Survey of What Mothers and Other Caregivers Want

There is an assumption that childcare and/or elder care is all that mothers and other caregivers need. But we are never asked what we think about how we spend our time and the resources we have or don’t have. This survey aims to change that, and to find out what caregivers of every gender want, including in different countries.

The survey was over a year in the making and combined three surveys: The Motherhood Survey conducted in 2005 by the Institute for American Values, one from the Global Women’s Strike in the UK focused on mothers; and a pilot survey we did in Philadelphia focused on unpaid caregivers of elders as well as of children. The Philadelphia pilot survey, conducted with the help of Drexel University Medical students, found, for example, that many caregivers were themselves older or had disabilities, and they wanted financial help but were not getting it.  

This survey was tested and retested to make sure the language was inclusive. Grassroots Thai women were integral to the making of this survey so it was important that the survey made as much sense to women small farmers in Thailand as it did to housewives in the US. Here are some of the questions:

• How many hours a week do you spend caregiving?
• Did you get the support you needed to breastfeed?
• Do you find it hard to have to go out to work when your child or relative is unwell?
• If you had no financial pressure, would you do the waged job you are doing now?
• Do you think caring work is a contribution to society that should be paid?

The survey is in English, Spanish, Thai and Italian. It will be open until the end of 2022. Here are links to the survey.

English

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L7SZJV5

Thai

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L7SZJV5?lang=th

Spanish

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L7SZJV5?lang=es

Italian

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L7SZJV5?lang=it