Open AccessGender and informal social support in Spanish culture
Author(s) -
Mercedes FernándezAlonso,
Marta Ortega Gaspar
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
research on ageing and social policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2014-671X
DOI - 10.17583/rasp.2018.3212
Subject(s) - social support , welfare , work (physics) , emotional support , welfare state , psychology , political science , sociology , social psychology , mechanical engineering , politics , law , engineering
This paper analyses informal social support as a relevant factor in the process of maintaining the Spanish welfare state. There has been considerable theoretical discussion but little empirical work done to determine the factors that influence the provision of this type of support. More specifically, this article explores the factors that determine the provision of informal social aid in Spanish society at the beginning of the twenty-first century.Using data from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), we examine three kinds of informal social support offered by the Spanish: emotional, domestic and economical. The form of aid they offer most frequently is emotional support. Gender has a significant impact on emotional and domestic support, although we do not observe a gender effect in the case of economic support.