Caregiving in Patriarchal Societies: An Autoethnography of Duty, Privilege, and the Psychological Tol

Rooted in religious, familial, and societal narratives, caregiving is not merely a choice but a deeply internalized obligation. Often idealized as a selfless act, this expectation has a high psychological side effect. Thus, playing Multiple roles of daughters, wives, mothers, and women leads to significant emotional exhaustion, guilt,
and role conflict. The lack of systemic support within patriarchal societies intensifies these challenges, as caregiving responsibilities have to be organized individually, often without relief. It is important to explore how women caregivers frequently internalize failure, self-blame, and guilt when unable to meet unrealistic
expectations. Framed within the psychological stress process model, attachment
and social support theory and supported by interdisciplinary literature on emotional labor and gender roles, this collaborative autoethnography aims to render care,
labor and inner conflicts faced by women caregivers. The chapter calls for a critical
reevaluation of societal norms that romanticize caregiving while failing to provide
adequate support and recognition. The chapter analysis led to the urgent need for
policies and practices that honor caregivers not only in principle but through concrete emotional, structural, and institutional support. More importantly, by contextualizing the analysis, this chapter explores the psychological and emotional
caregiving within the patriarchal framework of Bosnian society, where caregiving
is culturally and morally framed as a woman’s duty