A Casework Study of Emotional Support for Empty-nesters in Rural China ——An Example from an Underdeveloped Village in Hunan Province

Yiqun Zeng

doi:10.54254/2753-7048/31/20231805

Research Article

Open access

Published on 7 December 2023

Download pdf

Zeng,Y. (2023). A Casework Study of Emotional Support for Empty-nesters in Rural China ——An Example from an Underdeveloped Village in Hunan Province. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,31,33-43.

Export citation

A Casework Study of Emotional Support for Empty-nesters in Rural China ——An Example from an Underdeveloped Village in Hunan Province

Yiqun Zeng *^,1,

¹ London School of Economics and Political Science

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

https://doi.org/10.54254/2753-7048/31/20231805

Abstract

Population ageing poses an important challenge to China's social development and is a significant factor impeding social advancement. In recent years, the implementation of policies such as the rural Dibao project has improved the living conditions of rural empty-nesters. Due to the migration of many rural workers to urban areas, the traditional Chinese family model of old-age care has been weakened, resulting in a severe dearth of social support, particularly emotional support, for rural empty-nesters. Examining the emotional support of rural empty-nesters is essential for advancing rural old-age security, particularly geriatric social work. Based on the social support theory, this research employs the casework method in social work methodology, along with a questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews. After investigating the emotional support situation of empty-nesters in Village S, Hunan Province, three representative rural empty-nesters were chosen as casework recipients and in-depth interviews were conducted regarding the status of their emotional support, the problems they faced, and their emotional needs. All three recipients lacked emotional support to varying degrees, according to the findings. This paper examines how the casework approach in social work can effectively improve the emotional support system and enhance the quality of life of empty-nesters in rural China by providing them with targeted services.

Keywords

empty-nesters in rural China, emotional support, casework

View pdf

References

[1]. Zheng, X. (2022). Population Aging in Rural China: Elderly Age Support. In: Li, X., Yuan, C., Kent, J. (eds) Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Economic Management and Green Development. Applied Economics and Policy Studies. Springer, Singapore.

[2]. Baozhong, S., Yuheng, L., & Xiaodong, Z. (2022). Who are to support the aged in rural China? The study of people's willingness to purchase socialized care service and its influencing factors. Journal of Rural Studies, 93, 496-503.

[3]. National Bureau of Statistics of China. (2020). Seventh National Population Census.China Population Census Yearbook 2020. Retrieved from http://www.stats.gov.cn/sj/pcsj/rkpc/7rp/indexch.htm

[4]. Cai, Fang, Giles, John, O'Keefe, Philip, and Wang, Dewen. (2012). The Elderly and Old Age Support in Rural China. Directions in Development - General. March 2012

[5]. Yang, Y., Deng, H., Yang, Q. et al. (2020) Mental health and related influencing factors among rural elderly in 14 poverty state counties of Chongqing, Southwest China: a cross-sectional study. Environ Health Prev Med 25, 51.

[6]. Bai, Y., Bian, F., Zhang, L., & Cao, Y. (2020). The Impact of Social Support on the Health of the Rural Elderly in China. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(6), 2004.

[7]. Cobb, S. (1976). Social support as a moderator of life stress. Psychosomatic Medicine, 38(5), 300–314.

[8]. Barrera Jr, M. (1986). Distinctions between social support concepts, measures, and models. American journal of community psychology, 14(4), 413-445.

[9]. Cohen, S.,&Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological bulletin, 98(2), 310.

[10]. Bai, Y., Bian, F., Zhang, L., & Cao, Y. (2020). The impact of social support on the health of the rural elderly in China. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(6), 2004.

[11]. Zhang, C., Hou, L., Zheng, X., Zhu, R., Zhao, H., Lu, J., ... & Yang, T. (2019). Risk factors of mental disorders among empty and non-empty nesters in Shanxi, China: a cross-sectional study. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 17, 1-10.

[12]. Liang, Y., Niu, X., & Lu, P. (2020). The ageing population in China: Subjective well-being of empty nesters in rural eastern China. Journal of Health Psychology, 25(3), 361-372.

[13]. Cao, Q., & Lu, B. (2021). Mediating and moderating effects of loneliness between social support and life satisfaction among empty nesters in China. Current Psychology, 40, 973-982.

[14]. Wang, C., Liu, Z., Chen, T., Wang, J., Zhang, X., & Han, B. (2022). Intergenerational support and depressive symptoms in old age: The difference between urban and rural China. Frontiers in public health, 10, 1007408.

Cite this article

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

Disclaimer/Publisher's Note

The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s). EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.

About volume

Volume title: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Interdisciplinary Humanities and Communication Studies

Conference website: https://www.icihcs.org/

ISBN：978-1-83558-177-3(Print) / 978-1-83558-178-0(Online)

Conference date: 15 November 2023

Editor：Javier Cifuentes-Faura, Enrique Mallen

Series: Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media

Volume number: Vol.31

ISSN：2753-7048(Print) / 2753-7056(Online)

© 2024 by the author(s). Licensee EWA Publishing, Oxford, UK. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Authors who publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See Open access policy for details).