Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Grandchildren Caregiving: Elderly Support for the Family (A Case Study in Some International Migrant Sending Areas in West Java)

  • Published:
Journal of Population Ageing Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

As their abilities continue to deteriorate, most senior citizens are assumed to need expansion in the caring for them. However, previous studies found that instead of being care recipients, many elderly actually provided support for their families. Specifically in migrant worker source areas, the main support that is usually provided by the elderly is the care for grandchildren who are left behind by their migrant parents. A study in two migrant worker villages in Indramayu district, West Java province, revealed that senior citizens were the main caregivers in one-fourth of households with at least one left behind child that were interviewed in the study. Although the elderly were never asked about their willingness to take over the chore, they accepted it readily and saw it as their contribution in rearing the grandchildren. Some elderly encountered several problems while caring for the grandchildren, mainly the financial matters and the disciplining of grandchildren.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. The Indonesian Law No. 13/1988 on Senior Citizens’ Welfare stated that senior citizens refer to people at 60 years of age and above.

  2. The Percentage of the population aged 65 years and over in Singapore and Japan were 8.3 % and 26.0 respectively in 2010. The projection shows that in 2025 they may increase to up to 14.8 % in Singapore and 32.2 % in Japan (UN Population Division, 2004, medium projection, cited in Jones 2007).

  3. In many literatures on senior citizens, this group of people is categorized into three different categories according to their ages. The first category constitutes those who are 60–69 years of age, the second is those who are 70–79 years of age, and the last consists of those at the age of 80 years and above (see Knodel and Chayovan 2011).

References

  • Antman, F. M. (2010). Adult child migration and the health of elderly parents left behind in mexico. American Economic Review: Paper and Proceedings, 100, 205–208.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arifianto, A. (2004). Reform of Social Security System in Indonesia: An Analysis of Draft of Act on National Security System (Reformasi Sistem Jaminan Sosial di Indonesia: Sebuah Analisis Atas Rancangan Undang-Undang Jaminan Sosial Nasional (RUU Jamsosnas)). SMERU Working Paper. Jakarta: SMERU.

  • Badan Pusat Statistik. (2011). Statistic of indonesian elderly 2010. The results of the 2010 Indonesian population census (Statistik Penduduk Lanjut Usia Indonesia 2010. Hasil Sensus Penduduk 2010). Jakarta: badan pusat statistik.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baldock, C. V. (2000). Migrants and their parents. Caregiving from distance. Journal of Family Issues, 21(2), 205–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beard, V.A. & Kunhariwibowo, Y. (2000). Living arrangements and support relationship among elderly Indonesian: case study fron Java and Sumatra. Labor and Population Program. Working Paper Series, 00–08.

  • Butterfill, E. S. (2004). Inter-generational family support provided by older people in Indonesia. Ageing and Society, 24, 497–530.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeJong, G. F., Richter, K., & Isarabhakdi, P. (1996). Gender, values, and intentions to move in rural Thailand. International Migration Review, XXX(3), 748–770.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eeuwijk, P. V. (2006). “Old-age Vulnerability, ill-health and care support in urban areas in Indonesia. Cambridge Journals Online. Vol. 26, Jan 2006. Retrieved from http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=371426.

  • Guo, M., Aranda, M. P., & Silverstein, M. (2009a). The impact of out-migration on the inter-generational support and psychological wellbeing of older adults in rural China. Ageing and Society, 29, 1085–1104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guo, M., Chi, I., & Silverstein, M. (2009b). Intergenerational support of Chinese rural elders with migrant children: do sons’ or daughters’ migrations make a difference? Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 52(5), 534–554.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hareven, T. K. (1994). Aging and generational relations: a historical and life course perspective. Annual Review of Sociology, 20, 437–461.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harper, S., Aboderin, I., & Ruchieva, I. (2008). The impact of the outmigration of female care workers on informal family care in Nigeria and Bulgaria. In J. Connel (Ed.), The international migration of health workers (pp. 163–170). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoang, L. A., Yeoh, B. S. A., & Wattie, A. M. (2012). Transnational labour migration and the politics of care in te Southeast Asian family. Geoforum, 43, 733–740.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, G. W. (2007). Challenges of ageing in east and southeast Asia: living arrangements of older persons, social security trends and retirement options. In G. Sinigoj et al. (Eds.), The impact of ageing. A common challenge for Europe and Asia (pp. 79–95). Wien: Lit Verlag GmbH & Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jordan, L. P., & Graham, E. (2012). Resilience and well-being among children of migrant parents in south-east Asia. Child Development, 83(5), 1672–1688.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keasberry, I. N. (2001). Elder care and intergenerational relationships in rural Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Ageing and Society, 21, 641–665.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King, R., & Vullnetary, J. (2006). Orphan pensioners and migrating grandparents: the impacts of mass migration on older people in rural Albania. Ageing and Society, 26, 783–816.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knodel, J., & Chayovan, N. (2011). Intergenerational Family Care for and by Older People in Thailand. Population Studies Center Research Report 11–732.

  • Kreager, P. (2006). Migration, social structure and old-age support networks: a comparison of three Indonesian communities. Ageing and Society, 26, 37–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krishnaswamy, B., Sein, U. T., Munodawafa, D., Varghese, C., Venkataraman, K., & Anand, L. (2008). Ageing in India. Ageing International, 32, 258–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lawton, L., Silverstein, M., & Bengtson, V. (2006). Affection, social contact, and geographic distance between adult children and their parents. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 56(1), 57–68.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li Sun, S. H. (2012). Grandparenting in the context of care for grandchildren by foreign domestic workers. In S. Arber & V. Timonen (Eds.), Contemporary grandparenting changing in family relationship in global context (pp. 113–137). Great Britain: The Policy Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Locke, C., Hoa, N.T.N., Tam, N.T.T., (2009). What does migration mean for relations with children and spouse left behind? Reflection from young married men and women on the move in Vietnam. Paper for presentation at IUSSP, Marrakech.

  • McCulloch, J. B. (1995). Aging and kinship in rural context. In R. Blieszner & V. H. Bedfords (Eds.), Handbook of ageing and the family. Westport: Greenwood Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, M. H. (2012). Grandmothers juggling work and grandchildren in the US. In S. Arber & V. Timonen (Eds.), Contemporary grandparenting changing in family relationship in global context (pp. 71–90). Great Britain: The Policy Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Mohd, S., Azman, A., Sulaiman, J., & Baba, I. (2010). Establishing the well-being of the rural–urban elderly population: a case study of Indonesia. Hong Kong Journal of Social Work, 44(2), 105–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Niehof, A. (1995). Ageing and the elderly in Indonesia: identifying key issues. Bijdragen tot de Taal, Land-end Volkenkunde, 15(3), 422–437.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Noveria, M. (2007). Challenges of population ageing in Indonesia. In G. Sinigoj et al. (Eds.), The impact of ageing. A common challenge for Europe and Asia (pp. 171–183). Wien: Lit Verlag GmbH & Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noveria, M., & Djohan, E. (2001). Database Program Lansia PKBI Daerah Bali: Kasus Kota dan Desa di Tiga Daerah Kotamadya Denpasar, Kabupaten Gianyar, dan Kabupaten Tabanan (Database of elderly program of PKBI region of Bali: a case of urban and rural areas in Denpasar City, Gianyar District and Tabanan District). Unpublished report.

  • Pantea, M.-C. (2012). Grandmothers as a main caregivers in the context of parental migration. European Journal of Social Work, 15(1), 63–80.

  • Parrenas, R. S. (2000). Migrant Filipina domestic workers and the intergenerational division of reproductive labor. Gender and Society, 14(4), 560–581.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parrenas, R. (2005). Long distance intimacy: class, gender and intergenerational relations between mothers and children in Filipino transnational families. Global Network, 5(4), 317–336.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perez, L. (1994). The household structure of second-generation children: an exploratory study of extended family arrangement. International Migration Review, XXVIII(4), 736–747.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raharto, A., et al. (2013). Indonesian Labour Migration: Social Costs and Families Left Behid. In Aurora Javate de Dios. Valuing the Sosial Cost of Migration. An Exploratory Study. Bangkok: UN Women.

  • Saidatulakmal, M., Azman, A., Sulaiman, J., & Baba, I. (2010). Establishing the well-being of the rural–urban elderly population: a case study of Indonesia. Hong Kong Journal of Social Worker, 44(2), 105–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shen, S., Li, F., & Tanui, J. K. (2012). Quality of life and old age social welfare system for the rural elderly in chin. Ageing International, 37, 285–299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, J. (2003). Caring for aging parents. Expression. Bulletin of the National Advisory Council on Aging, 16(3).

  • Wahyudi, M. (1999). The Role of women and family in increasing elderly welfare (Peranan Wanita Dalam Keluarga Dalam Upaya Peningkatan Kesejahteraan Lansia). Proceeding of Seminar on Valuable and High Quality Elderly Towards All Ages Society (Prosiding Sarasehan Tua Berguna dan Berkualitas Menuju Masyarakat Segala Usia). Jakarta: Committee of National Elderly Day (Panitia Hari Lanjut Usia Nasional).

  • Wise, K. (2002). Caring for our parents in aging words: sharing public and private responsibility for the elderly. Legislation and Public Policy, 5, 563–598.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This article has been modified from paper entitled 'Senior Citizen in Indonesia: Caregiving in Some International Migrant-Sending Areas in West Java', presented at 20th Biennial General Conference of the Association of Asian Social Research Council (AASSREC) in Cebu City, Philippines, 4-6 April 2013

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Centre for Population, Indonesian Institute of Science (PPK-LIPI), Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta, Indonesia

    Mita Noveria

Authors
  1. Mita Noveria
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mita Noveria.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Noveria, M. Grandchildren Caregiving: Elderly Support for the Family (A Case Study in Some International Migrant Sending Areas in West Java). Population Ageing 8, 187–202 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12062-015-9118-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12062-015-9118-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation