Caring at Home: Stories of Adult, Elderly Women, and Migrant Caregivers

Manuela Vaccari, Università degli Studi di Verona
Rosanna Cima, Università degli Studi di Verona

The research is focused on the aging experience in domestic groups that include the caring relationships among elderly women, their adult daughters, and migrant caregivers. Migrant caregivers, who number ~1 million in Italy, are the typical persons who care for the urban-based elderly, as it is thought to be the most economical solution to caring for the aged. Using a qualitative approach based on narrative and a relatively small sample, we are documenting accounts about the relationships among the women who constitute these groups: elderly women, daughters, migrant caregivers, and social assistants. Entering the homes to meet the elderly women and their assistants, asking for meeting in informal places, we encourage the individuals in each setting to speak about themselves and about the others. The story-telling elicits many life stories, creating occasions of insight about the social situation, helping to express conflicts and problems, and promoting reflection and well-being between generations.