Informal and Formal Care: Exploring the Complementarity

Although several authors have speculated about the type of relationship between informal and formal care, relatively little empirical work directly examines the interface between the two support systems. This paper examines the correlates of using neither system, only one system and several combinations of both systems. It explores the characteristics of those who do and do not make complementary use of both systems and under what circumstances the two systems are complementary. Multivariate analyses are performed, using logistic regression analyses, to examine the correlates of the different sources of support. Analyses demonstrate that those who utilize the formal care system do so while retaining care from the informal network. Use of the formal system in conjunction with informal care appears to take place in two instances:when seniors are in need and critical elements of their informal network are lacking, or when they have an intact informal support network, but their health needs are extremely high. In both of these instances the formal system enters to assist the informal network. The data point to the complementarity of the two care systems, not in terms of task specificity, but rather, in terms of a sharing of overall task load.