The association between filial piety and loneliness among Chinese older adults in the greater Chicago area

Abstract

Background: Loneliness is an important health indicator for psychological well-being. This study aims to examine the association between filial piety and loneliness among Chinese older adults in the U.S. Methods: Data were drawn from the PINE study, a population-based study of 3,159 Chinese older adults aged 60 and above in the greater Chicago area. Severity of loneliness was the dependent variable. Independent variables were the expectation and perceived receipt of filial piety, examined in six domains. Negative Binomial Regression analyses were conducted. Results: Lower levels of perceived filial piety receipt were associated with greater severity of loneliness (Ratio of Expected Severity: 0.92, 0.91-0.94) after adjusting for socio-demographics and medical co-morbidities. Expectation of filial piety was not associated with severity of loneliness. Conclusion: Our findings indicate higher perceived receipt of filial piety may protect older adults from loneliness. Our study suggests that cultural sensitivity need to be considered in the detection and intervention of loneliness.

The Presence of Perceived Stress among Primary and Non-Primary Adult Child Caregivers in the Greater Chicago Area

“…Presence of perceived stress by primary caregiver and non-primary caregiver Consistent with previous research, our study found adult children who are younger, female, with higher education and poorer health status were more likely to perceive higher levels of stress [21,22]. Whereas, in the corresponding PINE study, which also used PSS-10 to examine the perceived stress among U.S. Chinese older adults, respondents with an older age were more likely to report higher levels of stress [20,23]. This may be explained that as for older adults, old age was associated with deterioration in health and thus resulted in perceiving higher levels of stress.…”

The Association Between Personality and Loneliness: Findings From a Community-Dwelling Chinese Aging Population

“…This seems to challenge our earlier assumption about the cultural importance of intergenerational relationships among the Chinese. Moreover, a prior quantitative study has demonstrated that the lower the perceived receipt of filial piety (from adult children), the lonelier the older parents feel ( Dong, Zhang, & Chang, 2015 ). This paradox may be because the number of children does not necessarily equate the quality of child–parent relationships.…”

Filial piety expectations and loneliness among older people in Kuantan, Pahang

“…This was because older people prevented themselves from getting disappointments with their adult children. 11 In contrast to other studies that found no association between age and filial piety expectation, 20,28 age is a factor that relates to how older people expect filial piety from their children. The increase in age is significantly associated with filial piety expectations.…”

“…8 Earlier studies mostly reported the influence of filial piety as a social norm in other East Asian countries, such as China and Japan. [8][9][10][11] Confucianism and Islam have the same views regarding filial piety concept, which hold that the young generation must respect and care for older people. 12 Confucianism and Islam also emphasize the role of a man in supporting the family and of young people to respect older ones.…”