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Dying Away From Home

Quandaries of Migration for Elders in Two Ethnic Groups

^a Institute for Health and Aging, University of California, San Francisco

Gay Becker, UCSF, Box 0646, San Francisco, CA 94143-0646 E-mail: becker{at}itsa.ucsf.edu.

Decision Editor: Fredric D. Wolinsky, PhD

Objectives. The purpose was to examine how Cambodian Americans and Filipino Americans view their homeland in old age and how those views affect the contemplation of death, using a multifaceted theoretical framework that encompasses transnationality, place, ethnic identity, continuity, and cultural phenomenology.

Methods. Three in-depth interviews over a 1-year period were conducted with 126 respondents (48 Cambodian Americans and 78 Filipino Americans). Both open-ended and semistructured questions were asked to determine how respondents viewed their eventual deaths.

Results. Many Cambodian Americans and Filipino Americans expressed a desire to die in their homelands. Whether or not they desired to return to the homeland to die was mediated by the presence or absence of the extended family, memories of the homeland, and the availability of traditional ritual practices in the United States.

Discussion. The preoccupation of respondents with where to die apparently reflects the desire to create continuity in their lives. In their efforts to reconcile issues of continuity, cultural meanings surrounding memory, ritual, and the family were paramount and appeared to reflect a desire to bring closure to unresolved conflicts in their lifetime. This research, including its theoretical framework, has implications for using the concept of transnationality and related concepts in gerontological research.

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				G. Becker, Y. Beyene, E. Newsom, and N. Mayen Creating Continuity Through Mutual Assistance: Intergenerational Reciprocity in Four Ethnic Groups J. Gerontol. B. Psychol. Sci. Soc. Sci., May 1, 2003; 58(3): S151 - 159. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]