Intergenerational differences in social support for the community-living elderly in Beijing, China

Background and Aims The combination of the rapid process of social-economic development, urbanization, and population ageing brings many challenges for care providers and quality of life of the community-living elderly in Beijing, China. This research aims to understand the intergenerational differences of social support for the elderly in the socio-cultural context of Beijing. Methods and Results To answer this research question, we collected 30 semi-structured in-depth interviews from elders aged 60 and over in three communities in Beijing. The constant comparative method was used for analysis. The results show that the young-old (people aged 60 to 74) received more formal social support and less informal social support compared to their parents' generation. The formal social support they received was not much different but they received less informal social support compared to the older-old (people aged 75 and over) living in the same communities. The young-old expect to receive more formal social support when they become the older-old, as the informal social support from their children would be reduced due to the one-child policy and socio-cultural changes. Conclusions Intergenerational differences of social support for the elderly do exist in the form of instrumental, financial, and emotional support. The findings help us understand how socio-economic development and urbanization processes affect the daily life and social support of the community-living elderly from different age groups, and also provides knowledge for improving the quality of life for the elderly in Beijing.