Elder Mistreatment Among Chinese American Families: Do Acculturation and Traditionalism Matter?

Xiang Gao, Fei Sun and David R Hodge

The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, 2019, vol. 74, issue 3, 465-473

Abstract: ObjectivesThis study examined the effect of acculturation and Chinese traditionalism on elder mistreatment (EM) among Chinese American older adults.MethodWe used a mixed method design in this 2-phase cross-sectional exploratory study conducted in the Phoenix metropolitan area. In Phase I, we conducted four focus groups to develop a culturally relevant EM assessment tool. In Phase II, we administered a survey incorporating this tool to 266 community-dwelling Chinese American older adults aged 60 and older. Acculturation was measured using the Marin acculturation scale. Traditionalism was measured with questions drawn from the Traditionality–Modernity subscale of the Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI-2).ResultsThe prevalence rates of elder abuse and elder neglect are 8.3% and 5.3%, respectively. Higher levels of acculturation and depression are positively associated with the occurrence of elder abuse (odds ratio [OR] = 1.06). Traditionalism is not significantly related to elder abuse or elder neglect.DiscussionThe results suggest that promoting traditional Chinese beliefs may not necessarily prevent EM among members of this population. Rather, EM prevention efforts might focus on building “bi-cultural†identities among both older adults and their adult children. Future research could explore the effect of intergenerational acculturation discrepancies on EM among members of this population.

Keywords: Acculturation; Elder abuse; Elder neglect; Traditionalism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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