Korean American families' care behavior for their frail parents

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between sociodemographic variables (family income, length of residence in the U. S., working hours, availability of other family caregivers, and filial piety) and Korean American adult children's (or daughter-in-law's) care behavior for their frail parents. Care behavior included 8 care tasks; living arrangements, personal care, instrumental care, health care, emotional support, moral support, protective care, and financial support. The Burden Interview (Zarit et al., 1980) and Philadelphia Geriatric Morale Scale (Lawton, 1972) were used to assess caregiver burden and morale of the elderly. Ideologies of filial piety and the extended family were the framework of the care behavior. A descriptive survey design involved non-random sampling and structured interviews with 36 dyads of adult children/daughters-in-law caregivers and their frail older relatives. The care behavior was based on the caregivers' responses to the degree of involvement in seven types of care activities and whether or not they lived with the older relatives. Logistic and multiple regression analyses indicated that sociodemographic variables (except family income) affected 5 types of care behavior; living arrangements, instrumental care, health care, emotional support, and moral support. Caregivers who had alternative family caregivers were likely to provide a higher level of support in the five areas than the caregivers who did not have such helpers. Those who worked long hours and had lived long in the U. S. were less likely to provide emotional support and health care. Caregivers' filial piety was the predictor of thenmoral support to their older relatives while physical limitations explained variation in morale of the elderly and perceived caregiver burden. Canonical correlation analysis supported these findings. Changes in care behavior pattern were observed; sons emerged as care-givers as daughters-in-law's involvlement in care providing decreased. The majority of caregivers utilized formal support system.