Traditional gender roles and effects of dementia caregiving within a South Asian ethnic group in England

Background: Despite the integral role that women play in the care of older adults in South Asian families, limited empirical data are available on the impact of migration from South Asia to England. The purpose of this research was to examine caring for a family member with dementia from a gender role perspective.

Methods: Data were gathered in two phases: 1) focus groups and 2) semi-structured interviews. Focus groups were held with the general public and semi-structured interviews were conducted with family carers. Data were audio-recorded and analysed using thematic analysis. The NVivo qualitative software was utilised to simplify the thematic analysis.

Results: While traditionally family care for frail older adults has been mainly provided by women in South Asian families, this study’s samples revealed how women’s attitudes towards caregiving are changing in British societies.

Conclusion: There remained a dearth of research about socioeconomic transformations in South Asian women’s migration to Western countries which could contribute to deterring them from providing family care. More research is warranted to understand the ways in which migration shapes gender relations in the South Asian families and its impact on care for the frail elderly.