From the state to the family or to the market? Consequences of reduced residential care in Sweden

TLDR: In this paper, the role of the state, the family and the market as providers of care for older people in different social groups in Sweden in the 2000s is analyzed based on data from the Swedish Living Conditions Surveys for the years 2002-2003 and 2009-2010.

Abstract: Starting with the ideals of universalism and de-familisation, this article analyses the role of the state, the family and the market as providers of care for older people in different social groups in Sweden in the 2000s. The analysis is based on data from the Swedish Living Conditions Surveys for the years 2002–2003 and 2009–2010, with a total of 1,805 individuals in need of practical help aged 65 years and older.In the 2000s the number of beds in residential care was reduced by one fourth, thus increasing family care considerably in all social groups. However, there was an interaction between class and gender. The help given by daughters increased primarily among older people with lower levels of education while the help given by sons increased primarily among those with higher education, making the help given by sons and daughters equally common in this latter group.Stimulated by the introduction of a tax deduction on household services and personal care in 2007, privately purchased services also increased. These services, however, still play a marginal role, in particular for older people with lower levels of education. A class-related pattern remains in that family care is more common among older people with less education whereas privately purchased services are more common among those with higher education. Thus, even if there is a trend of re-familisation in all social groups, the dualisation of care challenging universalism remains, and working class daughters are still the most affected by the cutbacks.