Elder Mistreatment Among Chinese American Families: Do Acculturation and Traditionalism Matter?

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the effect of acculturation and Chinese traditionalism on elder mistreatment (EM) among Chinese American older adults.

METHOD: We used a mixed method design in this 2-phase cross-sectional exploratory study conducted in the Phoenix metropolitan area. In Phase I, we conducted four focus groups to develop a culturally relevant EM assessment tool. In Phase II, we administered a survey incorporating this tool to 266 community-dwelling Chinese American older adults aged 60 and older. Acculturation was measured using the Marin acculturation scale. Traditionalism was measured with questions drawn from the Traditionality-Modernity subscale of the Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI-2).

RESULTS: The prevalence rates of elder abuse and elder neglect are 8.3% and 5.3%, respectively. Higher levels of acculturation and depression are positively associated with the occurrence of elder abuse (odds ratio [OR] = 1.06). Traditionalism is not significantly related to elder abuse or elder neglect.

DISCUSSION: The results suggest that promoting traditional Chinese beliefs may not necessarily prevent EM among members of this population. Rather, EM prevention efforts might focus on building "bi-cultural" identities among both older adults and their adult children. Future research could explore the effect of intergenerational acculturation discrepancies on EM among members of this population.