Hong Kong - More than half of Hong Kong adults questioned in
a survey published Friday believe they should not be financially
burdened by their elderly parents, indicating a decline in the
traditional Chinese belief in children's duty to care for parents.
As many as 51 per cent of the 2,000 people questioned felt that
their parents should be self-supporting by the time they retire
rather than relying on their children.
Only 29 per cent said they would be willing to support their
parents even if it required a drop in their own living standards,
while 68 per cent said they would not even expect support from their
own children.
The survey - commissioned by Citibank and carried out in April and
May by the University of Hong Kong's social sciences research centre
- found the majority put their own children before their parents.
The married and middle-aged emerged as less willing to support
their parents, with only one in four aged between 40 and 49 and 26
per cent of married people saying children should support their
parents unconditionally.
Young people appeared more caring in the survey, with a third
saying they thought children should support their parents in
retirement.
The researchers claim the results show that the traditional
Chinese practice of children caring for their parents in their old
age was becoming less popular in modern Hong Kong.
Citibank's director of insurance Emily Cheung said the survey
showed fewer people were prepared to financially support parents once
they retired.
'I think this is due to the shift in the family structure. In the
past, families had more children who could share the financial
burden. Now, we have smaller families, and the burden falls on one or
two individuals,' she said.
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