The impact of ethnicity on helping older relatives:: Findings from a sample of employed Canadians

This study examines the relationship between ethnicity and the provision of assistance to older relatives. A sample of employed Canadians (N = 2,753), a subsample of the GARNET Work and Family Survey, is used to explore how ethnicity influences the amount of assistance provided to older relatives. Findings from our study suggest that Asians, East Indians, and Southern Europeans provide higher levels of help than British respondents. Filial obligation affects the amount of help provided but plays a similar role within each ethnic group. However, structural factors - in particular, Living arrangement and age - are stronger predictors of the level of involvement in helping older relatives than are cultural factors of filial obligation and belonging to a particular ethnic group.