The Work of Elderly Men Caregivers: From Public Careers to an Unseen World

Approximately 1,000,000men currently care for spouses with cognitive impairment after leaving market-economy careers through normative or early retirement. In the process, they made the difficult transition from work in the public arena to the private, largely invisible world of family care. This article explores how elderly men caregivers adapt to such drastic changes in social location, what resources they call upon to ameliorate the impact of those changes, and what we can learn from their experiences that will inform future research and practice. Data are from a qualitative study of thirty elderly men care-givers in Rochester, New York. Two major themes emerged, demonstrating both struggle and success. The most significant struggle was coping with the isolation of home care; by contrast, many men were able to successfully make the transition through the use of a style of caregiving that incorporated a combination of management and nurturing skills.