“It’s Not Just Care, It’s Our Life”:
A Qualitative Study of Caregiving Relationships Between Young Adults
with Mobility Disabilities and Their Parents in India

Abstract: Caregiving relationships between young adults with mobility disabilities and their parents are often examined through the frameworks of burden, dependence, and/or role strain, overlooking the relational and emotional processes through which care is experienced by both parties. This qualitative study explores caregiving as a psychological and relational experience shaped by emotional reciprocity, negotiation, and shared meaning within the Indian sociocultural context. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with six participants (three parent-child dyads). The analysis yielded five interconnected themes: caregiving as moral identity and relational interdependence; emotional withholding as a form of care and reciprocity; negotiated autonomy within close relationships; systemic inaccessibility as a shared burden; and the redefinition of normalcy through adaptation, companionship, and shared joy. Findings highlight caregiving as a co-constructed relationship rather than a unidirectional task, where autonomy, identity, and emotional well-being are continuously negotiated.