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The logic of ‘home care time’

Jönson, Håkan LU ; Möllergren, Glenn LU and Harnett, Tove LU (2024) In Time & Society
Abstract
The study investigates temporal aspects of home care in Sweden, as experienced and interpreted by older care users. Data consists of 34 interviews with 36 care users and 15 participant observations during home visits by care staff. By focusing on care users’ recalibration of time and events, the analysis identifies a form of interpreted experience – here termed ‘home care time’ – that comprises two governing sublogics – care users’ understanding of themselves as part of the home care organisation, and care users’ empathetic understanding for care staff – where each sublogic evolved from several approaches where care users expressed time empathy, tried to increase time efficiency, or adapted to other care users. Some care users described... (More)
The study investigates temporal aspects of home care in Sweden, as experienced and interpreted by older care users. Data consists of 34 interviews with 36 care users and 15 participant observations during home visits by care staff. By focusing on care users’ recalibration of time and events, the analysis identifies a form of interpreted experience – here termed ‘home care time’ – that comprises two governing sublogics – care users’ understanding of themselves as part of the home care organisation, and care users’ empathetic understanding for care staff – where each sublogic evolved from several approaches where care users expressed time empathy, tried to increase time efficiency, or adapted to other care users. Some care users described attempts to take control and influence temporal aspects. Such attempts resulted in adjustments to services at the individual care user's request, but they were also associated with the risk of conflict between care users and care workers. The study addresses the gap in the literature, which mostly studies and theorises care from a care provider perspective. The logic of home care time identified in the study can explain why older people may say they are satisfied with services though poorly performed due to time shortages. This explanation is a corrective to stereotypes that portray older care users as docile and grateful. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
in
Time & Society
pages
21 pages
publisher
SAGE Publications
external identifiers
  • scopus:85194894610
ISSN
0961-463X
DOI
10.1177/0961463X241258310
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
12dc4295-a68b-4fee-9b55-97d6e0ca19f8
date added to LUP
2024-06-25 15:44:59
date last changed
2024-06-26 13:15:18
@article{12dc4295-a68b-4fee-9b55-97d6e0ca19f8,
  abstract     = {{The study investigates temporal aspects of home care in Sweden, as experienced and interpreted by older care users. Data consists of 34 interviews with 36 care users and 15 participant observations during home visits by care staff. By focusing on care users’ recalibration of time and events, the analysis identifies a form of interpreted experience – here termed ‘home care time’ – that comprises two governing sublogics – care users’ understanding of themselves as part of the home care organisation, and care users’ empathetic understanding for care staff – where each sublogic evolved from several approaches where care users expressed time empathy, tried to increase time efficiency, or adapted to other care users. Some care users described attempts to take control and influence temporal aspects. Such attempts resulted in adjustments to services at the individual care user's request, but they were also associated with the risk of conflict between care users and care workers. The study addresses the gap in the literature, which mostly studies and theorises care from a care provider perspective. The logic of home care time identified in the study can explain why older people may say they are satisfied with services though poorly performed due to time shortages. This explanation is a corrective to stereotypes that portray older care users as docile and grateful.}},
  author       = {{Jönson, Håkan and Möllergren, Glenn and Harnett, Tove}},
  issn         = {{0961-463X}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{05}},
  publisher    = {{SAGE Publications}},
  series       = {{Time & Society}},
  title        = {{The logic of ‘home care time’}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0961463X241258310}},
  doi          = {{10.1177/0961463X241258310}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}