Canada Research Chair in Family Financial Experiences and Wealth Inequality
Laurence Maclure
Originally from the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, I began my studies in accounting and management at the local CEGEP. After earning my college diploma, I decided to embark on a journey around the world. These travels sparked in me a passion for cultural diversity. This revelation led me to enroll in a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology at Laval University, where I deepened my understanding of human societies and social dynamics.
During my Bachelor’s studies, I developed a love for research, exploring the complex interactions between individuals and their environment. However, my fascination with money and economics never waned. At the end of my studies, instead of immediately entering the professional world, I decided to continue my education and combine my interests by studying the financial experiences of families and wealth inequalities in Canada.
This decision led to a collaboration with Maude, exploring the links between money and family dynamics. Today, my academic journey is the result of this fusion of anthropology, economics, and family relationships, and I am eager to continue my research to deepen our understanding of the complex interconnections between these fields. My enthusiasm for these topics remains strong, and with a strong desire to contribute further to research, I plan to pursue a PhD. I aspire to expand my research by comparing family and economic dynamics between France and Quebec, thus providing a transnational perspective on these crucial issues.
Master’s Student in Population Studies
Institut national de la recherche scientifique
Research Interests
Family solidarity, wealth management, incapacitated person, guardian of property, Curateur Public du Québec
Research project
Understanding the Economic Caregiving Experience of an Independent Parent by Their Adult Child
This project aims to document how adult children manage the assets of their incompetent parents, under the supervision of the Curateur Public du Québec. The Curateur Public du Québec is an organization responsible, exclusively in Quebec, for assisting guardians in managing the assets and personal care of vulnerable individuals, with the mission of protecting vulnerable people and their property.
The goal is to describe the workload associated with the responsibility of managing an incompetent parent’s assets, understand the motivations behind the choice of a guardian, and analyze how this economic caregiving influences family dynamics. In the context of an aging population and transforming family structures in Quebec, the organization anticipates an increase in demand for the services of the Curateur Public du Québec. However, the organization can only obtain from legal representatives the information necessary to carry out its mission of protecting vulnerable citizens. As a result, it has no information on guardians and their situations. The goal is to describe the workload associated with the responsibility of managing an incompetent parent’s assets, understand the motivations behind the choice of a guardian, and analyze how this economic caregiving influences family dynamics. In the context of an aging population and transforming family structures in Quebec, the organization anticipates an increase in demand for the services of the Curateur Public du Québec. However, the organization can only obtain from legal representatives the information necessary to carry out its mission of protecting vulnerable citizens. As a result, it has no information on guardians and their situations.
To explore certain issues, research conducted by third parties on the functioning of the organization and its service users is essential, though unfortunately rare. While the existing literature addresses the care of incompetent individuals, it surprisingly pays little attention to the economic management of an incompetent parent, particularly in terms of asset management and day-to-day finances. Therefore, this thesis will contribute to enriching the literature by exploring aspects that have been little studied before in the economic caregiving of incompetent parents, while making a significant contribution to the organization’s understanding of this topic, which affects a large majority, if not almost all, families facing the care of an aging incompetent parent.