Respect and Care for the Elderly

Dr. Kyu-taik Sung’s research on filial piety spans three decades. Many of his past writings have focused on East Asian elders, and this new text carries that theme forward as well. One main objective of this volume is to introduce to the West the caring attitudes and behaviors of East Asian people toward elderly persons. Findings are based on qualitative and quantitative data obtained from a series of empirical studies conducted in the East and West. These studies are grounded in the traditional East Asian values of family care, reciprocity, and humaneness. Despite the fact that filial piety has influenced peoples for generations, the concept of filial piety remains too general and abstract to provide clear guidelines for practice and research. Of the various expressions of filial piety, elder respect is the most stressed and prominent. Elder respect remains as an essential element in uplifting elders’ statuses; integrating them more fully into the family and society; and providing them with proper and humane care and services. Articles in this volume explore specific categories and measures indicating behavioral and attitudinal expressions of elder respect in these changing times. Readers in the East and West who are interested in cultural differences and similarities between the two cultures will find this text very useful in understanding elder care and support.