Perceived Family and Friend Support and the Psychological Well-Being of American and Chinese Elderly Persons
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Perceived Family and Friend Support and the Psychological Well-Being of American and Chinese Elderly Persons John Poulin & Rong Deng & Travis Sky Ingersoll & Heather Witt & Melanie Swain
Published online: 19 August 2012 # Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012
Abstract This study examines two sources of informal support—perceived family and friend support—and the psychological well-being—self-esteem, depression and loneliness —of 150 Chinese and 145 American elders. There were no significant differences between the elderly American and Chinese persons’ mean scores on family and friend support. The multiple linear regression analyses with interaction terms (country x family support and country x friend support), however, indicated that the relationship between family support and depression and family support and loneliness was stronger for the Chinese elderly than the US elderly. Conversely, the relationship between friend support and depression and friend support and loneliness is stronger for US elderly than Chinese elderly. The implications of these findings for social work practice in both countries is discussed. Keywords Informal support . Psychological well-being . Friend support . Family support . Self-esteem . Loneliness . Depression Elder care has become a priority of the Chinese government over the last several years (Zhan and Montgomery 2003). Concern about caring for the elderly in China has increased dramatically as a result of the Chinese government’s recognition of the staggering projected J. Poulin (*) : H. Witt : M. Swain Widener University, One University Place, Chester, PA 19013, USA e-mail: [email protected] H. Witt e-mail: [email protected] M. Swain e-mail: [email protected] R. Deng Chongqing Technology and Business University, Chongqing, China e-mail: [email protected] T. S. Ingersoll West Chester University, West Chester, PA 19382, USA e-mail: [email protected]
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J Cross Cult Gerontol (2012) 27:305–317
increase in its elderly population. Chinese demographers have predicted that by 2050, 22.4 % of China’s projected 1.4 billion people will be aged 65 or older (Population Reference Bureau 2012). The United States also faces substantial growth in its elderly population over the next four decades. In 2000 the country’s population included 35 million people aged 65 years and older. By 2030 it is predicted that 71 million Americans will be 65 years and older, which will equal 20 % of the projected US population (Centers for Disease Control 2007). The projected growth and increased diversity of the elderly population in China and the US will create an increased need for social services and care arrangements for older adults. There will also be a greater need for different types of informal social support to supplement formal services for older adults (Leung 2006; Litwin 2001). Numerous studies have found a positive relationship between social support and psychological well-being of the elderly in both the US and China (Bosworth and Schaie 1997; Chi and Chou 2001; Hsu 2007; Litwi
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