Family or state responsibility? Elderly- and childcare policy preferences in Spain

Abstract

Purpose Spain is typically considered a familialistic country where the family is the main responsible for individuals’ well-being. Recent demographic, socioeconomic and policy changes raise the question to what extent familialism is regarded as the preferred care arrangement in society or whether more state support is considered legitimate. The purpose of this paper is to analyse individual preferences among Spanish residents regarding care responsibility for pre-school children and the frail elderly, and the factors that influence such preferences. Design/methodology/approach Representative data from the 2012 International Social Survey Programme are used (n=1419). Six patterns of care responsibility that capture preferences regarding who, between the family or the state, should provide and pay for the care of pre-school children and the frail elderly are identified. Logistic regressions are performed on each care responsibility pattern to analyse the factors influencing individuals’ preferences. Findings Multiple preferences coexist and state responsibility is often preferred over family responsibility, especially for elderly-care. It suggests that the tendency to rely on the family in Spain is due to insufficient support rather than to familialistic values. Individuals who usually bear most care work responsibilities, such as women and individuals in caring ages, or those with a poor health, high care load or low income consider there should be extra-family support. Individuals’ values also matter: the least religious, the most supportive of maternal employment and left-wing voters are most likely to reject traditional care arrangements. Originality/value This is the first study to analyse both elderly- and childcare policy preferences in one single study. It shows that childcare is more often seen as a family responsibility than elderly care.

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