Content area
Abstract
This dissertation is a sociological analysis of the kin care between adult siblings when one sibling has a mental illness and a discussion of the social meaning of these acts. The curiosities guiding this inquiry intersect at the nexus of three distinct theoretical domains: (1) sociology of adult siblings; (2) the dynamics of family caregiving networks; and (3) implications of current mental health policy for adults with serious mental illness. Investigation of adult sibling care and the scope of help they provide across a spectrum of need is largely missing in each of these areas.
I employ qualitative methods and rely on inductive grounded theory methodology to gain insight into adult sibling kin care in circumstances wherein one sibling has mental illness. I conducted in-depth interviews with 35 individuals who provide assistance to their adult sibling with mental illness. These data offer a window into the lived experiences of adult sibling relationships through richly detailed first–hand accounts of the manner in which these individuals describe and express their understanding of the nuanced dimensions of their helping actions. The analytical approach of this project falls squarely within the interpretative tradition of those sociologists whose research on various aspects of family life elicits meanings and conceptual understandings to advance our knowledge of kinship relations.
This research addressed two primary domains of inquiry—the practice of involvement that adults have in the lives of their siblings with mental illness and the social meaning of these acts. Interviews elicited the helping behaviors of adult siblings, the factors which influenced the decisions made by individuals related to sharing sibling care, the integration of public and private resources in the care of adults with mental illness, and the personal interpretation individuals attach to their choices and their actions. These data expand on current understandings of family care networks by exploring kin care between adult siblings within the set of circumstances presented when one individual has a mental illness. This study also augments our knowledge of the ways in which mental illness impacts family life from a distinct perspective—that of sibling relationships.
In this research I investigated the wide-ranging and extensive help adults provide to their siblings with mental illness and discern five analytically distinct dimensions of sibling help. These data suggest that individual's helping practices differ across these domains, particularly with respect to social characteristics such as gender and age as well as severity of illness, and that sibling boundaries become malleable in the context of sibling kin care. In this dissertation I demonstrate how the work of sibling care is embedded in a constellation of ideological assumptions about adult sibling relationships which organize its social and material character. By drawing on a discourse of kinship obligations, the culture of sibling egalitarianism, the ideology of independence and the expectations of reciprocal kin connections, the men and women in this research conceive of their sibling responsibilities and conceptualize their sibling help within the context of this sociocultural milieu which prescribes what it means to be a "normal" sibling.
These research findings have distinct implications for the sociology of kinship, social policies with the aim of supporting those individuals with mental illness living in the community as well as policies related to family care responsibilities. Results of this study enhance the current state of knowledge about sibling ties, the role of adult siblings in the care of individuals with mental illness as well as the textured dimensions of sibling helping involvement. These findings also shed light on the supports adult family members draw on in their care of siblings, and point to voids in state policy and programs with respect to sibling eligibility. At present, acknowledgement of sibling care is largely absent in our social policy landscape. As such, these findings may be particularly useful with respect to current policy conversations. The dissertation project highlights the extent and varied dimensions of helping behaviors among adult siblings and the strong need to engender dialogue about both the prevalence and the significance of adult sibling care in the context of mental illness or otherwise.
