Changes in Attitudes Toward Aging, Older People and Elder Care From the Perspective of Former Migrant Care Workers

Abstract

Research on migrant home care workers has focused mainly on working conditions in the recipient countries and on the relationships between care recipients and their family members. However, because migrant care workers often are transnational, going back and forth between countries, some return to their home country, bringing with them newly acquired attitudes and practices. Based on a theoretical model of the transfer of innovation, this study aims to explore changes in attitudes toward aging and elder care among former migrant care workers. We conducted 13 in-depth interviews with migrant care workers who permanently returned to Lithuania. Data were analyzed thematically. Findings revealed changes in workers’ perceptions of aging, including perceptions of their own old age, older people, and elder care. These changes were mainly attributed to their personal connections and encounters with different cultural attitudes and practices in the host country. Our findings indicate that returning migrant home care workers may act as potential innovators who bring back to their home country new ideas about aging and elder care.