From: Cultural attributes of suicidal ideation among older immigrants: a qualitative study
Organizing Themes | Basic Themes | Conceptual meanings | Translation |
---|---|---|---|
Social isolation | Ā | Lack of social connections and feel loneliness | Ā |
Ā | Linguistic and cultural barriers of being integrated to the receiving communitiesa | Linguistic barriers and cultural gaps | Iām lonely so that itās easy for me to have this thought (suicidal). Because I have nothing, Iām lonely here, especially at night. I donāt speak the language here. |
Ā | Low social supportb | Perceived low social support from family and friends | Because people who are closest to me have to work, they donāt come often. I canāt cook and canāt walk. My daughter is busy. She has her own family. Nobody can help me. All of my friends are old. How can they help? |
Ā | Self-reported lonelinessb | Feeling lonely and disconnected to others | I feel very lonely...My son and daughter live far from me. When they didnāt come to see me, I feel lonely. |
Ā | Restricted social networksb | The absence of marriage or small numbers of children and friends. | I donāt like Chicago since I moved from New York one or two years ago. In New York, I had many friends who get along well and all speak Cantonese. I have to start over and adapt to the new environment. I donāt want to make friends here, because I only understand 2ā3 out of 10 sentences they talk. |
Ā | Seasonal reductions in social interactionsb | Season-caused reduction in social interactions | I canāt go outside for activities when itās cold. Iām bored staying home. |
Absence of reciprocal care | Ā | Not a supporter of others and have few to no support | Ā |
Ā | Conflict in family normsb | Ā | You can hardly expect someone filial enough to persist care of long-ill parent (ājiu bing chuang qian wu xiao ziā). My children expect me to die soon; then they can get the money. I lost the hope to rely on the children. I often think why not to die soon. Iām in poor health. I cause trouble for children. |
Ā | Acculturation gaps in intergenerational supporta | A sense of imbalance in the relationship and the violation of social expectations due to acculturation gaps | My daughter-in-law looks down upon me. What is your (my) worth? You (I) can only clean and take care of the grandchildren. Initially, they ask us to go there, and we take care of grandchildren. They seem to take it for granted. In the US, American grandparents do not have to take care of their grandchildren. If you want them to, you must pay them money. |
Ā | Loss through deathb | Ā | I have been suffering since my wife was gone. My daughter has two kids and her husband. It doesnāt matter. But for me, I donāt have anyone. When I feel painful and bored, I leave the senior apartment and I took the train, from the beginning to the very end, and from the end back to the beginning. |