The Experiences of African American Male Caregivers

Abstract

Aging of the population has led to an increasing number of caregivers. While research has been conducted on caregiver experiences, less is known about the experiences of African American males in the U.S. This qualitative descriptive study describes the experiences of 13 African American men who acted as caregivers to adult chronically ill or debilitated loved ones, the majority of whom provided care during the COVID-19 pandemic. The revised Sociocultural Stress and Coping Model (R-SSCM) guided this study. Individual interviews were conducted via the Zoom application. Content analysis revealed four themes: (1) “My time to take the reins”, (2) “It’s a male thang”, (3) “Caring amid a pandemic”, and (4) “Effects of the caregiver’s journey”. This study’s findings in relation to the literature provide overdue attention to the African American male caregiving experience, especially in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The implications of our findings include the need for more culturally congruent support services for African American male caregivers, as well as increased efforts to encourage trust in the healthcare system—especially in relation to vaccination for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Homens cuidadores informais de idosos dependentes no Brasil

“…A cultura masculina tradicional brasileira 17,24 mostra que homens relatam maior dificuldade e desconforto em assumir tarefas domésticas e cuidados pessoais referentes às pessoas dependentes 16,19,[24][25][26][27][28] . O trabalho doméstico e o cuidado na dimensão material, ou seja, o fazer ainda é inferiorizado e atribuído às mulheres; assim, o homem exercer tais funções é colocar em xeque a hegemonia masculina 10 e as relações de poder no trabalho material e técnico do cuidado 7 , o que nos faz pensar que ainda são desafiadoras a construção dos atributos dos homens que cuidam e a diminuição das desigualdades de poder entre os gêneros 7,8 .…”

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Chronic Stress among Male Caregivers

“…Moreover, there are aspects of male caregiving that may put this group at an additional disadvantage. As mentioned earlier, male caregivers tend not to seek support or help, express feelings of stress [ 16 ], or express discomfort with providing personal care [ 39 ], and some of them may endure until their burdens become overwhelming [ 39 ]. This will make their jobs of caregiving more difficult.…”

“…Chronic stress may result, among other reasons, from having to care for someone with behavioral problems or watching someone experiencing pain [ 34 , 48 ]. More studies on health outcomes may help resolve the paradox in which minority caregivers provide more intensive care and yet report less stress and fewer emotional difficulties [ 9 , 39 ].…”

“…The Sociocultural Stress and Coping Model [ 54 ] posits that cultural values, such as familism and religiosity, affect how stress is appraised and coping strategies are adopted. Additionally, previous studies have shown that cultural aspects may allow African American male caregivers to better cope with caregiving, including spiritualty, a deep sense of commitment, a supportive network, and a desire to keep the care recipient in the home rather than in a nursing home [ 39 , 55 ]. Essentially, community and culture can help African American caregivers manage the challenges of family caregiving [ 56 ].…”

“…Despite the body of literature on male caregiving, especially relating to responsible fatherhood, research on minority male caregiving and disparities based on the race or ethnicity of the caregiver is lacking [ 39 ]. The purpose of this scoping review was to investigate disparities in stress, coping mechanisms, and chronic health outcomes between African American and White male caregivers of older relatives.…”