Zhou Jing, Mao Weiyu, Lee Yura, Chi Iris
1 School of Social Development and Public Policy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
2 Shanghai Lixin University of Commerce, Shanghai, China.
Res Aging. 2017 Jun;39(5):612-634. doi: 10.1177/0164027515623332. Epub 2016 Jan 4.
Little longitudinal data exist on grandparent caregivers and few studies have examined their physical health outcomes. This study examined the effect of caring for grandchildren on grandparents' physical health and the role of intergenerational support from adult children. Longitudinal data derived from a survey on the well-being of older adults in China were used to conduct path analysis of previous grandparent caregivers (vs. noncaregivers) and repeated grandparent caregivers (vs. noncaregivers). The final sample was 799 grandparents aged 60 or older living in rural China. Three aspects of intergenerational support were measured: financial, emotional, and instrumental support. Repeated grandparent caregivers had better self-rated health (SRH) and fewer limitations than noncaregivers. Previous grandparent caregivers had better SRH compared to noncaregivers. Emotional support mediated the relationship between caregiving and SRH among repeated caregivers. Findings suggest that any caregiving experience (previous or repeated) provides health benefits to grandparents.
关于祖父母照料者的纵向数据很少，而且几乎没有研究考察过他们的身体健康状况。本研究探讨了照料孙辈对祖父母身体健康的影响以及成年子女给予的代际支持所起的作用。利用一项关于中国老年人福祉的调查得出的纵向数据，对之前的祖父母照料者（与非照料者相比）和反复担任照料者的祖父母（与非照料者相比）进行路径分析。最终样本为799名年龄在60岁及以上、居住在中国农村的祖父母。对代际支持的三个方面进行了衡量：经济支持、情感支持和工具性支持。与非照料者相比，反复担任照料者的祖父母有更好的自评健康状况（SRH），且受限情况更少。与非照料者相比，之前担任过照料者的祖父母有更好的SRH。情感支持在反复担任照料者的人群中调节了照料与SRH之间的关系。研究结果表明，任何照料经历（之前的或反复的）都能给祖父母带来健康益处。
