The Role of Filial Piety in Dyadic Recruitment of Chinese American Parents With Type 2 Diabetes and Their Adult Children

Abstract

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is prevalent among Asian Americans, yet limited health care studies report on the recruitment and retention of this population. This study focuses on recruiting Chinese American dyads for family support of T2D management. Method: This is a descriptive study using active and passive recruitment strategies. Dyads consist of parents with T2D and their adult children without diabetes. All materials are culturally tailored and available in Chinese. Results: The final sample included 54 dyads. There were characteristic differences among parent participants in English language proficiency and education levels. Filial piety manifested as respect and care for one’s parents among Chinese American families contributed to recruitment success. Discussion: This article shares strategies for recruiting Chinese American dyads to explore family support dynamics for T2D self-management. The findings potentially add to current knowledge about culture, nursing, and health care.

Older Chinese and Filipino American Immigrants with Type 2 Diabetes and their Adult Child: A Qualitative Dyadic Exploration of Family Support

“…Yoo and Kim (2014) found that adult children of Asian immigrants often serve as language and cultural brokers their aging parents as they face declining health. Filial piety may also play a role in caregiving dynamics in Chinese and Filipino American families, as children seek to demonstrate respect and care for their aging parents through concerns about their parents' changing health (Doan et al, 2023).…”

“…Institutional Review Board approval was obtained from San Francisco State University. Participants were recruited through San Francisco (SF) Bay Area community organization meetings and events, word of mouth, and flyers (Doan et al, 2023 ; Peregrina et al, 2022 ). Dyads who met inclusion criteria were recruited from the larger pool of survey participants.…”

“…In addition to the barriers that older Asian American immigrants may face that adult children help with, adult children’s caregiving roles may also be influenced by culture: filial piety, a value of Confucianism, emphasizes responsibility to parents including respect, obedience, and provision of emotional and financial care and support (Lim et al, 2022 ). Because of these various reasons, children can play the primary role for medical information and diabetes management by supporting and educating their parents and advocating on their behalf in medical settings (Doan et al, 2023 ). Other studies reported that training adolescent children of patients with T2D not only improved diabetes prevention amongst the children, but also assisted in their parents' diabetes self-management program (Gefter et al, 2016 ).…”