The Mediterranean Welfare Regime and the Economic Crisis by Francisco Javier Moreno-Fuentes Pau Mari-Klose

Author:Francisco Javier Moreno-Fuentes, Pau Mari-Klose [Francisco Javier Moreno-Fuentes, Pau Mari-Klose]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Sociology
ISBN: 9781317661238
Publisher: Taylor and Francis
Published: 2016-01-08T05:00:00+00:00

REDEFINING THE DYNAMICS OF INTERGENERATIONAL FAMILY SOLIDARITY IN SPAIN

Jordi Caïs and Laia Folguera

Department of Sociology and Organizational Analysis, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

ABSTRACT: This article analyses the dynamics of family solidarity in Spain. The existing literature so far has defined the Spanish caring model as familistic due to the primacy of the family in the protection of dependants. However, this article shows that recent data on Spaniards' preferences concerning the care of their family dependents might question the sustainability of the bases of such model. This is consistent with the results of the OASIS Project, according to which societal changes may be leading to family care becoming less duty-driven and more dependent on personal affection and attachment.1 The Spanish welfare state is labelled as familistic because family makes up for the lack of public benefits dampening adverse economic cycles and the problems of its more fragile members: children, young people and, especially, the elderly. Family solidarity is considered beneficial because it contains public spending and generates positive effects of solidarity and security in the population. Moreover, the expectations of the dependent elderly are focused on family, not on social services that always have been scarce in Spain and they are worsening with the economic crisis. But the Spanish welfare state based on familist values appears to be increasingly ineffective and more difficult to sustain. This article explains how changes in family structure and dynamics, along with the high rates of female labour force that Spain has recently achieved, affect family caregiving preferences and strategies.

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