The care of dependent family members: Gender analysis in Spanish social policy

Abstract

This manuscript aims to contribute to the debate around the political production of family care in the Spanish context. The objective of this work is to question the relationship between gender and care within the framework of Act 39/2006, of 14th December, on the Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Care for Dependent Persons. Our main interest is to know how Spanish public policy related to social services builds and shapes a whole network of public action that transmits, reinforces and (re) produces gender inequalities. We use a qualitative-interpretative methodological approach. We rely on the documentary review, on the discourse analysis of legislative norms and the exploitation of secondary data extracted from the Spanish Public System for Autonomy and Attention to Dependency. Among the primary results, it is highlighted that the Spanish public policy of attention to dependency is deployed under a family concept, with responsibility for the care of women. The Public Dependency System emphasizes traditional gender roles and helps legitimize existing patterns of inequality. We conclude reporting about the need to reformulate the implementation of this System to disengage families, especially women, from care. The theoretical proposal that is defended is to move towards a public model of social provision that is fair and equitable in the field of gender equality.