Intergenerational entrainment: old age, marriage, and care arrangements in Danish-Pakistani migrant families

An increasing number of Pakistani immigrants in Denmark are aging and need different kinds of help and care. Still, few receive the homecare-service provided by the welfare state. Instead, family members care for them at home in complex care arrangements. This article discusses how concerns for elderly care inform marriage strategies in the upcoming generation. However, the future-oriented marriage strategy is complicated by social mobility, increasing numbers of women entering the labour market, rising divorce rates and a strict legislation on family reunification that makes the 'traditional choice' of a spouse from Pakistan difficult and insecure. Thus, connecting care arrangements and marriage strategies highlights the intergenerational entrainment when it comes to elderly care in the Pakistani migrant community.

Automated summary

An increasing number of aging Pakistani immigrants in Denmark need help and care, but few receive the homecare-service provided by the welfare state. Instead, family members care for them at home in complex care arrangements. This article discusses how concerns for elderly care shape marriage strategies in the upcoming generation. However, factors such as social mobility, increasing women in the labor market, rising divorce rates, and strict legislation on family reunification make it difficult and insecure to choose a spouse from Pakistan. The interconnection between care arrangements and marriage strategies highlights the intergenerational entrainment in elderly care within the Pakistani migrant community.