Caring across Households: Family Networks and Intergenerational Care in Mexico

Ana Fídelia Aparicio-Trejo, El Colegio de Mexico

This study examines how family networks, both co-resident and non-co-resident, reorganize in response to the increasing care needs of their eldest members. Focusing on Mexico, where rapid population aging, social inequality, and limited government support are prominent, the research explores how families adapt to caregiving demands through intergenerational dynamics and interactions between households. The first part reviews Mexican surveys on family and caregiving, highlighting strengths and limitations in capturing interactions between households. While these surveys offer valuable insights into household dynamics, their focus on the household head limits the understanding of non-co-resident caregiving roles and extended family networks. The second part adopts a qualitative approach, reconstructing family and residential histories to examine how caregiving responsibilities are shared between co-resident and non-co-resident family members. Prior research indicates that non-co-resident relatives often play an important role in providing care from a distance, particularly in contexts with limited state support. By exploring how spatial dynamics and residential patterns influence caregiving, the study provides insights into how families in socially vulnerable contexts manage care, addressing gaps in survey data and revealing the complex ways families coordinate care across multiple households.

Keywords: Families, Unions and Households, Older Adults and Intergenerational Relations, Mixed methods research, Population Ageing

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