Geography Theses and Dissertations

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Browsing Geography Theses and Dissertations by Subject "Aging"

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    Aging in Place: The Paradox of Community Eldercare in Urban China
    (University of Oregon, 2019-04-30) Yu, Yi; Su, Xiaobo
    Population projections indicate that China will be the most rapidly aging country in the world in the near future. To meet the challenge of providing eldercare in a context of shrinking family sizes––where children are no longer able to care for their aging parents–-the Chinese government has selected community eldercare as its major solution. Despite the increasing popularity of community eldercare facilities, little is known about how they operate, their impact on the aging population, and their workforce. Drawing on qualitative date collected during six months of fieldwork in Beijing and Shanghai, this dissertation investigates how community eldercare facilities are established and operated, how they promote the Chinese government’s “healthy aging” agenda, how and to what extent they replace home care, and what kinds of working conditions they create for their caregivers. Findings reveal that (1) The local government collaborates with NGOs to set up community eldercare programs. Instead of striving for autonomy, these NGOs enjoy positive and collaborative relationships with their local governments, which allows them to have access to more eldercare projects and to occupy (and build) the eldercare market to earn future profits. (2) The community eldercare programs support the government’s “healthy aging” agenda, which promotes a lifestyle intended to facilitate independence and mobility. The eldercare programs’ support of this agenda allows the Chinese government to govern at a distance. (3) Community eldercare centers aim to provide a homely feeling for older adults in order to replace home care and facilitate aging in place; at the same time, they constitute a space of control. (4) Caregivers working to create homely feelings at community eldercare centers are required to work in accordance with care ethics, which places them in a “prison of love.”