Motivations and constraints of adult children supporting senior parents’ travel in China

Tingting Zhu et al.

Work, Aging and Retirement2025https://doi.org/10.1093/workar/waaf009article
AJG 2ABDC B
Weight
0.48

What the paper says

Abstract The escalating demographic shift towards an aging population in China underscores a critical need to examine the intergenerational support dynamics within the senior tourism sector, a realm previously dominated by studies focusing on the experiences of senior tourists in Western contexts. This research pivots to scrutinize the roles of adult children as facilitators of their elderly parents’ travel, integrating a culturally contextual framework that leverages social exchange theory, social support theory, and leisure constraint theory. Based on a quantitative survey of 505 participants, this study examines how travel support motivations influence adult children’s supportive behaviors toward their senior parents’ travel, and whether travel support constraints moderate these relationships. Our findings highlight that while filial piety is less influential, novelty-seeking and recognition prominently drive support intentions. Unexpectedly, family togetherness has failed to predict support behaviors. Furthermore, the study reveals that health concerns substantially deter support, and travel support constraints uniquely influence the relationship between recognition and support intentions. Collectively, these insights contribute to a deeper theoretical understanding of family dynamics in senior tourism, tailored to the collectivist ethos of China.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1093/workar/waaf009

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@article{tingting2025,
  title        = {{Motivations and constraints of adult children supporting senior parents’ travel in China}},
  author       = {Tingting Zhu et al.},
  journal      = {Work, Aging and Retirement},
  year         = {2025},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1093/workar/waaf009},
}

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Motivations and constraints of adult children supporting senior parents’ travel in China

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Evidence weight

0.48

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.41 × 0.4 = 0.16
M · momentum0.63 × 0.15 = 0.09
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.