Skip to navigation – Site map

HomeIssues134Special FeatureFamily Structure and Subjective W...

Special Feature

Family Structure and Subjective Well-being of Older Adults in China: Impacts of Grandparent Coresidence, Grandparenting, and Family Support

Mengtong Chen and Yuanyuan Fu
p. 31-42

Abstract

Two generations of investigative journalists are mixed together in Chinese editorial boards: those who started before 2010 and those who came after. The former contributed to the rise of investigative journalism in commercial media outlets in the 1990s and 2000s, and the latter have experienced the economic crisis of the traditional outlets and neo-authoritarianism since the rise to power of Xi Jinping. Interviews with 29 investigative journalists show that a transformation of professional values has occurred in the under 35 generation compared to their peers over 35, as the media ecosystem itself transformed in the 2010s. Changes in the journalists’ academic training and social origin have also contributed to this transformation of values, which ultimately serves Xi Jinping’s long-term authoritarian political agenda.

Top of page

Editor’s notes

Manuscript received on 28 November 2022. Accepted on 19 September 2023.

Excerpt

Full text document will be published online on September 2024.

Outline

Introduction
Literature review
Grandparent coresidence and grandparenting: Characteristics of family structure in modern China
Associations between family structure and subjective well-being of grandparents: Potential explanations based on role theory
Existing research findings about the well-being of Chinese older adults living with different family structures
Summary
Research design
Sampling strategy and data collection
Measures
Subjective well-being outcomes
Sociodemographic factors
Family structure factors
Data analysis
Results
Profile of the samples
Factors affecting life satisfaction and depression
Gender and age differences in the association between family structure and subjective well-being
Discussion
Conclusion

First lines

Introduction

Multigenerational coresidence is an important form of living arrangement among families in China (Han, Li, and Whetung 2021; Li, Han, and Hu 2022). According to the Sixth National Population Census in 2010, 11.52% of urban families and 20.36% of rural families were three-generation households (Wang 2015). In addition, national census data showed that the percentage of three-generation households did not change significantly (Tong and Song 2016). The high incidence of grandparent coresidence reflects, to some extent, the traditional living arrangement for Chinese families, in which adult children have a filial obligation to their parents. However, grandparent coresidence in China today appears to be largely due to the combined influence of demographic effects and the changing socioeconomic and cultural context of China. Grandparents’ well-being can be significantly associated with such a living arrangement (Ren and Treiman 2015), especially when they engage in child careg...

Top of page

References

Bibliographical reference

Mengtong Chen and Yuanyuan Fu, Family Structure and Subjective Well-being of Older Adults in China: Impacts of Grandparent Coresidence, Grandparenting, and Family SupportChina Perspectives, 134 | 2023, 31-42.

Electronic reference

Mengtong Chen and Yuanyuan Fu, Family Structure and Subjective Well-being of Older Adults in China: Impacts of Grandparent Coresidence, Grandparenting, and Family SupportChina Perspectives [Online], 134 | 2023, Online since 01 September 2024, connection on 06 December 2023. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/chinaperspectives/15775; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/chinaperspectives.15775

Top of page

About the authors

Mengtong Chen

Mengtong Chen is Assistant Professor at the Department of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong (mtchen@cuhk.edu.hk).

Yuanyuan Fu

Yuanyuan Fu (corresponding author) is Associate Professor at the School of Social Development and Public Policy, Beijing Normal University. North Main Building 2003, 19 Xinjiekou Wai St., Beijing, China, 100875 (fuyuanyuan00@163.com).

Top of page

Copyright

The text and other elements (illustrations, imported files) are “All rights reserved”, unless otherwise stated.

Top of page
Search OpenEdition Search

You will be redirected to OpenEdition Search