When Children Become Responsible for Care

Analysis of Cases in Which Children Took/Did Not Take on the Caring Role

Abstract

 This paper aims to discuss young caring where a parent’s condition changes greatly in the course of a few years. The first half of the paper reviews the national survey of young carers performed in Britain in 1995, 1997 and 2003, and recent studies of Japanese young carers, such as qualitative research into children who care for parents with physical disabilities, mental illness, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or deafness. The latter half of the paper analyzes three case studies from Japan. While two of the informants did provide domestic and emotional care, the third recognized that he had not taken on the caring role in the case of his mother.

 This paper points out that the resources available to the family influence how family members adjust to the new situation. If the care role and financial responsibility have already been adjusted, for example because the mother is in paid employment, or relatives live close by and support the family, the damage caused by the onset of parental illness is relatively small. Other factors also reduce the caring responsibility of the children: what their disabled parents can do, whether there is a person who actually supplies care, the physical distance between the child and the disabled family member, and the parents’ natural wish for the children to lead their own lives. However, “ the right to provide/not to provide care” for children is not as well protected for adult carers.

  Young carers question how the direction of care is taken for granted under the assumption that parents take care of children and the non-disabled take care of the disabled. Although the concept of the “young carer” is not yet well known in Japan, recognition of and support for young carers will help to establish a better system for community care in the country.