Theories of Gender in Adjustment to Medical Illness (DRAFT)

Caregiving has historically been considered the role of women, yet the number of male caregivers has increased substantially in recent years. Such changes call for systematic understanding of the role of gender in caregiving processes. This chapter summarizes theoretical perspectives pertaining to gender issues in caregiving and then evaluates their adequacy for the cancer caregiver population. Despite lack of gender theory–driven research in cancer caregiving, studies support the adequacy of gender theories in identifying subgroups of caregivers who are vulnerable to adverse effects of cancer in the family and in developing evidence-based interventions. Integration of the issues related to the medical trajectory of the patients, lifespan stage of the caregivers, sociocultural resources, and risk factors in this emerging area of gender-oriented research and practice in cancer caregiver is highly encouraged.

Family caregivers · Political science · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Sociocultural evolution · Childhood Cancer Survivors' Quality of Life · Clinical Psychology · Family Support in Illness · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Medicine · Psychology · Gerontology