試析西方倫理學中的孝養義務

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in Chinese; abstract also in English. 在西方倫理學中，孝養義務是指（成年）子女對父母尤其是對年邁父母所具有的提供保障、照料、陪伴及滿足其他合理需求的道德責任。與之相關的理論有感恩理論、友誼理論和特殊善理論。對於親子關係的模式、孝養義務的來源、孝養義務的具體要求、以及孝養義務何時能夠結束等問題，三種理論給出了各不相同的回答。本文嘗試探討這三種理論，並對其各自存在的問題給出批評和可能的回應。 In the Western tradition, filial obligation dictates that adult children have a moral duty to provide financial and psychological support to their aging parents. In addition, children are required to meet their parents' “reasonable demands” under given circumstances. There are three accounts of filial obligations that provide specific answers to questions concerning parent-child relationships, such as on what grounds and when filial obligation is encouraged and required. In this paper, the author explores the idea of filial obligation in the West and offers a critical response to the issues involved.

Sources of Intergenerational Conflict in Chinese Immigrant Families in the United States

Studies of family relations have not kept pace with the acceleration of international migration. To address this gap, this study relied on a survey of 545 Chinese immigrants in Chicago who reported information of 869 older parents to examine the sources of intergenerational conflict in five domains: norms/values, relationship itself, money, health, and parenting. The results of logistic regression showed that maintaining one’s traditional culture, in the form of endorsing a sense of filial obligation, was a significant protective factor against all types of conflict. Immigrants with a higher level of acculturation were more likely to report conflict regarding norms/values and relationship itself, but not more so regarding practical issues such as health, money, and parenting. Helping parents with ADLs, not IADLs, was associated with more conflict regarding monetary and health issues. Immigrants’ greater sense of mastery was associated with a lower chance of reporting norm/value-related intergenerational conflict.

P–480 Adding fuel to the flame of low fertility: Fertility intention and perceived socio-political stability of young adults in Hong Kong

Study question How does perceived socio-political stability impact on the fertility intention of Hong Kong adults? Summary answer Political and economic uncertainties play an especially significant role in reproductive decision-making among young adults in Hong Kong, where traditional family beliefs diminish in importance. What is known already Hong Kong has one of the lowest fertility rates in the world, despite the importance placed on values like family lineage and childbearing as a filial obligation. Previous investigation of Hong Kong students’ perception of reproduction showed that proximal factors such as having a stable relationship and personal maturity as the most important conditions for parenthood. It is yet to be explored whether more distal factors such as the economy and political stability also play a role in reproductive decision-making among Hong Kong adults, especially under the influence of the Anti-Extradition Bill Movement from onwards. Study design, size, duration This study uses cross-sectional data from an online survey that explores the fertility attitudes, intentions, and behaviours and perceived socio-political stability of Hong Kong Chinese adults. Data were collected between July and August 2020. Participants/materials, setting, methods Participants were 629 childless Hong Kong Chinese women (mean age = 30±6.68) recruited through community network and social media. Participants answered questions on fertility intention, and rated the extent to which ‘political environment’, ‘economic stability’ and ‘education system’ are important social-political factors in considering family formation, and to which they agree with traditional family beliefs. We conducted binary logistic regression with fertility intention as the criterion variable and social-political factors of family formation as predictors. Main results and the role of chance Participants considered the ‘political environment’ and ‘education system’ very important factors when considering family formation, especially among those aged 25 or below. More than 70% of respondents said they would like to have children, yet only 44% said they plan on actualizing their parenthood goals in the near future. Regression analyses showed significant main effects of age and gender on fertility intention, such that younger (P<.001) and male (P<.01) participants were less likely to intend on becoming parents. The more participants valued ‘political environment’ (B = 0.48, P<.001) and ‘economic stability’ (B = 0.39, P<.05), the less likely it is for them to intend on becoming parents, controlling for age and gender. There was also significant interaction between age and importance of ‘political environment’ (P<.01), indicating that for whom ‘political environment’ is an important condition for parenthood, younger participants had lower intention of having children than older participants. There was no significant effect of gender. Overall, participants did not subscribe to traditional beliefs such as that childbearing is ‘a necessary part of married life’ or that it is ‘a filial obligation as sons or daughters’ (ratings = 1.95 – 3.05, out of 5). Limitations, reasons for caution Participants were recruited by self-selection through community network and social media, potentially favouring individuals who were more concerned with fertility issues to begin with. Additionally, men were largely under-represented in this sample (15%), potentially obscuring any significant gender differences relating to traditional family beliefs and determinants of reproductive decisions. Wider implications of the findings: With economic and political uncertainties expected to persist, these findings call for increased psychosocial and fertility education for young adults in navigating long-term parenthood goals and reproductive options, and policies that assist young adults in overcoming personal and structural barriers to parenthood amid diminishing confidence in governmental support. Trial registration number Not applicable

Floating Grandparents

The chapter supplements the conventional image of vulnerable “left behind” children and elderly in the villages and towns in China from which mobile young adults depart to seek employment in urban areas. By showing an increasing propensity of aged parents to provide childcare in the cities where their adult children are employed, it identifies an intergenerational dimension of the floating population of migratory workers. The chapter provides a more complete representation of internal migration and urbanization in contemporary China by examining the childcare provided by grandparents as a form of reproductive labor that enables the labor-force participation of their adult children and thus contributes to social reproduction. The change in the notions of family obligation initiated by young people has received much research attention; the chapter shows, however, that grandparents frequently initiate renegotiations of filial obligation. The chapter reconceptualizes intergenerational support by considering the importance of pre-exchange obligation, emotional attachment, and symbolic values in intergenerational interactions, factors conventional approaches typically ignore.

Persistence of the norm of filial obligation among Chilean adults

Norms of filial obligation can predict how and whether children provide support to their ageing parents. Using a nationally representative sample, this study describes the degree to which Chilean adults adhere to these norms, and analyses which variables are associated with their degree of adherence to these norms. It found that adults are more likely to adhere to these norms when their parents require special care. Using linear regression models, this study also found that younger adults and those with fewer family responsibilities are more likely to adhere to these norms, as do people who are more educated and those who identify with a religious belief. Reciprocity in parent–child relationships also predict greater adherence.

The Enduring Strength of Biology and Gender: Care for Aging Parents Among Adult Children

Family complexity in the form of step-relationships are increasing across cohorts. Filial obligation, or the social norm that adult children should care for aging parents, are generally weaker in stepfamilies. Further, gender continues to be a main axis of stratification of who provides care within families. Taken together, we test whether biological versus step ties, the gender of the adult child, and the interaction between these two factors are associated with helping aging parents (ages 65 and older) with functional or health limitation based care needs. We use Round 5 (2015) of the National Health and Aging Trends Study. Results illustrate the enduring strength of both biological and gendered ties, with biological daughters being the most likely to help an aging parent, followed by biological sons, step-daughters, and lastly step-sons. This pattern holds even when we control for important characteristics of both the adult child and the care receiver. As families become more complex, these findings could mean that gaps in unmet care needs will emerge, especially for older adults who only have stepchildren.

Do Older People Expect Reciprocity When Providing Care? Evidence From a National Cohort

Background: The debate on whether caregiving is selfless or self-serving is unresolved. From the perspective of caregiving as a moral responsibility, the motivation to provide care is altruistic. The exchange or reciprocity perspective suggests that care is provided with an expectation to be cared for in the future. The context of filial obligation and rapid socio-economic transformation in recent decades in urban and rural China provided a unique opportunity to investigate these two driving forces. Methods: We tested the effects of caregiving experience in older persons on their care expectation from their children using data from the China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey (n=8,308). Using a multiple-indicator multiple-cause model, a special form of structural equation modelling, we examined the effect of caring for one’s older parents, helping adult children with housework, and caring for grandchildren on older persons’ care expectation from their children. Results: Older persons in urban areas had higher expectation for future care from their children if they have helped them with housework or took care of their grandchildren, whereas their experience of taking care of their own parents is related to a lower care expectation from their children. Although a similar pattern was observed in rural areas, only the experience of helping adult children with housework significantly increased care expectation. Discussion: Both altruistic and exchange motivations are involved in caregiving. Caring for older parents was more likely altruistic. Caring for an adult child in both urban and rural areas, and grandparenting in urban areas, were motivated by reciprocity.

Antecedents to Caregiving Differences in Black and White Families

Researchers have observed racial differences in midlife adults’ caregiving for aging parents. Black adults typically provide more parental caregiving and report greater rewards in doing so. We asked whether Black and White young adults differ in their support to midlife parents, and furthermore, whether this support differs based on parental gender. We also examined cultural beliefs and rewards of providing support underlying racial differences in support to parents. Black and White young adults from the Family Exchanges Study II (2013; aged 18–30 years; n=114 Black and, n=358 White) reported support provided to parents, and beliefs and rewards associated with support. We assessed 6 types of support (emotional, advice, listening to talk, socializing, practical, and financial) to each parent rated 1 = once a year or less often to 8 = everyday. Multilinear models revealed that Black young adults gave significantly more support to parents than White offspring, and these racial differences were mediated by filial obligation beliefs. Compared to White young adults, Black offspring provided more frequent support to their mothers and reported that it was more rewarding, and endorsed more negative relationship quality with mothers than with fathers. Research has shown that involvement correlates with conflict, which may underlie these findings. Further, compared to White offspring, Black young adults show significantly more behaviors that lead to caregiving in later life, and there are nuanced gender differences within Black parent-child relationships, which may need to be better understood to support Black caregivers.

What should adult children do for their parents?

Adult children’s particular obligations to their parents are filial obligations. The gratitude of filial obligations that treats one’s filial obligations as duties of gratitude to one’s parents is a mainstream view. However, in terms of the requirements of such obligations, the gratitude account fails to provide practical guidance. The general requirement seems that children should benefit their parents as the beneficiary should benefit the benefactor. The question is what kinds of benefits adult children should provide to their parents? In some cases, adult children feel obligated to provide particular benefits to their parents like paying their medical bills or spending time with them. While in some other cases, it seems that they can use their own discretion to decide how to satisfy the filial obligations so long as what they do benefits their parents. In this article, I am trying to argue that although the general requirement of the filial obligations is to benefit the parents, there are two kinds of benefits that adult children are strongly obligated to provide. These are special goods that parents can only get from their children and things that meet their parents’ basic needs. In addition, although adult children have filial obligations to benefit their parents, there should be some limitations on the requirements of filial obligation. Namely, adult children do not have a filial obligation to meet their parents’ desires that could only be satisfied at the cost of adult children’s liberty related to significant aspects of their lives, or to meet their parents’ desires that could only be satisfied at the cost of infringing their capacity to fulfil other important duties.

“The Ugly Face of Old Age”: Elders’ Unmet Expectations for Care and Support in Rural Ethiopia

As migration, urbanization, and aging accelerate in developing nations, traditional family supports for elders are diminishing. With these trends in mind, hermeneutic phenomenology was used to examine the experiences of 10 rural Ethiopian elders of age 70 and older. Narrative data from in-depth interviews revealed three prominent themes: the “good old days,” drained happiness, worry and pessimism. Elders felt devalued by their children, grandchildren, and youth in general. Compared to how they treated their own parents, elders believed that their children’s sense of filial obligation was weak and unreliable. Interactions were described as undermining, embarrassing, and abusive. Elders were pessimistic about the prospect of reliable caregivers, even expressing a wish to die before they become dependent on others for care. Despite such challenges, participants viewed aging as a privilege. New cooperative models of community-based care are needed to ensure that elders in developing nations can expect adequate care throughout their lives.