Purpose: To describe the caregiving role in the Korean American family. Design: Descriptive study. Method: Thirty Korean American female caregivers were interviewed using a semistructured questionnaire related to sociodemographic background, caregiving history, filial responsibility, family network, cognitive status, dependency level, job-caregiving conflict, family conflict, economic strain, and negative life-style changes. Findings: The Korean American caregivers were elderly wives who were sharing households only with their elderly husbands, and these women were low-income, unemployed, less educated, and regarded their caregiving activity as a final assignment of obligation and duty given to them as spouse. Discussion: The Korean traditional cultural norm of filial piety plays a significant role for caregiving activities among Korean American caregivers. Implication: Understanding cultural norms may enable health care providers to look below the surface even though caregivers may not express problems.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Braun, K. L. , & Browne, C. V. (1998). Perceptions of dementia, caregiving, and help seeking among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans. Health & Social Work, 23(4), 262-274.
2.
Chang, Y. (1983). Women in a Confucian society: The case of Chosun Dynasty Korea. In E. Yu & E. H. Phillips (Eds.), Traditional thoughts and practices in Korea (pp. 67-94). Los Angeles: California State University Los Angeles.
3.
Connell, C. M. , & Gibson, G. D. (1997). Racial, ethnic, and cultural differences in dementia caregiving: Review and analysis. Gerontologist, 37(3), 355-364.
4.
Dautzenberg, M. G. , Diederiks, J. P., Philipsen, H., & Stevens, F. C. (1998). Women of a middle generation and parent care. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 47(4), 241-262.
5.
England, M. (1995). Crisis and the filial caregiving situation of African American adult offspring. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 16(2), 143-163.
6.
Fraser, C. (1999). The experience of transition for a daughter caregiver of a stroke survivor. Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, 31(1), 9-16.
7.
Freeman, L. , Daly, M. P., & Lazur, A. M. (1995). Burden among White and Black caregivers to elderly adults. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 50B(2), S110-S118.
8.
Fudge, H. , Neufeld, A., & Harrison, M. J. (1997). Social networks of women caregivers. Public Health Nursing, 14(1), 20-27.
9.
Gelinas, D. F. , O’Connor, P., & Miller R. G. (1998). Quality of life for ventilator-dependent ALS patients and their caregivers. Journal of Neuroscience, 160(Suppl. 1), S134-S136.
10.
Guarnaccia, P. J. (1998). Multicultural experiences of family caregiving: A study of African American, European American, and Hispanic American families. New Directions for Mental Health Services, 77, 45-61.
11.
Harwood, D. G. , Barker, W. W., Cantillon, M., Loewenstein, D. A., Ownby, R., & Duara, R. (1998). Depressive symptomatology in first-degree family caregivers of Alzheimer disease patients: A cross-ethnic comparison. Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders, 12(4), 340-346.
12.
Hicks, M. H. , & Lam, M. S. (1999). Decision-making within the social course of dementia: Accounts by Chinese-American caregivers. Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry, 23(4), 415-452.
13.
Hobbs, T. R. (1997). Depression in the caregiving mothers of adult schizophrenics: A test of the resource deterioration model. Community Mental Health Journal, 33(5), 387-399.
14.
Jones, P. S. (1995). Paying respect: Care of elderly parents by Chinese and Filipino American women. Health Care for Women International, 16, 385-398.
15.
Kiefer, C. W. , Kim, S., Choi, K., Kim, L., Kim, B., Shon, S., & Kim, T. (1985). Adjustment problems of Korean American elderly. Gerontologist, 25, 477-492.
16.
Kim, K. C. , Kim, S., & Hurh, W. H. (1991). Filial piety and intergenerational relationship in Korean immigrant families. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 33, 233-245.
17.
Lee, Y. R. , & Sung, K. T. (1997). Cultural differences in caregiving motivations for demented parents: Korean caregivers versus American caregivers. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 44(2), 115-127.
18.
Lee, Y. R. , & Sung, K. T. (1998). Cultural influences on caregiving burden: Cases of Koreans and Americans. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 46(2), 125-141.
19.
Levine, C. (1999). The loneliness of the long-term caregiver. New England Journal of Medicine, 34(20), 1587-1590.
20.
Marin, G. , & Marin, B. V. (1991). Research with Hispanic Populations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
21.
Nagaratnam, N. , Lewis-Jones, M., Scott, D., & Palazzi, L. (1998). Behavioral and psychiatric manifestations in dementia patients in a community: Caregiver burden and outcome. Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders, 12(4), 330-334.
22.
Neal, M. B. , Ingersoll-Dayton, B., & Starrels, M. E. (1997). Gender and relationship differences in caregiving patterns and consequences among employed caregivers. Gerontologist, 37, 804-816.
23.
Ory, M. G. , Hoffman, R. R., Yee, J. L., Tennstedt, S., & Schulz, R. (1999). Prevalence and impact of caregiving: A detailed comparison between dementia and nondementia caregivers. Gerontologist, 39(2), 177-185.
24.
Pavalko, E. K. , & Artis, J. E. (1997). Women’s caregiving and paid work: causal relationships in late midlife. Journal of Gerontology Social Sciences: Behavioral Psychology Science, 52(4), S170-S179.
25.
Pearlin, L. I. , Mullan, J. T., Semple, S. J., & Skaff, M. M. (1990). Caregiving and the stress process: An overview of concepts and their measures. Gerontologist, 39, 583-594.
26.
Periard, M. E. , & Ames, B. D. (1993). Lifestyle changes and coping patterns among caregivers of stroke survivors. Public Health Nursing, 10(4), 252-256.
27.
Raveis, V. H. , Karus, D. G., & Siegel, K. (1998). Correlates of depressive symptomatology among adult daughter caregivers of a parent with cancer. Cancer, 83(8), 1652-1663.
28.
Scanlan, J. M. , Vitaliano, P. P., Ochs, H., Savage, M. V., & Borson, S. (1998). CD4 and CD8 counts are associated with interactions of gender and psychosocial stress. Psychosomatic Medicine, 60(5), 644-653.
29.
Sparks, M. B. , Farran, C. J., Donner, E., & Keane-Hagerty, E. (1998). Wives, husbands, and daughters of dementia patients: Predictors of caregivers’ mental and physical health. Scholarly Inquiry Nursing Practice: An International Journal, 12(3), 221-238.
30.
Sterritt, P. F. , & Pokorny, M. E. (1998). African-American caregiving for a relative with Alzheimer’s disease. Geriatric Nursing, 19(3), 127-134.
31.
Stommel, M. , Given, C. W., & Given, B. (1990). Depression as an overriding variable explaining caregiver burden. Journal of Aging & Health, 2, 81-102.
32.
Stone, R. , Cafferata, G. L., & Sangl, J. (1987). Caregivers of the elderly: A national profile. Gerontologist, 27, 616-626.
33.
Turner, H. A. , Pearlin, L. I., & Mullan, J. T. (1998). Sources and determinants of social support for caregivers of persons with AIDS. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 39(2), 137-151.
34.
U.S. Bureau of the Census . (1990). 1990 census of population: General population characteristics. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.
35.
Winslow, B. W. , & Carter, P. (1999). Patterns of burden in wives who care for husbands with dementia. Nursing Clinics of North America, 34(2), 275-287.
36.
Zanetti, O. , Frisoni, G. B., Bianchetti, A., Tamanza, G., Cogoli, V., & Trabucchi, M. (1998). Depressive symptoms of Alzheimer caregivers are mainly due to personal rather than patient factors. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 13(6), 358-367.
