The project examines how unpaid care work contributes to health inequalities in different European countries. It draws on a mixed-method, life course and cross-country approach, and combines insights from multiple disciplines (sociology, demography, economics, epidemiology). It is led by Constance Beaufils, socio-demographer and holder of a Junior Professor Chair on social inequalities in health, in collaboration with partner teams in France and abroad.
A substantial body of literature has shown that unpaid care work (such as childcare, grandparental care and eldercare) relates to individuals’ physical and mental health, and suggests that population health inequalities partly stem from its unequal distribution. Women and men, depending on their socioeconomic or migration profiles, follow life courses which are unequally marked by unpaid care work, with episodes of care that vary in duration, timing and articulation with employment.
The recruited researcher's work will involve describing the diversity of these unpaid care work histories and how they relate to population health inequalities. In particular, the researcher will examine how the timing of different care episodes (parental, grandparental, caregiving), their accumulation over the life course, and their articulation with employment shape this relationship. Another aspect of the work will involve analysing the various forms of strain that unpaid care imposes on individuals within the domestic sphere, such as time pressure, work-family conflicts, or lack of recognition. The researcher will identify the family and social configurations in which these forms of strain are exacerbated, exposing certain groups to increased health risks. A cross-cutting aim of the analyses will be to examine how unpaid care histories and experiences vary across national contexts. These analyses will draw on statistical analyses of French, British and European longitudinal surveys (Families and Employers, SHARE, ELSA), as well as analyses of in-depth interviews, collected and designed to shed light on the statistical results. The researcher will analyse several health dimensions (biological health, chronic illness, mental health, functional health), within the limits of the available data.
The position is full-time for 24 months, ideally starting on 1 February 2027, and based at IRIS (INSERM) in Aubervilliers, France.
Details on the position and how to apply can be found at this link.
Applications should be submitted through the corresponding platform by 3 December 2026 (midnight, Paris time).