Young carers in Sweden

Objective: Children in families experiencing mental health problems, substance abuse, domestic violence or other problems may take great responsibility for domestic chores and personal or emotional care for parents or... [ view full abstract ]

Objective: Children in families experiencing mental health problems, substance abuse, domestic violence or other problems may take great responsibility for domestic chores and personal or emotional care for parents or siblings. They may take more responsibility than children usually are expected to do, often over a long period of time. Also, they may be exposed to neglect and don’t receive the support they need from the adults in their family. While there is a growing body of research in countries such as Great Britain or Australia, knowledge about young carers is still in the beginning in Sweden. This presentation is about a pilot study with children at risk for being young carers.
Method: English questionnaires (for example MACA-YC42 and PANOC-YC20, Joseph, Becker, Becker & Regel 2009; Perceived impact, Cassidy & Giles, 2013) were translated and included into a Swedish survey. The type, amount and impact of caregiving were investigated, as well as psychological well-being. 30 youth at the age of 10 to 18 years participated in the study. They were recruited via support groups for children with parents with mental health problems, substance abuse or other problems.
Results: The main results show that Swedish youth at risk for being young carers differ from youth in other countries in several ways. For example, they do less domestic chores, but perceive less positive and more negative impact of caregiving, as compared to British results (Joseph, Becker, Becker & Regel 2009). Also, they asked for questions about family violence to be included in the questionnaire.
Conclusions: young carers in different countries may report different type, amount and impact of caring. Questionnaires used by social workers or health care providers in order to identify young carers in need for support have to be adapted to the circumstances of each country.