Being a caregiver can come in many forms (e.g. for parents, children, spouse, friends). When collating the resources for RWC, we found that much of the information was focussed on parenting (hence the dedicated section Parenting and the doctorate). However here, we offer accounts and studies of caregiving more broadly.
In this experiential account Luke Yates discusses how he coped with doing a PhD whilst caring for his critically ill wife. The article offers tips and strategies. Warning: it contains references to bereavement.
Wiejden and Bergmans (2021) published a chapter called ‘PhD candidates as informal caregivers in the Netherlands’ in an edited book ‘The Future of Doctoral Research: Challenges and Opportunities’. It describes a mixed method study with over 240 doctoral candidates about the impact of providing informal care on the progress of their programme and their mental health. Your institution may not offer access to this book. However, the authors provide links to an info graphic/fact sheet and two page summary of the study at the bottom of this release from their university outlining their research.