich Generation, as a middle-aged cohorts who are sandwiched between simultaneous responsibilities to the older and the younger generations by combining their role as parents, children, workers and spouses, is therefore overwhelming. Moreover, in countries such as Italy, where senior citizens welfare systems are still inadequate, what survives is a model of care provided by relatives, which manly relies on women. Because of the reforms to the pension system they will remain on the job market until they reach 60-65 years of age. In this way, the perspective on research and intervention concerning life-work balance is altered. Research and intervention processes on work-life balance, that are basically built on family models with mostly child-care responsibilities, are in this sense modifying their studies perspective. AIM OF THE STUDY: Because of the increasing level of complexity, the aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between work and family domains by taking into account both the direction and the quality of reciprocal interactions between the two. Moreover, we took into consideration the presence of children and their age group as well as the family care-load, differentiating between women and men.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - 16 May 2013 |
| Event | Work, Stress and Health 2013: Protecting and Promoting Total Worker Health - Los Angeles, United States Duration: 16 May 2013 → 19 May 2013 https://www.apa.org/wsh/past/2013 |
Conference
| Conference | Work, Stress and Health 2013 |
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| Country/Territory | United States |
| City | Los Angeles |
| Period | 16/05/13 → 19/05/13 |
| Internet address |