Independence and comfortable living conditions help elderly Chinese immigrants to feel satisfied with their lives and at home in the US, although they can be unsettled by being unable to speak fluent English, according to new research.
Researchers from Shaanxi Normal University, Georgia State University, and International Association of Long Term Care Directors, found that older immigrants are more likely to feel at home in a new country that offers them favorable social policies, such as Medicaid, social services, Medicare, and low-income housing. The Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology published the findings. Georgia State’s Department of Sociology associate professor, Dr Jenny Zahn, says that senior Asian Americans are a minority given little attention and whose needs are sometimes underserved as it is assumed that they are looked after by their families or to be self-sufficient.
Asian Americans are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the US. Their immigration rates surpassed those of Hispanics for the first time in 2010. They are now the biggest demographic of immigrants coming into the US, with many being older adults. Chinese immigrants are the oldest, as well as the biggest, group and have a long life expectancy.
By 2050, the number of Asian Americans over the age of 65 is expected to be three times of that recorded in 2000 – around 2.4 million, according to the US Census Bureau. The new study surveyed as many as 107 Chinese immigrants living in the metro area of Atlanta.