Meal and residence rotation of elderly parents in contemporary rural northern China.
This study examines the shared caregiving responsibilities of adult children in the form of long-existing practice of meal and residence rotation of elderly parents in rural China in the post-reform era. Based on the analysis of qualitative data collected in two northern Chinese villages in 2007, the study goes beyond the usual focus on inter-generational relations and a discussion of living arrangements at a particular point in time, and it stresses the role of intra-generational relations in mediating inter-generational relations and shaping arrangements for care of the elderly. The study demonstrates that adult sons as well as daughters-in-law play important roles in negotiating elderly care arrangements. It argues that the new economic restructuring reshapes both inter- and intra-generational relations, with members of the younger generation actively negotiating among themselves and with their elderly parents to fulfill their perceived cultural roles in elderly care.
Zhang
Weiguo
W
Department of Sociology, University of Toronto, 725 Spadina Avenue, Toronto, ON M5S 2J4, Canada. weiguo.zhang@utoronto.ca
Wang
Yuesheng
Y
D032721:Adult Children; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017028:Caregivers; D002681:China; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D006801:Humans; D016901:Intergenerational Relations / Q000208:ethnology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents; D011157:Population Dynamics; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011788:Quality of Life; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012424:Rural Population; D012801:Sibling Relations; D012944:Social Support