Eldercare in the transnational setting: insights from Bangladeshi transnational families in the United States.

Abstract

Little is known about the emotional impact of caregiving for elderly parents on migrant child in the transnational setting. To address this gap in the literature, this study examines the stressors, mediators, and outcomes of eldercare in the transnational context. Data were collected from 21 Bangladeshi immigrant men and women living in the United States who had living parents in Bangladesh over 60years old. Despite the geographic distance, the migrants provide care to their parents such as emotional support, financial assistance, and arranging for care. While the health status of the care recipients contributed to primary objective stressors, none of the transnational caregivers' narratives reflected the presence of any subjective stressors such as role overload, role captivity, and relational deprivation. Distance and depending on others for hands-on caregiving resulted in feelings of loss of control over the caregiving process. Caregivers experienced a range of emotions from guilt, excessive worrying, and distress over the unpredictability and uncertainty of their circumstances. Kin networks, communicative technologies, and a cultural norm of filial piety contributed to mediating stress. The findings underscore the importance of supportive institutional policies such as visa and travel policies, employment leave, and counseling services for caregivers who provide care for their elderly parents transnationally.