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Paper short abstract:

This study highlights the shifting role of daughters in elder care due to urbanization, nuclear families, and rising female workforce participation. Using LASI data, it emphasizes the need for policies like financial support, mental health services, and community care to ensure equitable caregiving.

Paper long abstract:

The social structures have historically been positioned around patriarchal, patrilineal, and patrilocal principles, with the intergenerational contract (IGC) placing sons at the centre of responsibilities of elderly care in India. However, recent societal shifts—driven by urbanization and increasing female labour force participation—are challenging these entrenched norms. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that 25% of the elderly population in India no longer resides with their children whereas a significant proportion of elderly are cared by their daughters.

Drawing on data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI), this study delves into the evolving role of daughters in elder care, examining the socio-cultural, gendered, and economic dimensions of this transition. The findings reveal a clear shift in caregiving responsibilities, with daughters increasingly taking on roles traditionally reserved for sons not only in the urban and semi-urban settings but also rural India. This shift marks a fundamental change in the caregiving landscape, with daughters balancing caregiving responsibilities alongside their own careers, personal lives, and social obligations. Additionally, the study highlights how urbanization and the decline of joint family structures are further altering caregiving practices. The rise of nuclear family units and daughter-only households especially in urban settings is reshaping caregiving dynamics, with elderly parents are increasingly relying on daughters for both co-residence and care. The study emphasizes the need for policy reforms to support daughters in elder care through financial, mental health, and community-based interventions, ensuring equitable caregiving responsibilities and a sustainable caregiving ecosystem.