Family Relations of Chinese Older Immigrants in the United States: Is There an Optimal Type?

Background and Purpose: The family is the key for survival and success of the 4.6 million older immigrants in the United States. As older immigrants often fall through the cracks of the safety net provided by the government, it is crucial to understand the complex nature of family relations to maximize the effectiveness of informal and formal support for this rapidly increasing population. Using data from the largest and most comprehensive population study of Chinese elders in the US (i.e., PINE), this study aims to identify different clusters of Chinese older immigrants in terms of multidimensional family relations and the most “optimal” family relation pattern that is associated with better mental health outcomes.

Methods: Over 3,000 (N = 3,159) Chinese elderly (60+) were recruited from more than 20 social agencies in the greater Chicago area (2011-2013). Structured interviews were carried out in respondents’ homes in their preferred language. Multidimensional family relations were captured by eight indicators: living arrangement, frequency of contact, upward support, downward support, emotional cohesion, conflict, filial piety expectation, and perceived filial behaviors of children. Mental health was assessed by depression (measured by PHQ-9) and quality of life (QoL, 1 = good/very good, 0 = poor/fair). Latent Class Analysis (LCA) was used to identify distinctive types (i.e., latent classes) of family relations based on the classification of the eight indicators. Negative binomial and logistic regressions were then performed to examine relationships between family relation types that were derived in the LCA and the two outcomes, respectively, controlling for socio-demographic, health, and acculturation variables.

Results: LCA revealed four types of family relations among US Chinese elderly: 1) ambivalent irreverent (44.77%), characterized by frequent contact, moderate support exchanges, ambivalent feelings, and low filial piety expectation and behaviors, 2) tight-knit (40.11%), high on all the indicators except for conflict, 3) civil (10.28%), low on all the indicators, and 4) dependent conflictual (4.84%), with low contact, great support from adult children to parents, high conflict, and high filial expectation. Regression analyses further showed the tight-knit family relation type was associated with the lowest levels of depression compared to the other groups. Additionally, older adults with tight-knit or dependent conflictual family relations were more likely to report good QoL than the other groups. Older adults with ambivalent irreverent family relations were least likely to report good QoL.

Conclusions and Implications: The study illustrates the diverse and complex ways in which Chinese older immigrants and their families are connected. The findings suggest tight-knit relations, which reflect traditional family structure with co-residence, frequent contact, high support exchanges, and strong family values, may represent the most “optimal” family relation type for US Chinese elderly’s mental health. By contrast, the ambivalent irreverent family type tends to be associated with poor mental health outcomes, possibly due to departure from the traditional norms of filial piety. The findings are helpful for practitioners to better assess and improve the mental health of Chinese older immigrants by focusing on not only individual characteristics but also the larger family structure and functioning.