Family support for the dependent elderly: Microeconometric analyses of individual and family caregiving behavior.

Summary In the face of an aging population, the expected increase in the demand for long-term care raises the question of the role that our societies wish to entrust to families in the care of dependent elderly people. In this research, we conduct three micro-econometric analyses of individual and family caregiving behaviors. Three major results emerge. First, the evidence of an interdependence of caregiving behaviours within the family leads us to question the idea of a programmed decrease in informal care. Secondly, the reduction in the supply of work beyond a certain volume of assistance points to the limits of a public policy aimed at both increasing the activity of older people and keeping the oldest populations at home. Finally, the use of public assistance for caregiving has a relatively modest effect of crowding out family assistance.