Introduction

This chapter addresses family care as an important phenomenon in inter- and intragenerational relations, which will become increasingly important in Europe given the current demographic changes (see Ferring, 2010). Age-related diseases, functional declines, and inabilities to perform daily activities are ‘normal’ parts of the later life of many older people. Family members are then among the most important providers of care, in particular spouses and adult children (for example, Wolff and Kasper, 2006). Emerging impairments and the subsequent need for care are likely to initiate a change in the prior marital or child–parent relationship as well as in the life course and individual attributes of caring spouses or caring children. These changes will continue as the disablement progresses and the demand for care increases, as epitomised by the term ‘caregiving career’ (Aneshensel et al, 1995). It is therefore obvious to analyse family caregiving from the perspective of a discipline specialised on change over the life course, that is, life-span developmental psychology.

This has only rarely been done in prior research. As a notable exception, Roberto and Jarrott (2008) applied the metatheoretical assumptions of life-span developmental psychology proposed by Baltes (1987) to the field of family caregiving for older adults (see also Shifren, 2009). This chapter will refer to more specific core concepts of life-span developmental psychology such as critical life events (Filipp and Aymanns, 2010), developmental tasks (McCormick et al, 2011), developmental goals and intentional self-development (Brandtstädter, 2001, 2011). These concepts allow, in connection with action- and emotion-theoretical approaches, for a more comprehensive and coherent picture of family caregiving for older people. This applies in particular to the positive experiences of caregiving in addition to the negative ones (‘burden’) and with respect to possible developmental gains resulting from caregiving such as competence development and personal growth.

Caregiving situations as critical life circumstances: demands and adaptation

The incidence of a disability of an older relative and the corresponding provision of care often meet the definition of a ‘critical life event’, which is an event that leads to a discontinuity and destabilisation of prior action orientations and life orientations (see Filipp, 2007). In this chapter, the term critical life circumstances will be used, to include also those cases where the disability does not arise suddenly (for example, from a stroke), but develops slowly (for example, from Alzheimer's disease) and where not just temporary care, but also long-term care is required.