Beyond familism?: Familism as explicit motive for eldercare among Mexican American caregivers

This research explored eldercare among Mexican American primary family caregivers from Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Although these caregivers expressed feelings of burden, their ethnocultural values of familism placed burden in a broader cultural context in which caregiving was also viewed as an af...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of cross-cultural gerontology Vol. 12; no. 2; pp. 145 - 162
Main Authors John, R, Resendiz, R, De Vargas, L W
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Netherlands Springer Nature B.V 01.06.1997
Subjects
Care of the aged
Caregivers
Cultural Values
Dallas, Texas
Elderly
Familism
Family
Mexican Americans
Older people
Texas
U.S.A
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Summary:This research explored eldercare among Mexican American primary family caregivers from Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Although these caregivers expressed feelings of burden, their ethnocultural values of familism placed burden in a broader cultural context in which caregiving was also viewed as an affirmation and fulfillment of core Mexican American cultural values. Mexican American familism includes expressions of family solidarity, ethnocultural determinants of informal caregiving, distrust of culturally alien institutions (particularly nursing homes), and a desire to care for the elderly within the family context regardless of the personal cost or consequences. In contrast to recent research, these findings suggest that it is premature to dismiss familism as a continuing and central influence in the lives of Mexican American family caregivers.
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ISSN:0169-3816
1573-0719
DOI:10.1023/A:1006505805093