The Invisible Full-Time Job: Collaborating with an Artist to Recognize Caregivers

About the Project

Artist Farrah Karapetian, alongside professors Victoria Fu and Matt Rich, created C.A.R.E (Collective Acts of Ritual and Empathy) — an interactive installation at San Diego Central Library exploring care through embodied, tactile experiences.

“The goal is to honor the hard work communities do internally to care for themselves and others.” — Farrah Karapetian

GroupSolver® partnered with the C.A.R.E team to conduct a research study with 200 self-identified caregivers, examining how people understand care, the economic burden it creates, and how the COVID-19 pandemic changed caregiving realities.

What Caregivers Experience

Defining Care

Respondents conceptualized self-care as both physical maintenance (83% cited food and clothing) and emotional regulation (81% linked it to wellbeing). Caring for others involved practical support alongside deeply affective dimensions — with emotional acts proving most memorable.

• 90% identified “showing love” as the most memorable form of care they provide or receive

The Financial Reality

Care work globally equals an estimated $10 trillion per year in unpaid labor — yet caregivers receive no professional recognition or compensation.

• 82% reported that caregiving directly impacts their household finances
• 54% personally funded care services out of pocket

The Pandemic Effect

COVID-19 amplified caregiving challenges dramatically:

• 67% experienced increased difficulty providing care during the pandemic
• 77% feared immunocompromised relatives contracting COVID-19
• 75% struggled to find help when their usual support systems became unavailable

What Caregivers Need

Despite the scale of care work, systemic support remains limited:

• 84% want subsidized in-home nursing support
• Respondents consistently emphasized the emotional dimensions of care — not just the logistical ones

The research underscored what policymakers, employers, and healthcare systems often overlook: care is not a private matter. It is collective infrastructure — and it deserves collective investment.