Family financial support in income security for older parents in Hong Kong and South Korea

Abstract

This study aims to explore the importance of family financial support from adult children to their older parents in Hong Kong and South Korea. These two societies share some similar social circumstances. For example, both societies are facing dynamically rapid ageing and possessing the traditional Confucian value of filial piety. Based on these social contexts, we firstly investigate the conceptual framework on family financial support by reviewing related theories. We secondly examine the World Bank pension multi-pillars of both societies to understand the role of family financial support to secure older people’s income. We thirdly address relevant social policy programmes to examine how both governments encourage family financial support. We fourthly employ empirical data to investigate how family financial support is important in both the societies. In addition, we compare the differences and similarities of their family financial support in light of contextual background, the World Bank multi-pillar framework, relevant social policies, and empirical data. Through this, this study is expected to enrich our understanding of the characteristics and role of family financial support of both societies. Moreover, it is hoped that this paper can provide some insights about the future prospect of welfare development for older people in Hong Kong.