The influence of progeny-Parents family travel on the well-being of the elderly in filial piety culture

PLoS One. 2024 May 9;19(5):e0299565. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0299565. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

Grounded in the cultural context of Chinese filial piety, this study employs structural equation model to analyze survey data from elderly participants. It explores the effect and path of progeny-parents family travel on the elderly's sense of well-being and examines the mediating roles of generational interaction, optimistic emotion, and psychological resilience. The findings indicate that progeny-parents family travel positively influences the well-being of the elderly, with generational interaction, optimistic emotion, and psychological resilience serving as intermediary roles. Theoretically, this study enriches the localized perspective of family travel's psychological and behavioral impact on the elderly. It elucidates the spillover effects of family travel within the framework of filial piety culture, delineates the mechanisms by which family travel enhances elderly well-being, and offers theoretical insights for businesses to develop customized family travel products and services.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • China
  • Culture
  • Emotions
  • Family / psychology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Intergenerational Relations
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Parents / psychology
  • Resilience, Psychological
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Travel* / psychology

Grants and funding

About the funding information, the study was supported by several research projects. The corresponding author acknowledge the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 72271172), the Humanities and Social Science Fund of Ministry of Education of China (Grant No. 21YJC630142), Post-Doctor Research Project, West China Hospital, Sichuan University (Grant No. 2020HXBH140), and the Science and Technology Department of Sichuan Province Project (Grant No. 2023JDKP0033); the third author acknowledge the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 71871147) and the Science and Technology Department of Sichuan Province Project (Grant: 2018ZR0201 & 21YYJC2873). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.