Filial obligations today : moral practice, perception and ethical theory

Abstract

This thesis is about the meaning of filial obligations in Dutch society today. The thesis consists of a general introduction, two quantitative sociological studies, two qualitative studies, an ethical analysis and a general discussion. In the introduction, the background for the research questions in the thesis is sketched. The first quantitative study discusses the correlates of support giving of adult children to their elderly parents. The strongest socio-demographic correlates of a higher likelihood of giving support were: having few siblings, having a widowed parent without a new partner and, for practical support, a short geographical distance separating the parent’s and the child’s homes. Single mothers were more likely to receive support than mothers with partners. Widowed fathers also received more support. Parents who found a new partner after divorce or widowhood received less support than parents still married to the other parent of the child. A good parent-child relationship was the most important motivator for giving support, whereas subscribing to filial obligation norms was a much weaker one. A second quantitative study investigates the relationship between support giving and wellbeing. After controlling for background characteristics, regression analysis showed no effects of the provision or the receipt of support, nor the balance between them. Providing support out of duty was correlated with lower well-being. The best predictor of well-being was feeling supported by family members. A qualitative study on motivations of adult children for support giving to their elderly parents revealed five major themes in connection to support giving: individual choice, obligations, reciprocity, quality of the relationship and genetic relatedness. In the individualized Dutch society obligations to provide support have given way to personal motives to provide support. A second qualitative study focused on perceived limits to support giving. Two categories were discerned: The amount of support was limited by structural circumstances such as available time or traveling distance. The type of support adult children wished to give was limited by motivational reasons. This implies that policies to facilitate support giving may lead to more support of some types, but not others. Personal care is unlikely to be forthcoming from adult children. The ethical analysis describes five arguments of filial obligations: reciprocity, friendship, parents’ needs, assumed promise and the special good of the relationship. The last argument was judged to suit the parent-child relationship best. It involves a continuation of the relationship from both parties. It rejects extensive duties on the basis of the parent-child relationship. The general discussion summarizes the results and concludes that filial obligations are a matter of personal morality. Justice requires that care for elderly be a societal responsibility.