The Impact of Gender on Configurations of Care among Married Elderly Couples

This article analyzes data from the Supplement on Aging of the National Health Interview Survey to examine gender differences in the configuration of care among married elderly couples living in two-person households. The rational choice model provides the conceptual framework for the analysis. Results support the hypothesis that husband caregivers are more likely to incorporate extra-household assistance than are wife caregivers. There were no gender differences, however, in the source of extra-household assistance.