Creating continuity through mutual assistance: intergenerational reciprocity in four ethnic groups.
OBJECTIVE
Our purpose is to examine how culture-specific conceptions of mutual assistance in four ethnic groups reflect the nature of social exchange and its role in creating continuity.


METHODS
We conducted five in-depth interviews over a 5-year period with 270 respondents aged 50 and up (59 African Americans, 85 Latinos, 78 Filipino Americans, and 48 Cambodian Americans). We asked both open-ended and semistructured questions to determine how respondents viewed their role in mutual assistance in the family.


RESULTS
Mutual assistance was a critical element in intergenerational relations in all four groups, as it represented continuity within the family and was a part of a broader cultural ethos of family relationships. There were differences between groups in overall approach to mutual assistance, the factors to which they assigned the greatest importance, and the degree of dissatisfaction expressed over family relationships.


CONCLUSIONS
Social exchange can be viewed not only as a means by which those who are old maintain power but as a major vehicle for perpetuating continuity across the generations. When social exchange breaks down, elders suffer from loss of power as expressed through role loss. Elders must have a negotiable commodity to exchange as well as the flexibility to adjust to changes in the extended family. Maintaining continuity of the family in the face of disruptive threats poses a particular challenge for elders.
Institute for Health and Aging, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94143-0646, USA. becker@itsa.ucsf.ed
Gay
G
Becker
Yewoubdar
Y
Beyene
Edwina
E
Newsom
Nury
N
Mayen
D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000523:psychology; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001213:Asian / Q000523:psychology; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000523:psychology*; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology*; D005195:Family Relations; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D016901:Intergenerational Relations; D008875:Middle Aged; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012495:San Francisco; D012803:Sick Role; D012944:Social Support; D012945:Social Values; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology