Dual-earner parents with disabled children - Family patterns for working and caring

Family strategies for caregiving and income generation are examined in a qu alitative study of employed parents of disabled children in the United King dom. Four family patterns for working and caring emerged: modified single e arner, one-and-a-half earners, dual earners, and flexible dual earners. A n umber of social, economic, and ideological factors contributed to decision making for these families. Gender expectations and related ideology of cari ng were usually the most salient, coloring the meanings ascribed to other i nfluencing factors. Gender assumptions in the wider context underpin the di fficulties many families experience in obtaining formal supports. The autho rs argue that flexible community-based and employer supports are crucial to help parents with disabled children to work and care. Beyond this, however , strategies that challenge gender expectations can extend the range of opt ions available to parents, whereas more traditional approaches perpetuate i nequalities and family hardship.