The Gift of Generations: Japanese and American Perspectives on Aging and the Social Contract

The Gift of Generations is an inquiry into the different cultural meanings of giving and deserving help in two aging societies. Postindustrial societies today contend with population dynamics that have never before existed. As the number of older people grows, countries must determine how best to provide for the needs of this population. The constraints are real: Fiscal and material resources are finite and must be shared in a way that is perceived as just. As such, societies confront the fundamental question of who gets what, how, and why, and ultimately must reappraise the principles determining why some people are considered more worthy of help than others. This study systematically explores the Japanese and American answers to this fundamental question.

The Gift of Generations

The Gift of Generations Japanese and American Perspectives on Aging and the Social Contract AKIKO HASHIMOTO University of Pittsburgh

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, Sao Paulo, Delhi Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521555203 © Cambridge University Press 1996 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 1996 A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data Hashimoto, Akiko, 1952The gift of generations: Japanese and American perspectives on aging and the social contract / Akiko Hashimoto. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-521-48307-7 (he). - ISBN 0-521-55520-5 (pbk.) 1. Aged - Cross-cultural studies. 2. Social contract - Crosscultural studies. 3. Aged - Japan-Family relationships. 4. A g e d United States - Family relationships. 5. Aged - Services for - Japan. 6. Aged - Services for - United States. I. Title. HQ1061.H366 1996 305.26 - dc20 95-37713 CIP ISBN 978-0-521-48307-0 hardback ISBN 978-0-521-55520-3 paperback Transferred to digital printing 2009 Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Information regarding prices, travel timetables and other factual information given in this work are correct at the time of first printing but Cambridge University Press does not guarantee the accuracy of such information thereafter.

To my father and my mother, Hashimoto Kozaburo, and Hisako

Do not go gentle into that good night, Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light. - Dylan Thomas Learn to adore it in your heart The silver hair on your head. Of all the riches That I can find in this world Nothing can equal In price, no matter how dear, The silver hair on your head. - Ryokan

Contents

List of Tables and Figure Preface Acknowledgments 1

page ix xi xiii

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens The Private Discourse: Expectations of Vulnerability The Public Discourse: Responsibilities of Intervention Values, Interests, and Symbolic Equity: A Framework of Analysis

13

2

Two Communities, Two Societies West Haven Westside Odawara Comparing Communities

18 19 22 28

3

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain Entitlement, Obligation, and Equity Individual, Family, and State

34 35 43

4

The Practice of Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain Inside the Household Outside the Household Family and Network The Recognition of Vulnerability

49 51 58 64 65

5

The Japanese Viewpoint Voices from Odawara The Protective Approach

1 1 10

71 73 101

vn

Contents 6

The American Viewpoint Voices from West Haven The Contingency Approach

103 105 140

7

Cultural Assumptions and Values Trajectories of Need Conditions of Security Intergenerational Equity Primary Bonds of Affection Units of Self-Sufficiency Visions of Resource Affluence

143 145 151 153 155 157 158

8

The Social Regulation of Interests Credits, Debts, and Mutual Interests Rights, Responsibilities, and Collective Interests The Logic of Symbolic Equity Distribution of Symbolic Resources: Empowerment and Disempowerment Social and Cultural Constructions of Support

163 165 168 169 171 174

Conclusion Culture, Power, and the Social Contract Reflections on Diversity and Change

182 183 186

9

Appendix: Methods of Research Bibliography Index

195 200 215

Vlll

Tables and Figure

TABLES

2.1 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 7.1 8.1

Profiles of West Haven and Westside Odawara page 30 Living arrangements in West Haven and Westside Odawara 52 Living arrangements by age, marital status, and sex in West Haven and Westside Odawara 55 Patterns of association with close relatives and friends by living arrangements 61 Choice of confidante by living arrangements, sex, and marital status in West Haven and Westside Odawara 63 Receiving at least one type of informal support: Logistic regression estimates 67 Cultural assumptions of helping relationships 145 Strategies of regulating interests in helping relationships 174 FIGURE

7.1

Expectations of need in old age

IX

149

Preface

H

OW are people made deserving of help? How do different cultures define the meaning of giving and worthiness of the people who "ought" to be helped? This book explores these questions by comparing Japanese and American helping arrangements and support systems. Drawing on 2 years of fieldwork, the study analyzes the cultural and structural conditions that shape the "social contract" in the case of the elderly. My analysis draws attention to the symbolic dimension of this social contract and focuses on the importance of cultural assumptions and social assignments that create the conditions of deservedness. There is more to the phenomenon of giving and deserving help than goodwill and meeting others' needs. People seemingly give help even when it is not in their interest to do so. Reciprocity also seems to matter, even when people act out of generosity. I believe that the key explanations are found in the regulation of values and interests entailed in the practice of the social contract. The cross-cultural design of this study offers an opportunity to explore systematically these values and interests in social support. My purpose is to understand how culture and society shape giving, both theoretically and empirically. This framework derives from an analysis of comparative patterns of support, the different conditions in which support is perceived to be successful or unsuccessful, and the degree to which different values and interests are prioritized in helping arrangements. I explain the crossnational differences by comparing the definitions of vulnerability, security, dependency, reciprocity, protection, intervention, entitlement, and obligation; I also account for the similarities by comparing the social practices of designating rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts. xi

Preface The study draws on fieldwork from two communities where I lived as a participant observer. The two sites I selected - Odawara City in Kanagawa Prefecture, and West Haven City in Connecticut - are comparable communities in size, demographic profiles, and socioeconomic conditions. In addition to the information from participant observation, I obtained systematically comparable data from 49 case studies and 471 survey respondents. Data collection for this project started in the early 1980s, but the core values and interests that I examine nevertheless do not change easily. If anything, the question of the social contract in contemporary societies has become even more significant in the intervening years. Chapter 1 introduces the central themes of the study - deservedness, vulnerability, and responsibility - and maps out the theoretical perspective of the book. Chapter 2 sets the scene for the study by introducing the reader to the two communities. In Chapter 3,1 explore the different social designations of rights and responsibilities in the public domain, by examining the relationship between the individual, the family, and the state as expressed in Japanese and American social policies. In the following three empirical chapters, I analyze the helping practices in the private domain, to explore the workings of entitlement, obligation, protection, intervention, reciprocity, and fairness in the support relationship. Chapter 4 examines the different patterns of interaction in the giver-receiver relationship. In Chapters 5 and 6, I present the viewpoints of the elderly themselves. In the next two synthesis chapters, which contain the heart of my argument on values, interests, and symbolic equity, I bring together the different layers of findings in a theoretical framework. Chapter 7 identifies and discusses the key cultural assumptions that shape the support practice. Chapter 8 discusses the social assignments of rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts that establishes symbolic equity in the giver-receiver relationship. Finally, Chapter 9 offers a summary and some reflections on the implications of the study. Details of research methods can be found in the appendix.

xn

Acknowledgments

I

N the years of research leading to the publication of this book, I have accrued gifts of encouragement, information, advice, and criticism from many people on both sides of the Pacific. I am grateful to all of them for giving freely of their time and knowledge. My special thanks are due to the senior citizens of Odawara and West Haven who were generous in sharing their life stories and confidences with me. I have learned much from their wisdom, courage, and kindness while I lived with them, and hope that I have portrayed their lives in a way that they recognize. The fieldwork in the two countries would not have been possible without the many people who guided me and collaborated with me. In particular, I would like to thank Lisa Berkman (Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale University), Fujisaki Hiroko (Sacred Heart Women's College, formerly of Tokyo Metropolitan University), Kobayashi Ryoji (Tokyo Metropolitan University), Joanne McGloin (Yale Health and Aging Project), Nemoto Yoshiaki (Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare), Osawa Takashi (Kanagawa Prefectural Government), and Thomas Corrigan, Louis Goldblatt, and Susan Holtvedt (State of Connecticut). In Odawara, Matsuno Mitsuyoshi (City of Odawara), Morohoshi Kiyoshi (Odawara Social Welfare Council), and Saito Kiyoshi (City of Odawara) were invaluable with their help. In West Haven, Arthur Cantor, Robert Congdon, and Carla Hays (South Central Connecticut Area Agency on Aging) and Sharon Mancini and John Wheeler (City of West Haven, Elderly Services) were generous with their advice when it was most needed. Research grants from Toyota Foundation, Concilium on International and Area Studies and Council on East Asian Studies at Yale xiii

Acknowledgments University, and Japan Council and Asian Studies Program at the University of Pittsburgh have helped me carry out the different phases of this study. I am grateful for the financial resources that they made available for this project. The research assistance of Miwa Seiko, Virginia Tomlinson, Sawada Yoshie, and BunyaToshiko was also indispensable for me during or after fieldwork in the two countries. The secretarial staff of the Department of Sociology at the University of Pittsburgh ably assisted me with the preparation of the manuscript for publication. Many advisors, colleagues, and friends have stimulated my thinking and conceptualization on cultural analysis during all or part of the years in which this book has been in the making. I would like to acknowledge the earlier crucial help of my advisors at Yale: Eleanor Westney, Deborah Davis, David Apter, and Lisa Berkman. Many thanks are also due to my former colleagues at the United Nations University, Nevin Scrimshaw and Lai Jayawardena, for their special support. My colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh have also been generous with their time to offer precious criticism and encouragement: Sandra Boatwright, Keith Brown, Mounira Charrad, Ellis Krauss, and Mae Smethurst. I am especially indebted to Rainer Baum, Martin Greenberg, William Kelly, and Richard Smethurst for their very constructive comments on the whole manuscript. The reviews from anonymous readers of Cambridge University Press and another press that was interested in publishing my manuscript have also been helpful in shaping the final version of this book. For their warm support, human comfort, and inspiration at various phases of this project, I must thank many special friends, colleagues, and family members. Among them are Atsumi Naoki, Darlene Berkovitz, Keith Brown, Ellen Borges, Fujisaki Hiroko, Janelle and Martin Greenberg, Romaine and Tamara Horowitz, Ann Jannetta, Sander Kornblith, Carol Krauss Bostick, Miwa Seiko, Jon and Monika Pierre, Thomas Richter, Mae and Richard Smethurst, and Robert Zinn. At Cambridge University Press, I am very grateful to my editor Elizabeth Neal for her wise guidance and special interest in this work. I am also indebted to Brian MacDonald for his patient and intelligent copy editing and production. xiv

Acknowledgments Finally, I want to express my heartfelt appreciation to Amy Remensnyder for being there at the most crucial times, and my sister Yasuko Hashimoto Richter for her loving and unfailing support throughout the journey of this project. Material appearing in the epigraph is reprinted by permission of New Directions Publishing Corporation, from Poems of Dylan Thomas, copyright 1952 by Dylan Thomas; and by Princeton University Press, from The Zen Poems ofRyokan, by Nobuyuki Yuasa, copyright 1981 by Princeton University Press.

xv

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens

THE PRIVATE DISCOURSE: EXPECTATIONS OF VULNERABILITY

OROTHY Turoski1 is a 74-year-old woman who lives in a public housing complex for the elderly in the city of West Haven, Connecticut, 80 miles to the northeast of metropolitan New York. She packed chicken at the local poultry factory for 28 years before retiring from her job, and now lives in a subsidized one-room housing unit of this complex on a small Social Security income. Dorothy has some difficulty moving around because of arthritis, and she has lived here alone for 7 years.

D

I do nothing. There's nothing to do here. I haven't got none, no friends. There's plenty of days I don't see anybody. I don't know anybody here. I don't go to City Hall [senior center], I don't know anybody here.... My husband died. My two daughters died. My son had a stroke. He is paralyzed. He's in a wheelchair. For three and a half years, I was away taking care of my daughter. I used to go at eight o'clock till four when the kids came home from school. When she died, it seemed that everything in me died. Because I didn't care anymore. She suffered so much.... I got all her children, but they're not very nice. They don't come to see me or anything. On a Sunday, the parking lot is full when they come to see their grandmother or their mother, but there's nobody there for me. . .. 1 Names, occupations, and other details identifying interviewees quoted here and in subsequent chapters have been altered to protect their anonymity.

The Gift of Generations Lots of times I wish I was 60 again. I'd be happy. I'd be working. I'd be doing something again. I could work now but I'm afraid. When I get up in the morning, I just can't hurry up and run around, because I'd fall. I'm all aches and pains now; if I had to go to the doctor for this, I'd have to go everyday.. . . I don't know where I'd go. I haven't got no money. I'll go to a convalescent home. That's where lots of people go from here. I don't know what they do when they go to a convalescent home. . . . I would be the lucky one to get one that wouldn't be very nice - because I'm not a very lucky person. We begin this book with four women - two Japanese and two Americans - who talk about the realities of later life in different environments. They are all in their late 60s or early 70s and have worked throughout their lives; but each person is different in how she defines the boundaries of her vulnerability, and in the expectations she sets for others to meet her needs. Their hopes and disappointments echo not only different expectations of dependence and independence in old age, but also their different standards of evaluating how one becomes in need of, and deserving of, protection at such a time. Dorothy's bitterness and sense of betrayal help us understand that her most acute vulnerabilities lie with her family relationships. Her laments focus on her children, none of whom are now available to love and care for her. Her husband died 15 years ago, as did her two daughters. Of her two surviving sons, one is wheelchair-bound, and the other is hospitalized for a drinking problem. After all of the care she gave to her children, none of their children, in turn, feels that she now deserves the same in later life. Dorothy feels deprived and depressed, even though public support is available to meet her most basic financial needs. To shield herself from further disappointments, she has secluded herself in a small apartment, and does not take the opportunity to socialize with neighbors and peers in the same building. Her expectation for old age is utterly unmet, as she now resigns herself to the idea of eventually moving to a nursing home, a contingency that she feels is totally undeserved. She sees herself as a person who has been dealt a bad hand - and as deserving better.

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens The public support provisions for the elderly2 that Dorothy takes for granted - subsidized housing, public meal programs, transportation services, a range of nursing homes - are not as readily accessible to her Japanese counterparts. In Japan, those without family support must seek their old-age security through alternative means. Yamada Shizu,3 also in her early 70s, lives in a rental unit in Odawara City, 50 miles to the west of metropolitan Tokyo. She has worked at the local fish-processing factory for 16 years, and now lives with her husband, a lacquer craftsman, in a two-room apartment. Like Dorothy, Shizu has arthritis and moves with some difficulty, but she has recovered from a hip operation. Shizu's strategy for old age has taken an entirely different direction from Dorothy's: It is focused on willfully masterminding the invention of family as a safety net. As we carry out the interview, she hugs and talks to her favorite doll, Toto-chan, made in the likeness of a 2-year-old baby girl. I do nothing all day. I used to like making cloth flowers. I gave them away, but I ran out of people to give them to - so, I don't do it anymore. I like singing, so I sing here by myself to the background music tape, karaoke. I don't like places where there are lots of people I don't know. I don't like talking with people I don't know. . . . I love television; I like watching baseball; and then there's wrestling, but I love baseball. We adopted a nephew who married a niece. They are the children of my sisters, and they are cousins. The adoption was arranged 15 years ago. They're very good to us. They live in Saitama with three children. We bought them land in Saitama, built them a house. That was part of our understanding, part of the adoption. We're old-fashioned people, always working hard and preparing for the future. This holiday, the Golden Week, they said they'd come to fetch me if I wanted to go. I called them this morning and told 2 Throughout this book, the term elderly refers to persons over age 65, unless otherwise noted. 3 Surnames precede given names for all Japanese respondents.

The Gift of Generations them that I'll be good this year. It's been a year since my hip troubles. It's not as if I don't feel well or anything, you know. But I just didn't want to trouble them. . . . Toto-chan came to us through the mail order.... I even telephoned the mail-order house, so that Toto-chan could come to us more quickly. This dress is too large for her . .. but now that it's getting warmer, I just roll up her sleeves. I don't take Toto-chan with me when I visit them in Saitama. You see, my husband would be lonely [sabishii], if he were left alone. We'll eventually move to Saitama. I even bought a plot in the temple cemetery there. You see, we're old so we don't know when it will happen. It could happen any day. And so if we buy a plot, there's no need to worry. I wouldn't want my son to have to worry about that for us. I've told him that we are now saving up for the funeral expenses. You see, we're old-fashioned people. For the funeral, about one million yen would do. . . . We'll move to Saitama when we can't work anymore.4 To the degree that adult adoption (yoshi engumi) survives in contemporary Japan as a legacy of the traditional family system iey it is today an arrangement that can secure family support for the elderly in return for an offer of inheritance.5 As a childless couple, the Yamadas' plan for this old-age security began years ago in their middle age, when they turned to this traditional Japanese option. Shizu and her husband have now invested almost all of their savings in their adopted son, consciously grooming him and his wife as their future caregivers - which is, for them, the most important part of the "understanding." Careful not to impose on the adopted couple for the holiday weekend - and for any other expenses, for that matter - Shizu spends most of her daytime alone, watching television, taking short walks, 4 All Japanese quotations appearing in this book were translated by the author. 5 Ie refers to the traditional patrilineal stem family, which practiced primogeniture until the end of World War II. In this system, families without male heirs adopted adult men (often the daughters' husbands) to preserve the family lineage. There were seven cases of adult adoption in the Odawara sample.

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens and playing with the doll. Most of the financial transfer from the older to younger generation seems to have already taken place: The Yamadas have made the downpayment for their adopted son's house, while they themselves continue to live in a small rental unit. As such, Shizu's adaptation to old age - and preparing for the likelihood of widowhood - has been deliberately planned. She has intentionally created an extended family where none existed, and has even concocted a live-in surrogate grandchild, Toto-chan. Through the series of steps she has taken over the past 15 years, she has consciously made herself a future beneficiary of this family support system. While Dorothy and Shizu can both be described as lonely women with similar physical difficulties, it is clear that they seek out different support systems not just because of different personal circumstances and social options. In Japan, where the majority of older people live with their children mostly in three-generation households, childlessness is a significant drawback in old age. When the society as a whole is geared to the availability of children in times of vulnerability, the preferred solution to old-age security for the childless lies not in the search for public or community support, but in finding the closest substitute to a family support system. The two women also bring different underlying assumptions to their own life scripts of old age from their distinct Japanese and American backgrounds. Dorothy speaks about resorting to a nursing home as an eventuality that was wholly unanticipated and unplanned. Shizu is all business as she talks about moving to, and dying in, Saitama as part of her concrete plan for the end of her life. It is clear that the support systems of these two women derive from different personal circumstances and institutional options, and, at the same time, they are also based on different expectations about the absolute need for support in later life. Thus, these expectations lead to different precautions and preparations. In contrast to these two women who are concerned about receiving care, Irene Falletta, a retired schoolteacher in West Haven, sees herself first and foremost as a provider of support to other elderly by situating herself on the other side of the fence. Far from orchestrating a plan for her own support like Shizu, Irene has created a plan to live for

The Gift of Generations others who are in need. She leads a very active life as an elderly advocate for the West Haven region, serving on boards and committees of many community organizations, and being vocal and prominent in the city's circle of volunteers. As a former teacher, she is educated and articulate, and enjoys a comfortable pension that the school system affords. Irene is also 72 years old and has been married for 40 years; and, like Shizu, she has had no children of her own. Most weeks, I'm out of the house everyday for some part of the day. I don't really think of these [volunteer work] as positions. You see, I believe that growing old is part of growing. It's the continuum of life. As far as I'm concerned, it was really just growing into it. I keep going because I was getting older, and so was the world. And then, I should find a way to contribute. My decision was that I wanted to continue to be involved. In order to be alive, I had to be involved. And to be involved would keep me alive, rather than wait and see what happens . . . no, I don't do that. I really planned to retire to do volunteer work.. . . When I can't anymore? I'll just have to find some other thing to contribute to. Our grandparents lived with us. Both my maternal and paternal grandmothers lived with us, and my paternal grandfather, too. . . . But it's not as easy today, because now people don't grow together. . . . Yes, I would like to live with the younger generations [if such circumstances were possible]. We don't have children, unfortunately, but if we did, I would ask them to live with me - rather than me with them - there's a difference here, you see. I would prefer that they lived with me.6 But for the present moment, going in to live with a relative no, I don't think so. Because, you see, they have their lives and we have ours. We didn't grow together. You can't do it. Irene's concern for her independence is a common theme emphasized by the elderly in contemporary American life. She refuses to elaborate on her own vulnerability - about the possibility some day of 6 The emphasis is Irene's.

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens becoming incapacitated, widowed, lonely, or in need of some help herself. As if such thoughts would only hasten their arrival, she takes to her retired life with a resolute sense of control. For Irene, the transition to retirement has also been part of a deliberate plan, but the plan is essentially one that focuses on the continuity of an active and independent life, not the end of it. She is fully absorbed in the social network of peers, found far more frequently among the American than Japanese elderly. Peer networks are important for Irene, because the interests and pursuits of the older and younger generations in contemporary life are far apart - a view held more commonly in American than Japanese society. Irene's sense of contribution and devotion to her peers derives from the vital notion common in American society that life does not come to a meaningful completion without living it up fully until the last moment. Finally, Suzuki Masa is a nurse in her late 60s who is still professionally active in Odawara. Like Irene, she has had an active career, nursing infants for 37 years despite the onset of a mild hearing problem. Widowed for 21 years, she lives alone in a three-room housing unit. Both of her children are married and live outside of Kanagawa Prefecture - a daughter lives in Chiba, and a son moved as far away as Sapporo on the northern island of Hokkaido to represent the central government. With a busy life-style, career, and social engagements, Masa is strikingly similar to Irene. But her notion of what follows beyond this stage of activity in old age is quite different from Irene's: Masa has designs to move in with her son in the future just like Shizu, as she said when we discussed the meaning of old age in her home. There's so much to do all day. I haven't got any quiet time for myself, oh really . . . I've got so much to do! . . . They don't want to see me go. Even if I quit the hospital work, there are still all the little babies to look after [at the nursery] and I've got all of the counseling to do, too.. .. Oh, I wish I could also take some English classes. Seriously! I really wanted to do it this year, but I never, never got around to it. And then there's all the sewing, too. There's still plenty I want to do!

The Gift of Generations People are always asking me if I don't get lonely [sabishii], living alone. You see, I never am, because I'm so busy, right now. . . . You know, it is so important to keep on doing things. We must go on doing things all the time \yaranakucha dameyo, ne\. It's so true. And we continue to grow, because we are learning new things all the time. People make people, I think. I've taken all the beatings life has to offer - all of it. When I was thirty-three, when I had my second child, I had to take to bed for six years. Times of illness, they are so hard. .. . And then, my husband died, and before he died, he was bedridden for a while, too . . . yes, for seven years. Then, making a living, bringing up the kids by myself. . . . There were some hardships I couldn't even begin to tell. So, you see, no matter what life has yet in store for me, I know I can take it. Really, any amount of endurance [gaman], I can take it. Of course, at my daughter's, they're always asking me when I'm coming to live with them. That is, with my daughter. My son is far away right now because of his transfer to Hokkaido, you see. These transfers are always so unpredictable, aren't they, even after he gets back to Tokyo again... . So, this son told his sister that while he's on the move, he's delegating my care to her. But after all, I really only want to do what's right. You see, a son is a son. I must not do things that put him in a bad light [taterutokorowa tatenakya, ne]. And his wife's mother is feeling so embarrassed about it all. Living alone in Odawara for Masa has not so much to do with carving out a new life-style for herself as it has to do with her son's geographical mobility as a career civil servant. Her concern for moving in with him in the future is obvious, and it reveals a clear sense of distinctness between her present status as a healthy person and her future status in frailty. Being fully occupied with her work and living here by herself makes sense now in this context, but as a temporary phase, not a permanent one. Masa wants to conform to the social expectations of living with a child - especially with a son, not a daughter - in an environment where a majority of her peers take the arrangement for

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens granted. She feels the pressure of social expectations for coresidence ("people are always asking me if I don't get lonely, living alone"), which she also reinforces herself ("I really only want to do what's right"). Such expectations make her similar to Shizu: Although they come from different social class backgrounds, Masa and Shizu share the assumption that making family support arrangements in old age is part of the necessary business at the end of the life course; and for both women, the sense of deserving such support is acquired through sons, not daughters. In this sense, both women subscribe to the normative regulation of intergenerational relationships in Japanese society. The four women's accounts of their later lives illustrate the main themes of this study: assumptions about vulnerability and responsibility that underlie the social ideals of helping arrangements; cultural preferences for different ways of organizing help; and the dynamics of the social contract that regulate these different choices. This book offers a case study of how culture and society shape these assumptions, preferences, and choices. This study examines these issues by exploring the meaning of deservedness embedded in the social contract in cross-national perspective. Japanese and Americans agree that old age is, on the whole, a vulnerable time of life, as one experiences deteriorating health and is pushed to the periphery of economic activity; they also agree that something ought to be done about it. But the notions of what can be done, how, and with what results differ according to the cultural assumptions and social assignments that define the value of giving and deserving help in each society. At the same time, the standard of evaluation expressed in this notion of deservedness - that some are entitled to get help, or that others are obliged to give help - symbolizes the idea of fairness that lies at the heart of the social contract in both cases. Before we elaborate on the conditions of deservedness as a means to introduce the theoretical framework that guides this study, it is useful to turn briefly to the bigger picture of which these four women are a part: the social contract of the elderly in contemporary postindustrial societies. What these women think, do, and plan to do point to the concerns of an increasing number of older people who find themselves in

The Gift of Generations similar predicaments throughout the postindustrial world. Their concern is relevant, because almost everyone is part of a support network for older relatives or friends and participates in a social security system that supports their livelihood. The concerns affect everyone, as each must also grow old. And today, these societies face a critical juncture in their demographic history.

THE PUBLIC DISCOURSE: RESPONSIBILITIES OF INTERVENTION

In Japan and in the United States today, one in every eight persons is 65 years of age or older.7 The elderly population includes 16.2 million people in Japan and 32.3 million in the United States.8 They are expected to live well into their 70s and 80s, and even their 90s.9 Life expectancies in both societies have been increasing at a phenomenal rate, as improved living conditions, nutrition, public health, and medical technology have had a major impact on prolonging life. When survival was more difficult and the aged proportion of the population was still small, old age could be viewed as a bonus. Now 7 The proportion of the elderly is similar in the two countries: In 1992, it was 13.1% in Japan and 12.6% in the United States. Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 30; U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 8, 15. 8 Figures are for 1992. Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 30; U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 15. 9 Life expectancy at birth in Japan was 76.1 years for men and 82.2 years for women in 1992, compared with 44.5 years and 46.5 years respectively in 1930. The comparable figures for the United States were 72.3 years for men and 79.0 years for women in 1992, rising from 58.1 years and 61.1 years respectively in 1930. Life expectancy at age 60 has increased at a slower rate than life expectancy at birth in both countries. In Japan, it rose from 14.9 years to 19.9 years for men and 17.9 years and 24.0 years for women between 1960 to 1987, whereas it increased more slowly in the United States from 15.9 years to 18.2 years for men and 19.6 years to 22.5 years for women from 1960 to 1987. There is considerable variation in life expectancy between black and white populations in the United States that is not apparent in the averaged figures. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Health Care Systems in Transition: The Search for Efficiency, 189-190; Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare, Health and Welfare Statistics in Japan (1990), 57; Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 35; U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 87.

10

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens with tens of millions of elderly people, whose numbers are projected to nearly double in the next few decades, old age has become a "problem."10 By the year 2025, one in every four to five people will be aged 65 years and older in Japan, the United States, and other postindustrial nations.11 As both mortality and fertility rates continue to decline, "population aging" has become a social concern in regard to what is known as the aged dependency ratio in the social contract.12 As the label itself indicates, these societies share a growing recognition of the elderly as a dependent population - as a social group that requires public and private support - due to their withdrawal from the labor force and their increasing physical frailty. As great-grandparenthood becomes a more common phenomenon, so does the existence of a group of people with chronic health conditions, which often require intensive caregiving over long periods and result in high medical expenses. As the number of retirees grows, so does the need to allocate more public resources to the social security system, which must be funded by governments, employers, and current employees. Although longevity may still serve as an indicator of success in conquering many illnesses that were once lethal, it has, ironically, also created a "social problem." The public support systems in the two societies in fact originate in similar circumstances during a period of economic prosperity. Except for the social security systems, which started at different 10 The population aged 65 and over in Japan is projected to rise to 32.4 million by the year 2025. Similarly, the American elderly population is expected to increase to 61.8 million by 2025. Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 30; U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 16. 11 The proportion of elderly population over age 65 is projected to rise to 25.8% and 18.1% in Japan and the United States respectively by 2025. Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 30; U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 16. 12 The dependency ratio, the ratio of those over age 65 to those between ages 15 to 64, was 18.7 in Japan and 19.4 in the United States in 1992. It is expected to reach 43.2 in Japan and 29.4 in the United States by the year 2025. Calculated from U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 15-16, and Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 30.

11

The Gift of Generations times,13 the important program expansions in both nations occurred in the 1960s and early 1970s in the wake of years of steady economic growth, when there seemed to be enough wealth in the nations for everyone. The range of public provisions created for the elderly at the time includes social services, employment opportunities, health care subsidies, and financial assistance. These formal social contracts in the two nations and in other postindustrial countries are similar in theory, though not identical in practice - a matter hardly surprising in light of the basic needs for food, health, and housing and the considerable cross-national transfers of welfare policies that occurred at the time.14 In the 1980s, however, the politics of resource allocation took on a particularly crucial turn in both nations, as the formal social contract came under increasing public scrutiny. Contesting claims were made on both sides of the Pacific that one could no longer allow the social security and health care expenditures to increase as they had in the past decades.15 Accordingly, both governments moved up the eligibility age for social security for future cohorts, and made efforts to cap health care expenditures by limiting the types of treatment and payments from public insurance for illnesses, a stipulation known as Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRGs). As the question of moderating state responsibility became a disputed issue, the notion of family responsibility for the elderly also took on a renewed significance. If the aging problem is growing, and the state will no longer expand its provisions to deal with it, then further solutions, some argued, must be sought in the family and the 13 The social security system dates back to 1935 in the United States; the Japanese system originates in 1961. 14 Virginia C. Little, Open Care for the Aging: Comparative International Approaches, 48; Stephen J. Anderson, Welfare Policy and Politics in Japan: Beyond the Developmental State, 150; Yukio Noguchi, "Overcommitment in Pensions: The Japanese Experience," 188. 15 Public expenditures for social security grew exponentially in both countries during this period. Between 1959 and 1976, social security expenditure as proportion of national income grew by 176% in Japan and 189% in the United States. International Labour Organisation, The Cost of Social Security: Twelfth International Inquiry, 1981-1983.

12

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens community.16 Whether the family and the community have the necessary resources, willingness, and responsibility for such an undertaking, however, also remains a serious point of contention.17 In both public and private domains, therefore, the future of the social contract has become a contested issue. As we look toward the projected population dynamics of the twenty-first century, it is clear that the social agreement between successive generations to help and be helped requires a critical reappraisal.18 More than just a prediction of material costs and benefits, this reappraisal must examine the fundamental cultural assumptions and social assignments that define the meaning of giving and deserving in the social contract. This book contributes to this inquiry by clarifying how these assumptions and assignments shape the social contract in Japanese and American societies, and by examining how culture and society mold the interplay of contending interests entailed in such contracts. To my knowledge, no scholarship to date has addressed this issue both empirically and theoretically on a cross-national basis.

VALUES, INTERESTS, AND SYMBOLIC EQUITY: A FRAMEWORK OF ANALYSIS

To learn how the social contract is forged in different cultures, it is useful to distinguish between two theoretical dimensions: the subjective and objective conditions of support relationships. The subjective 16 For example in Japan, the Ohira government issued a well-publicized report in 1980, "Kateikiban jyujitsu no tameno teigen," hailing the family as society's "hidden asset" ifukumi shisan) to develop a "Japanese-style" welfare society that relies on family values and responsibilities. Similarly, the Reagan administration also sought to evoke more family responsibility for elder care by attempting to "reinterpret" the federal Medicaid regulation that prohibits the application of family responsibility laws in local states. These attempts have had mixed results. 17 Robert M. Moroney, Shared Responsibility: Families and Social Policy, chap. 1; Eugene Litwak, Helping the Elderly: The Complementary Roles of Informal Networks and Formal Systems, chap. 1; Marvin B. Sussman, "Family, Bureaucracy, and the Elderly Individual: An Organizational/Linkage Perspective"; Naomi Maruo, "The Development of the Welfare Mix in Japan." 18 Vern Bengtson, "Is the 'Contract across Generations' Changing? Effects of Population Aging on Obligations and Expectations across Age Groups."

13

The Gift of Generations conditions refer to the perceptions, assumptions, attitudes, and values that constitute the vision of reality of individuals and groups alike. In Berger and Luckmann's terms, this symbolic universe shapes our social construction of reality, which is taken for granted in our everyday life.19 The objective conditions of support, on the other hand, refer to the unequal conditions of access to (material and instrumental) resources between the helper and the helped. The support relationship mirrors the social difference between those who are in a position to give and those who are not, because it relies on this intrinsic distinction that makes the very act of giving possible. The support practice is shaped by these subjective and objective conditions that define the meaning of action, and the boundaries of structural possibilities. The meanings to which individuals subscribe define their values, expectations, and beliefs about what support "ought" to do. On the other hand, the asymmetrical relationships of individuals constrain the interests and choices that they make. These subjective and objective realities are intertwined in a process that Pierre Bourdieu calls double structuration - the notion that actors make subjective choices among options limited by objective conditions.20 In the support practice, individual actors thus seemingly choose freely from a range of support options defined by their values; yet these options are constrained by the structural inequity of the support relationship that is shaped by their interests. This study incorporates these two key dimensions in its framework of analysis. The social contract is shaped by the confluence of these values and interests that are embedded in the cultural and social contexts where the support practice takes place. Accordingly, this study compares and contrasts Japanese and American support practices, and their corresponding notions of deservedness, in terms of both the subjective and objective conditions of giving. In empirical terms, these values and interests will be examined by deciphering key cultural assumptions - about vulnerability, security, equity, and self-sufficiency 19 Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise on the Sociology of Knowledge, part 2, chap. 2. 20 Pierre Bourdieu, In Other Words: Essays toward a Reflexive Sociology.

14

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens and by identifying the social assignments of rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts in the support relationship. Social support is based on a set of cultural assumptions about need, security, equity, and self-sufficiency that influence the notion of giving. These expectations and presuppositions influence our vision of reality, and our vision of what support ought to do. These are cultural dispositions that shape the subjective reality in which we make sense of the nature of life, human relationships, and the life course. These dispositions, which Pierre Bourdieu calls habitus,21 come into relief when we compare the meaning of helping arrangements in different cultures. Since these perceptions and expectations are defined culturally, it follows then that the outcomes - the way support is organized - are also different from one culture to another. In other words, "who is deserving of help" is defined to a large degree by our values, which differ from one society to another. Social support also involves means to regulate self-interests, which is, in turn, influenced by cultural assumptions. Although spontaneous goodwill exists,22 altruism is not an enduring quality that ensures regular support over a long term, as Richard Titmuss has shown.23 To regularize giving, we therefore construct notions of collective interests and mutual interests in the giver-receiver relationship. As we will see, typically the arrangement of reciprocal intergenerational support establishes notions of mutual interests; likewise, the social designation of rights and responsibilities establishes notions of collective interests. Japanese and American helping arrangements both entail these mechanisms to regulate the interests of givers and receivers. To regularize everyday acts of giving, a support system must do more than invite generosity with incentives and rewards; it must routinize giving through the social assignments of rights, responsibilities, 21 Pierre Bourdieu, The Logic of Practice, chap. 3; and Outline of a Theory of Practice, chap. 2. 22 R. G. Simmons, S. K. Marine, and R. L. Simmons, The Gift of Life: The Effect of Organ Transplantation on Individual Family and Societal Dynamics; J. A. Piliavin and H. W. Charng, "Altruism: A Review of Recent Theory and Research." 23 Richard Titmuss, The Gift Relationship: From Human Blood to Social Policy, 225. See also Alvin Gouldner, "The Importance of Something for Nothing," 268.

15

The Gift of Generations credits, and debts - to regulate our tendency to keep rather than to give. Practices of entitlement, obligation, and reciprocity in support are therefore central to both Japanese and American systems. These practices effectively assign different symbolic resources to givers and receivers, so that the receiver becomes deserving by earning the right to be helped, and the giver remains obliged to give. As we will see, these assignments restore the equity in the support relationship by a logic of fairness, which I call symbolic equity. Symbolic equity refers to the nexus of values and interests that shapes the logic of fairness in the gift relationship. As cultural values of gifts vary from one context to another, the formulas of regulating interests by matching particular responsibilities with certain rights, and by canceling particular debts with certain credits, also differ from one society to another. Yet this logic of fairness remains central to each support practice regardless of such contexts.24 The difference between Japanese and American social contracts is therefore found neither in a generic tolerance for dependency nor in a critical mass of goodwill; it is found in the different standards of evaluation as they apply to fairness. Japanese and American support systems therefore contain features distinct from one another, yet similar in their logic of practice.25 This book explains these distinct features and similarities in the logic of practice by creating a conceptual scheme of interpretation. I derive the synthesis at the cross-national level by relying on two strategies of analysis, which Charles Tilly calls individualizing comparisons and variation-finding comparisons.261 use individualizing comparisons in Chapters 3 to 6, which systematically compare the differences of the two helping arrangements, to identify the special empirical features of each case. I then use variation-finding comparisons in Chapters 7 and 8, which synthesize the differences and similarities, to establish the 24 For discussions on the centrality and plurality of the notion of justice in allocation, see Jon Elster, Local Justice: How Institutions Allocate Scarce Goods and Necessary Burdens; Joel Feinberg, Doing and Deserving: Essays in the Theory of Responsibility; and Michael Walzer, Spheres of Justice: A Defense of Pluralism and Equality. 25 Pierre Bourdieu, The Logic of Practice, chap. 5. 26 Charles Tilly, Big Structures, Large Processes, Huge Comparisons, chaps. 5 and 7.

16

The Social Designation of Deserving Citizens principle of variation that applies to both cases. The intent of this book is therefore to conceptualize the link between culture and the social contract at a level of generality that accounts for both cross-national differences and similarities.27 Although this comparative approach at times requires me to pay less attention to variation within each case - for example, by gender, class, and ethnicity - 1 nevertheless believe that a cross-national synthesis can offer a parsimonious explanation of the values and interests entailed in the social contract. By adopting Marcel Mauss's approach to the gift relationship,28 the social contract in this study refers to the reciprocal arrangement to give and receive gifts in turn, based on a tacit standard of evaluation that defines their symbolic equivalence. Although the term also brings to bear a long-standing tradition of liberal political philosophy from Thomas Hobbes to John Rawls,29 it is a multifaceted concept with many variations.30 The social contract in this study has a wide definition that includes both the explicit, public contract between the state and its citizens and the implicit, private contract of individuals and collectives. This study examines the tacit standard of evaluation - deservedness - for these multiple arrangements, to uncover the meaning of fairness expressed in the symbolic equivalence of gifts. As Alvin Gouldner once suggested, ascertaining such equivalence of value in reciprocal relationships is an empirical question.31 Thus, on this note, we are ready to begin our comparative inquiry in the two communities, Odawara and West Haven. We will start by first describing the historical and national contexts, then proceed to the community contexts where givers and receivers negotiate the value of giving, receiving, and deserving in their social contracts. 27 Melvin Kohn, "Cross-National Research as an Analytic Strategy," 85. 28 Marcel Mauss, The Gift: Forms and Functions of Exchange in Archaic Societies, 2-5. 29 Sheldon S. Wolin, Politics and Vision: Continuity and Innovation in Western Political Thought, chap. 8; Peter Laslett, "Is There a Generational Contract?"; Norman Daniels, Am I My Parents' Keeper? An Essay on Justice between the Young and the Old, chap. 3; John Rawls, A Theory of Justice. 30 Michael Lessnoff, Social Contract, 4; Peter Laslett, "Is There a Generational Contract?" 25. 31 Alvin Gouldner, "The Norm of Reciprocity: A Preliminary Statement," 172.

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Two Communities, Two Societies

This street was the busiest around here, but now all business is gone to Station Plaza. . . . Land Reform even changed the name of this place. - Shimada Toshio (67), former company employee

W

HEN older people talk about their past, one is immediately struck by the broad range of history they have witnessed in their lifetimes. The elderly provide a special fascination, because their retrospective accounts of the past often point to continuities and changes that lead to the present and also project into the future. In this sense, the elderly are historians, and in some ways they act as the barometer of social change. Their individual responses to change usually encompass a range of feelings and thoughts that relate to satisfaction with their present lives. In this study, the Japanese elderly often noted a sense of progress and social change, referring to new production technologies and household conveniences that have become widely available. The American elderly, in general, tended to express nostalgia for the past, some sense of loss, and a concern that new values represented something of a decline. This sense of change must be understood within the contexts of the history and the community characteristics of West Haven and Odawara, which this chapter illustrates. The changes that each community has encountered - new job opportunities, residential options, modern life-styles - have influenced the social relations and support networks of the elderly and represent the background in which their helping arrangements are forged. We will first explore the history of the American site, West Haven, and then that of the Japanese site, Odawara. We will also examine the demographic and socioeconomic 18

Two Communities, Two Societies profiles of the two communities, to ascertain the comparability of these two settings in the study. WEST HAVEN

Right here,rightwhere this house is, was an amusement park. This is where I made my living and made my money, right. The reason I bought this house here is because one of my stands wasrighthere. I worked here since I was nine years old. - Joseph Brown (71), former amusement business owner American cities rarely retain the same appearance, organization, and people over a long period of time: West Haven is no exception. Given the mobility of the labor force in the region, few elderly residents have lived in West Haven as long as Joseph, who has worked there for more than 60 years. The community has undergone a dramatic transformation in size and character. Jobs have come and gone with the changing times for Joseph and for others; old stores and manufacturing enterprises have been gradually replaced by new modes of production and sales. Whether as a result of economic recessions, changing markets, or outmoded production techniques, when the West Haven elderly speak of their job changes, they often refer to their shops or firms as having "gone out of business." Social change in recent decades has also involved much urban growth and development. Within the lifetimes of these elderly residents, West Haven has grown first from being part of the town of Orange to being the town of West Haven, and subsequently to the city of West Haven. West Haven dates back to 1648 when, as "West Farms," it formed an agricultural community within the original New Haven Colony, a Puritan settlement founded in 1638 on the Long Island Sound between New York and Boston.1 From the beginning, the history of West Haven has been closely linked to the growth of neighboring New Haven, a city on the Old Boston Post Road that prospered in the nineteenth century as a manufacturing and commercial center of diversified hardware. West Haven remained a traditional Yankee community 1 For the history of New Haven, see Rollin G. Osterweis, Three Centuries of New Haven, 1638-1938.

19

The Gift of Generations until the middle of the twentieth century, partly as a residential suburb of New Haven, and partly as home to its own small- and midsized manufacturing industries, and also its farming and oystering enterprises. While the larger-scale industrial plants concentrated in New Haven continued to draw labor from West Haven, West Haven's own productive enterprises - ranging from lumber, shipbuilding, rubber, and machines to elastics, paper, and buckles - also absorbed much of the remaining labor force.2 Major recent changes came about as a result of New Haven's massive urban renewal efforts in the 1950s and 1960s.3 As New Haven changed, so did the interdependent communities immediately surrounding it. West Haven expanded and developed as it absorbed large numbers of migrants from New Haven in newly constructed rental units. It strengthened its own manufacturing force and commercial base as transportation and communication facilities developed and improved in New Haven. Essentially, West Haven became a community constituting part of Greater New Haven, sharing much of its economic activities and social infrastructure such as transportation, communications, public facilities, medical and social services, and entertainment outlets. Today, West Haven is one of the 15 towns and cities comprising the Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA) of Greater New Haven. With over 53,000 residents within an area of 11.2 square miles, it remains one of the more populous and urbanized sectors within the region. In recent decades, West Haven has shed much of its early identity, essentially becoming a multiethnic community. Italian, Irish, and Polish Americans now make up a substantial proportion of its total population. The largest ethnic group is of Italian descent (41%), followed by those of Irish (10%) and Polish (7%) origin. The survey population in West Haven was predominantly Catholic (72%), a slightly higher percentage than in other New England urban areas, according to a 2 West Haven League of Women Voters, This Is West Haven; West Haven Chamber of Commerce, West Haven; Connecticut Council of Economic Advisors, Annual Report, 1979. 3 David Birch, Reilly Atkinson, Sven Sandstrom, and Linda Stack, Patterns of Urban Change: The New Haven Experience.

20

Two Communities, Two Societies Gallup survey.4 Family relations of the elderly respondents are therefore more typical of a Catholic population, if not exclusively of a dominant ethnic group. Most of the older residents of West Haven were born and raised in the state of Connecticut, and continue to consider this part of the United States their home; over half of those interviewed were born in Connecticut, and one-sixth were born in neighboring states such as Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York. A fifth were born outside the United States, mainly in Italy, and have settled in the northeastern region of the United States where many of their fellow immigrants had made their home. The majority of these foreign-born moved to the United States before the age of 20 and have continued to live in this region throughout their lives. With urban renewal, influx of new business, and intrastate migration, the West Haven elderly have rarely remained at the same address for a long period of time. A quarter of the respondents had lived at the same address for less than 10 years, and two-thirds for less than 30 years. Some of the more recent moves can be accounted for by the fact that 20 people in the sample lived in a public housing unit that was built in 1972. The average period of local residency among the elderly was 30 years; the majority had lived in the community for less than half their lives. Residentially, if not geographically, the elderly in West Haven have been a comparatively mobile population, experiencing losses of old homes and neighborhoods in a way that the Odawara elderly did not. West Haven's lower-middle-class and working-class character has become more enduring with these developments. Over two-thirds of the older men and women worked in blue-collar jobs throughout their lives, often spanning over 50 years, with the remainder employed in white-collar jobs. Most of the sample respondents (84%) were retirees. On the average, they have had 9 years of formal education. With no significant concentrations of wealth or poverty, West Haven is a relatively safe place for senior citizens to walk or drive, a city where they can go about their daily routines without undue difficulty. The streets are well kept and never too busy to exclude those 4 Gallup Report, Religion in America.

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The Gift of Generations who might need or choose to organize their lives at a different pace. The geographical range of the community is also small enough so that older residents retain a measure of familiarity with their neighbors and many others, despite their relative mobility. For those who have rooted themselves in the community, West Haven seems to be a comfortable place to live. Some people talk about retiring to the Sun Belt where the climate is more agreeable, but they are the exceptions. The quality of relative security and integration makes West Haven more readily comparable with a Japanese city than other U.S. cities; external environments are rarely similar in a cross-national study, but choices must be made to ensure as much comparability as possible in qualities of life. Both West Haven and Odawara have experienced economic growth and expansion in the past decades, in the context of their respective nations; the relative stability of both communities amid these changes is also one of the factors that makes the comparison feasible. WESTSIDE ODAWARA

We were farmers here. We worked hard and had little time to sleep. We had to pay taxes. .. . But now we don't farm here anymore. . . . Now my son goes into the office. He gets paid to do that. - Sada Kiyo (80), former farmer

Like their counterparts in West Haven, the elderly in Westside Odawara have witnessed dramatic changes in their city over their lifetimes. The technological innovations of contemporary life - from the mechanization of the workplace to the introduction of household appliances - have had a profound impact on the lives of the Japanese elderly like Kiyo. Convenient tools have simplified work inside and outside the household, and have changed the organization of daily life. Miso (soybean paste), for instance, is no longer produced from scratch at home, but is instead bought as a simple commodity from the local grocery store. Yet the new appears to have a way of blending smoothly with the old. The changes are real and conspicuous enough, yet they have not really "replaced" the old order. The internal structure of Odawara life still retains many of the dynamics of traditional Japan. 22

Two Communities, Two Societies The social history of Odawara as a town dates back to 1495, when the Hojo Clan of the Kanto District plundered the Odawara Castle to begin the full-scale development of a castle town.5 Its location was strategic in a variety of ways. Directly facing Sagami Bay at the foot of the Hakone Mountain, and sandwiched between two rivers, the Sakawagawa and the Hayakawa, the area provided the natural resources essential for the development of a commercial town; the town could readily subsist on its own supply of rice, fish, and processed foods. Of even greater importance was the political significance of its location. Control of Odawara meant control of the Sagami Region on the T6kaido Road connecting eastern and western Japan - by far the most important of the seven ancient road networks. During the Edo Period (1600-1868), Odawara grew in importance to become a key town for the Tokugawa regime, both politically and geographically. As a post town 50 miles to the west of the capital Edo (Tokyo), Odawara was an important element in the plan for Edo's tactical defense. The town also became an essential point of respite for travelers, before and after the vital inspection barrier of the steep Hakone Mountain Pass. As the importance of the Tokaido Road grew, the town prospered. At the height of its prosperity, Odawara could count over 100 inns and a range of industries catering to the needs of travelers. Notable among these industries were those concerned with the processing of durable foods such as kamaboko, tsukemono, and umeboshi (fish paste, pickled vegetables, and fruits), and those given over to the production of tools and equipment necessary for long-distance journeying (palanquin, medicine, lanterns, footwear, souvenirs, etc.). Some of the more prestigious family concerns dating from this period still continue their businesses today, even though the handing down of occupations to successive generations in the family is no longer economically viable for most Odawarans. The tradition of household successions - where the family property and homes are handed down to successive generations in line - is, however, still found in the community at large. 5 For the history of Odawara, see Fukuda Ikuo, Uchida Tetsuo, and Iwasaki Sojun, Waga machino rekishi Odawara; Iwasaki Sqjun, Uchida Kiyoshi, and Uchida Tetsuo, Edojidai no Odawara; Uchida Tetsuo, Odawara; Shinokosho no seikatsushi; Uchida Tetsuo, Nenpyo; Odawara no rekishi.

23

The Gift of Generations Odawara's prosperity ended when the new Meiji regime came to power. The Meiji Period (1868-1912) represented a period of economic and demographic decline for Odawara, which lost its primary businesses when the Odawara Castle and the Hakone inspection barrier were closed down. The new regime ushered in the era of modernization and industrialization, but bypassed Odawara; it did not extend the new national railway to Odawara because of the steepness of the Hakone Mountain. Toward the end of the Meiji Period and the beginning of the Taisho Period (1912-26), small-scale industrial manufacturing and sales began to grow, with products such as silk, cotton, and processed fish; but the truly modern industrial development of Odawara on a larger scale did not really begin until the opening of the Tanna Tunnel through the Hakone Mountain. The vital national railway finally reached Odawara with the opening of the tunnel in 1934. Odawara was incorporated as a city in 1940 with a population of 55,000 inhabitants. It has since doubled in size and trebled in population through natural growth and a series of annexations of neighboring villages and towns in 1960, 1970, and 1975. Today Odawara is a midsized Japanese city covering a geographical area of 44 square miles with a population of over 180,000. In addition to its traditional cottage industries, agriculture, and fisheries, Odawara is also the home of major factories producing photographic supplies, as well as plants manufacturing automobile parts, batteries, electric appliances, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Some traditional practices also survive within the new economic structure. Odawara retains its centuries-old status as a regional distribution center of fish and agricultural products, and the shopping districts are still lined with a variety of specialized stores run by selfemployed shopkeepers and their families. And tourists still stop in Odawara on their way to the Hakone Springs. Most of the old people of Odawara today have borne witness to the city's growth from the Meiji slump to today's industrial prosperity. With a marked residential stability that spans 50 years on average, many of the Odawara elderly have experienced the dramatic effects of rapid urbanization and testify to the impact of these changes on their daily lives. They have seen rice fields turn into large factories, 24

Two Communities, Two Societies old wooden and straw houses become modern high rises, and orchards give way to large convenience stores. Over the years, they have experienced the acceleration of technological sophistication and the influx of new modernity. Gas, electricity, and telephones, which were introduced to a limited number of Odawara households during their childhood, are now available in all housing units. Roads have been paved, waterworks and sewage systems installed, and production, transportation, and communications networks developed. All of these developments have brought about fundamental changes in their life-styles. Partly as a result of this rapid modernization, old people in Odawara generally describe their lives as being much easier than those of their parents or grandparents. They describe the changes in terms of growing comfort and affluence. They often speak of their greater control over the natural environment - a particularly welcome development for a generation that has repeatedly had to build and rebuild its lives and homes in the wake of earthquakes, seaquakes, fires, floods, and air raids. This sense of progress is especially striking, considering the many losses that old age often tends to bring about. More jobs came to Odawara as the industrial composition of the city's economy changed. In 1980, the primary industry accounted for only 7% of all industries, while the secondary industry grew to 39% and the tertiary industry to 54%.6 The transition to greater occupational diversity has had an effect on the working lives of the middle and younger generation in Odawara and, by implication, on the lives of today's elderly. On the whole, the city now accommodates a broad range of occupations, from small-scale woodcrafters and farmers, to industrial workers, executives, and bureaucrats. Some occupations, such as the production of kamaboko and the running of specialized stores, have existed for centuries; other jobs in factories, bureaucracies, and private enterprises became available after World War II. This diversity extends even to individual families, where it is not uncommon to find a blend of occupations existing side by side, such as in Kiyo's household. More members of the younger generation than the 6 Japan Prime Minister's Office, Statistics Bureau, Population Census of Japan, 1980.

25

The Gift of Generations older have worked in the new, salaried occupations; conversely, more members of the older generation have worked in the traditional, selfemployed occupations of shopkeeping, cottage industry, and agriculture. Some of the children of today's elderly have followed in their parents' footsteps, and many others have moved into newer occupations. And in turn, their children - more educated than the generations preceding them - can also pursue fast-track careers in business and local government. Much of family life was bound to change as a result, yet the normative content of family relations has remained curiously intact. It is remarkable that even with these dramatic transformations in the economic structure of postwar Odawara, the community still strongly conveys an impression of calmness and stability. When talking with the older residents of the community, one is particularly struck with this sense of stability. Most older residents of Odawara lived in homes that they or their families owned.7 The majority have lived in Odawara well over half of their lives;8 of these, over half have even lived in the same house throughout these past decades. Consequently, many older Odawarans relate to each other with the ease of persons who have known one another for over half a century. This aura of familiarity also means that many of the younger people in the community are known; they are the children, grandchildren, and in-laws of acquaintances. Most of the elderly in Odawara report that they have no plans to move out of the community. Most say they would move only if something unforeseen were to happen to their families. When asked why they have lived in the community as long as they have, they typically respond, "because we've always lived here." Many of these Odawarans have held only one job all their working lives, unlike their West Haven counterparts. Over a third continue to work into old age, and few have experienced formal, mandatory retirement.9 As in most 7 In Odawara, 89% of the survey respondents lived in houses that they or their coresident family members owned. 8 In the sample, 73% already lived in Odawara before World War II. 9 In Odawara, 38% were still working, and 20% were retired. This labor force participation rate was comparable to the national average of 39%; Soda and Miura Fumio, Zusetsu rojin hakusho 1983, 144.

26

Two Communities, Two Societies of ethnically homogeneous Japan, the majority had no formal religious affiliation, but followed a few basic Buddhist customs.10 On the average they have had 8 years of schooling, similar to the level of their West Haven counterparts. The site and the people selected for this study were confined to a section of Odawara that might be called Westside Odawara, situated west of the Sakawa River and east of the Hayakawa. This section is an administrative unit known as Honcho-chiku,11 the core of old, central Odawara before the annexations of neighboring villages took place in recent decades. With an area of 16 square miles, it constitutes approximately one-third of what is Odawara City today, excluding the sparsely populated, less developed sections (e.g., vast areas of woods, fields, and hills). Honcho-chiku is a commercial and residential district consisting of 13 town sections (owaza). Some social class segregation exists only insofar as the very affluent live apart from other residents; but the working-class and middle-class residents are generally interspersed, the former living in rental units scattered throughout the city. Neighborhood organizations (chonaikai) that provide residents with a sense of community are well established throughout Odawara, adding to the feeling of security and integration. Like West Haven, it is quite safe to move around Odawara, both downtown and in the residential neighborhoods. Since buses are infrequent and local trains reach only limited destinations, the common means of transportation for the local elderly is the taxi, if their families cannot provide rides. Few older people in Odawara drive their own automobiles; driving has hardly been an option for these people unlike their American counterparts, because cars have not been commonly available for this generation.

10 Only 25.6% of Odawarans reported their affiliation with Buddhism, but 53.6% followed Buddhist customs. See Hayashi Chikio, Nihonjin no kokoro o hakaru, 141-143, for the characteristic discrepancy between religious affiliation and religiosity in Japan. 11 Honcho-chiku ( *WT), the administrative unit, should not to be confused with Honcho( jfcffilkK), a town section in central Odawara City.

27

The Gift of Generations COMPARING COMMUNITIES

Japan and the United States are two highly industrialized nations, with the world's largest gross national products. Both are also "aging societies" with high proportions of older people.12 In many respects, the life-styles of the older citizens in the two societies are similar, given the comparable levels of affluence, technological development, education, and urbanization. Yet these common features do not outweigh the distinct historical, geographical, and cultural dynamics. Comparing the similarities and differences between Japan and the United States thus offers an opportunity to explore the influence of socioeconomic and cultural conditions on social support in two distinct contemporary societies. Comparing such countries offers the advantages of identifying both the cultural assumptions that underlie the different helping arrangements, and the common requirements that postindustrial societies must meet to reproduce the social contract. The reasons for comparing the helping arrangements of the elderly in Westside Odawara with those of the elderly in West Haven may seem less obvious. Why compare this conventional Japanese community and this lower-middle-class American community? In a crossnational study of communities in Japan and the United States, the researcher must search for the best approximate "match" according to key relevant criteria. The key to comparability lies in seeking out sites that share similar demographic and economic conditions as well as political positions, in their respective societies. Any differences identified in the analysis can then be attributed to the more fundamental cultural and social dynamics in each society, according to John Stuart Mill's method of difference.13 It would not make sense, for instance, to compare the elderly of rural Japan and urban America, since village life and metropolitan life promote entirely different social characteristics - occupational and 12 A country is defined as an aging society when its proportion of those aged 65 and over reaches 7%. 13 John Stuart Mill, A System of Logic. See Neil J. Smelser, Comparative Methods in the Social Sciences, 62-70.

28

Two Communities, Two Societies economic differences above and beyond national differences. Rural Japan and highly urban America, for example, also have disproportionately large numbers of elderly people, and conversely, many newer Japanese communities have disproportionately small elderly populations. By the same token, a conservative Japanese community and a liberal American community are incomparable, since the range of social services and programs available to the elderly in these communities would likely differ, not for cultural but for political and ideological reasons. What must be standardized, accordingly, are key demographic, economic, and political indicators of the two communities, to generate a controlled comparison. The key criteria in the selection of comparable communities for this study were, accordingly, demographic and geographical characteristics, level of urbanization, industrial composition, average wage, level of commitment to social services, and administrative jurisdiction. What I have sought is not the unlikely "perfect fit" for each of these characteristics, but a balanced, approximate "overall fit" with respect to all of these indicators. I examined 10 cities in the Kanto Region and 5 towns and cities in Greater New Haven to select the acceptable "match."14 Table 2.1 shows the profiles of West Haven and Westside Odawara, with corresponding descriptions for surrounding Greater New Haven and Odawara City. West Haven and Westside Odawara are of similar scale in population, number of households, and geographical size, as medium-sized communities situated in larger urban environments. The elderly populations were similar in size and proportion, and both proportions corresponded closely to the respective national averages.15 The proportion of older people today is 14.8% in West Haven, 14 Yale University's Department of Epidemiology and Public Health decided to conduct its pilot study in West Haven after I began my fieldwork at the Area Agency on Aging located in West Haven; the logistical decision to choose West Haven therefore came first, for practical reasons. I then chose Odawara as the Japanese counterpart by searching in the Kanto Region. For further details, see the appendix. 15 The national average was 11.2% in the United States, and 9.0% in Japan. U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1985); Japan Prime Minister's Office, Statistics Bureau, Population Census of Japan, 1980.

29

The Gift of Generations

Table 2.1. Profiles of West Haven and Westside Odawara West Haven City Total population Population 65 and over Population 65 and over (%) Population density (per square mile) Area (square miles) Number of households Primary industry (%) Secondary industry (%) Tertiary industry (%)

Westside Greater Odawara New Haven Odawara (Honcho-chiku) (SMSA) City

53,184

417,592

81,165

177,469

6,860

51,518

8,148a

15,969

12.9

12.3

10.0*

9.0

4,748 11.2 20,182 — — —

1,322 315.9 149,574 0.5 33.5 66.0

4,961 16.4 23,715 — — —

4,023 44 A 51,802 7.0 39.0 54.0

"1982 estimates for Honcho-chiku by Department of Social Welfare, Odawara City. Sources: U.S. Bureau of Census, U.S. Census of Population, 1980; Japan Prime Minister's Office, Statistics Bureau, Population Census of Japan, 1980; Odawara City, Shisei tbkei yoran, 1980. and 13.1% in Odawara, which are both still consistent with their respective national means.16 Communities of similar population size and density may nevertheless differ in socioeconomic and geographical aspects, especially when they are in different countries; I therefore sought further comparability. Sites were "matched" according to industrial compositions

16 These figures are for 1990 in West Haven, and 1994 in Odawara; U.S. Bureau of Census, U.S. Census of Population, 1990, and Odawara City, Odawarashi no koreisha fukushi. The average annual population growth rates in the interim years have been 0.5% in Greater New Haven and 0.8% in Odawara; calculated from U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1994), 40; Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa kensei yoran 1988, 47; Kanagawa kensei yoran 1993, 45.

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Two Communities, Two Societies and average wages that created similar occupational conditions.17 Both West Haven and Westside Odawara are also old communities that developed historically along major roads of transportation, the Old Boston Post Road and the Tokaido Road, which promoted early commercial and cultural development. Both are located by the sea and are within an hour and a half's drive of major metropoles (New York and Tokyo), a distance that makes for a demanding daily commute but easy occasional access. Some important parallels therefore exist for the purpose of comparison, even though the histories and traditions of the two communities are obviously very different. Since the study extends to the role of community services for older people, I also selected communities that maintain active social service programs relative to the respective national standards. Both Connecticut and Kanagawa Prefecture are comparatively progressive providers of social services for the elderly, earmarking larger amounts of expenditure for social security programs than their respective national averages. The social security expenditure in the state of Connecticut was $750 million (23.4% of total expenditures), and $160 million (4.6% of total expenditures) in Kanagawa Prefecture.18 Each of these proportions is high by national standards, though they are not comparable cross-nationally due to the use of different classification schemes. Nevertheless, it seems clear that both Greater New Haven and Odawara have generally benefited from the relatively progressive policies of their local governments over the recent years. Direct services develop as much according to demand as supply. Because communities on the scale of West Haven and Westside Odawara could not realistically develop a network of formal services independent of the finances and economies of scale generated by their larger 17 The primary industry in West Haven, however, was somewhat smaller than in Odawara. At the time of the surveys, the average wage was $16,000 in Connecticut and $15,000 in Kanagawa (1982 exchange rate of $1 = ¥250). More recently, average wages were still comparable at $22,500 in Connecticut and $24,500 in Kanagawa (1986 exchange rate of $1 =¥190). U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1985), and Statistical Abstract of the United States (1990); Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa kenseiyoran 1988. 18 State of Connecticut, Budget, 1982-83; Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawaken no fukushi (1981). The expenditure of $160 million was equivalent to ¥40 billion. 31

The Gift of Generations outer affiliates, it is useful for the purpose of the study to look at West Haven as part of the Greater New Haven complex, and Westside Odawara as part of the Odawara City complex. Since the administrative unit of a "city" is entirely different in Japan and the United States (being generally larger in Japan, through a succession of mergers and annexations, and smaller in the United States through repeated divisions), I have found a compromise by selecting a city for the American case study and a section of a city for the Japanese case study. Neither community represents its country, and neither was selected for this purpose. Nonetheless it is true that each is basically an average, medium-sized, stable community of a type not uncommon in Japan or the United States; at the same time, both communities have qualities of life that are comparable with one another. All things considered, West Haven and Westside Odawara "match" satisfactorily, within limitations, for the purpose of this study. The divergence between the communities, the result of their location within different national entities, continues to remind us that we are dealing with approximate comparisons. Social class and gender relations, for example, are different in the two communities, given divergent national and historical conditions; however, these relations are not pivotal themes of this study. The ethnic diversity of the American community also poses a challenge for identifying an "American" pattern, which the Japanese counterpart does not;19 most cross-national research designed to explore the relative significance of cross-national variation compared with national variation, however, has shown that, despite its heterogeneity, an American pattern is indeed salient;20 and other American social scientists who have conducted well-known studies in Greater New Haven have also pointed to general conclusions relevant 19 This point on diversity is also relevant in the Japanese context, if not in the ethnic sense. See Christie W. Kiefer, "The Elderly in Modern Japan: Elite, Victims, or Plural Players?"; and David Plath, Work and Lifecourse in Japan. 20 See for example Robert J. Havighurst, B. L. Neugarten, J. M. Munnichs, and H. Thomae, Adjustment to Retirement: A Cross-National Study. For an example of a study comparing American culture with another Western culture that draws similar conclusions about the relative significance of cross-national variation over national variation, see Michele Lamont, Money, Morals, and Manners: The Culture of the French and American Upper-Middle Class.

32

Two Communities, Two Societies to understanding American society as a whole.21 With these thoughts on comparability in mind, we will now turn to the support arrangements in public and private domains in the two communities. 21 Robert Dahl, Who Governs? Democracy and Power in an American City; Robert E. Lane, Political Ideology: Why the American Common Man Believes What He Does; Jennifer L. Hochschild, What's Fair? American Beliefs about Distributive Justice.

33

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain

If only we had adequate nursing facilities, you know - families like us with bedridden elderly could have our peace of mind. We would have our peace of mind, but, still - we'd be neglecting them, wouldn't we? I think, well - they can't go there. - Sugino Waka (66), former city employee

W

AKA'S ambivalence about relying on formal institutions for her husband's care is frequently shared among families with physically dependent elderly persons, both in Japan and the United States. The decision to entrust such care to institutional services1 requires much appraisal of moral obligations, priorities, and capacity, for caregivers like Waka and others.2 As such, the question of support responsibility is a normative evaluation as well as an assignment of instrumental tasks. The appraisal hinges on our values about who ought to help, and how we ought to order our priorities and interests to do our "fair" share. The rights and responsibilities in the social contract are forged by such normative considerations grounded in the context of specific political and fiscal conditions.

1 The rates of institutionalization among the elderly are relatively small in both countries and have remained stable over the past decade. The American figure, however, is over three times higher than the Japanese figure: in 1990, 1.65% were institutionalized in Japan, and 5.2% in the United States. These figures are calculated from Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1992, 119-120; and U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1990), 55. 2 David Plath, " 'Ecstasy Years' - Old Age in Japan." For predictors of institutionalization, see Vicki A. Freedman, Lisa F. Berkman, Stephen R. Rapp, and Adriean M. Ostfeld, "Family Networks: Predictors of Nursing Home Entry."

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Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain As Robert Pinker noted, public policies ultimately rest on fundamental assumptions about the order of a "good society."3 The legal framework of the social contract is created by human choices that derive from these fundamental assumptions and institutional constraints.4 This chapter explores the normative conditions and institutional frameworks that underlie the social contract for the elderly in the public domain. It examines the expectations and goals that are specified in the policies, programs, and practices in Japan and the United States. The analysis suggests that expectations of entitlement, obligation, and equity shape the rights and responsibilities of the individual, family, and state differently in the two societies. We will first explore the question of deservedness and equity in the state policies, and then turn to the conditions of access to social services in Odawara and West Haven. ENTITLEMENT, OBLIGATION, AND EQUITY

In the 1960s and early 1970s, both Japan and the United States took a series of legislative measures such as the Law for the Welfare of the Aged and the Older Americans Act to enhance the well-being of their older citizens. The aged shall be loved and respected as those who have for many years contributed toward the development of society and a wholesome and peaceful life shall be guaranteed to them. The aged shall be conscious of their mental and physical changes due to aging, and shall always endeavor to maintain their mental and physical health to participate in society with their knowledge and experience. In accordance with their desire and ability, the aged shall be given opportunities to engage in suitable work or to participate in social activities.5 3 Robert Pinker, Social Theory and Social Policy, 105. 4 See Frank Upham, Law and Social Change in Postwar Japan, for the relationship between traditional values and legal doctrine. 5 Full text in Rojin fukushiho, Law for the Welfare of the Aged, Law No. 133, July 11, 1963, revised 1990. Chapter 1: General Provisions, Articles 2 and 3.

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The Gift of Generations The Congress hereby finds and declares that, in keeping with the traditional American concept of the inherent dignity of the individual in our democratic society, the older people of our Nation are entitled to . . . secure equal opportunity to the full and free enjoyment o f . . . 1. adequate income in retirement. . . . 2. best possible physical and mental health . . . without regard to economic status. 3. suitable housing . . . designed and located with reference to special needs and available at costs which older citizens can afford. 4. full restorative services for those who require institutional care. 5. opportunity for employment with no discriminatory personnel practices because of age. 6. retirement in health, honor, dignity - after years of contribution to the economy. 7. pursuit of meaningful activity within the widest range of... opportunities. 8. efficient community services . . . which are readily available when needed. 9. immediate benefit from proven research knowledge which can sustain and improve health and happiness. 10. freedom, independence and the free exercise of individual initiative in planning and managing their own lives.6 In response to what both nations saw as the burgeoning needs of the elderly population, a series of laws and amendments were enacted to allocate additional resources.7 Increasingly larger shares of the national budgets were committed to these programs; in the few decades between 1959 and 1986, Japan increased its social security expenditure by 298% and the United States, by 231%. 8 By 1987, public health 6 Full text in Older Americans Act of 1965, reauthorized in 1988. Title 1: Declaration of Objectives, Section 101. 7 For excellent comprehensive analyses of these policy developments, see John C. Campbell, How Policies Change: The Japanese Government and the Aging Society; Martha Derthick, Policymaking for Social Security; Theodore Marmor, The Politics of Medicare. 8 The proportion of social security expenditure over national income in Japan increased from 4.9% to 14.6% between 1959 and 1986. The growth was similar in the United States for the same period, when it rose from 7.0% to 16.2%. Since national definitions of "social security" vary, cross-national comparisons are approximate.

36

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain care expenditures also comprised 5.15% of GNP in Japan and 4.58% of GNP in the United States.9 The similarities of these policy trends conceal differences of fundamental principles that underlie old-age policies in the two nations - normative differences that directly affect the effectiveness of the provisions. Collectively, the set of policies targeted to the older population in both nations covers similar grounds: income maintenance, health care, social services, and employment opportunities. With the exception of old-age pensions, these policies were also established around the same time in both countries. In both societies, social security systems ensure financial security for retired persons who may otherwise have no regular income or private funds on which to rely.10 Whole or partial subsidy programs are available for the health care of older persons who are otherwise unable to meet the higher medical costs often incurred in old age.11 Employment laws encourage the continued labor force participation of senior workers.12 Direct service programs in both countries offer a range of social services for older persons who are unable to carry out basic daily tasks by

9

10

11

12

Changes within a nation over time, however, are usually measured by the same definition. Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare, Kosei hakusho 1989, 223; International Labour Organisation, The Cost of Social Security: Twelfth International Inquiry, 1981-1983. Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare, Health and Welfare Statistics in Japan, 1990, 109; and calculation from U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1990), 93. The standard of living has also improved for the elderly of both nations; the average income of an elderly couple reached approximately half of that of all households in both countries by 1985. Calculated from Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare, Kokumin seikatsu kiso chosa (1987), 130; Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1992, 43; and U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1990), 445. The Social Security Act in the United States was established in 1935. The Universal Pension Plan in Japan was established in 1961. The Japanese social security system was subsequently revised in 1985. Medicare and Medicaid were both established as part of the Social Security Act in the United States in 1965. Medical Subsidies for the Aged in Japan was established in 1973; it subsequently evolved into the Health Care for the Aged Law in 1982, which was also revised in 1986. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act in the United States was established in 1967. In Japan, the Law for the Promotion of Employment for Middle-Aged and Older Persons was enacted in 1971.

37

The Gift of Generations themselves.13 Programs to encourage social participation also constitute the core of services provided for the healthy elderly population in both nations.14 The convergence in the scope of coverage - given the similarity of basic needs - is evident in Japan, the United States, and other postindustrial nations.15 Yet underneath the convergence of scope are fundamental differences in the basic assumptions that shape the practices of old-age policies in the two nations. The differences are most pronounced in policies affecting the direct, instrumental services. The distinct normative underpinnings in the declaration of objectives of the Law for the Welfare of the Aged and the Older Americans Act are evident. The Japanese declaration concerns itself with the notion of guarantee, whereas the American counterpart is geared to the entitlement to independent life. In Japan, the subject is responsibility; in the United States, the subject is rights. Moreover, the Japanese preamble also prescribes that senior citizens must modify their behavior to adapt to changes "due to aging." The American counterpart, by contrast, pronounces the equal rights of individuals to self-sufficiency, for a continuation of independent life into old age. Different notions of rights and responsibilities, change and continuity - and, by implication, of deservedness - permeate the rhetoric of these two legislations. The notion that Japanese and American social security policies entail different assumptions about individual rights and state responsibilities has been noted by different scholars. Hye Kyung Lee identifies a paternalistic ideology underlying public policies in Japan, in contrast to the individualistic ideology she observes in the United States.16 Both Ronald Dore and Ishida Takeshi suggest that, historically, individual rights in Japan have been consistently restrained in the interest 13 The Older Americans Act of 1965, and the Law for the Welfare of the Aged in Japan of 1963, revised in 1990. 14 Older Americans Act and Law for the Welfare of the Aged. 15 James Schulz, Allan Borowski, and William Crown, Economics of Population Aging: The "Graying" of Australia, Japan and the United States, 341. 16 Hye Kyung Lee, Development of Social Welfare Systems in the United States and Japan: A Comparative Study.

38

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain of the state, especially when compared with Western societies.17 Indeed, Hashimoto Hiroko observes that the Ministry of Health and Welfare's guidelines accompanying the Law for the Welfare of the Aged refer to the measure explicitly as a responsibility of state institutions, not the rights of the elderly.18 As such, it is not surprising that the Japanese legislation frames its requirements in the obligations of individuals and the state. The Older Americans Act, on the other hand, frames the rights of older people in the ideology of equal opportunity and freedom common in American society. In keeping with an egalitarian notion that lies at the core of the American belief system,19 the legislation in effect seeks to ensure that no person, on the basis of age, be denied opportunities to attain the basic necessities and goals of independent life. Because older persons may be more physically and socially handicapped than younger persons, the government would try to offset any obstacles by offering specific advantages in the form of services and subsidies. Older Americans are entitled to all forms of social participation without discrimination, to seek and sustain an autonomous social existence.20 And as we will see, these different prescriptions of obligation and entitlement symbolized in the Japanese and American preambles are operationalized into different practices at the community level. The underlying prescriptions of obligation and entitlement in Japan and the United States derive from differences in the meaning of equity that the two societies establish in the social contracts. Japanese 17 Ronald P. Dore, City Life in Japan: A Study of a Tokyo Ward, 72; Ishida Takeshi, "Nihon ni okeru fukushi kannen no tokushitsu: Hikaku seijibunka no shiten kara." 18 Hashimoto Hiroko, Roreisha hosho no kenkyu: Seisaku tenkai to hbteki shikaku, and "Rojin fukushiho ni yoru fukushi no genkai," 9. Hashimoto Hiroko refers here to the Shosetsu rojin fukushiho published by the Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare. 19 Carl N. Degler, Out of Our Past: The Forces that Shaped Modern America, 157-160; David M. Potter, People of Plenty: Economic Abundance and the American Character, 91. 20 For a critical account of the development of the Older Americans Act and its problems of implementation, see Carroll L. Estes, The Aging Enterprise: A Critical Examination of Social Policies and Services for the Aged, chaps. 3 and 6.

39

The Gift of Generations old-age policies, taken together, embrace the fundamental idea that the elderly are different as a group of people characterized by the ascriptive status of age. As such, the notion of social justice entailed in the measures is framed in the practice of what I call compartmentalized equity. American old-age policies, on the other hand, embrace dual notions of equity that are not readily reconciled. This dilemma lies in recognizing age as a criterion for allocating social resources, while at the same time not recognizing the same criterion as a legitimate basis for marking social differences. The dynamics of American policies lie partly in the wide variation of social needs that exists in the unified group defined by age. But the fundamental problem is grounded in the ambivalence inherent in the dual nature of American equity: the advancement of the ideal that all Americans are equal among peoples who are different. The dilemma lies at the heart of the American thinking about the problem of old age, a point also made by Bernice Neugarten and Dail Neugarten.21 On the one hand, some legislation such as the Older Americans Act and Medicare defines older people as a special group with special needs and circumstances. They are to be treated differently, on the basis of age, and special measures are introduced to improve their standard of living. On the other hand, legislation such as the Age Discrimination in Employment Act claims at the same time that older people are not to be treated any differently from anyone else merely on the basis of age; they must not be discriminated against as a special group in seeking gainful employment, just because they are old. The goal of this legislation lies in establishing conditions of social equity not corresponding to natural inequities of age. Under these principles, the old must receive special attention and, at the same time, the old must not receive special attention. As far as the Japanese are concerned, the problem of discrimination does not arise. In Japan old age is different. Age remains a legitimate criterion for differentiating social participation particularly in this 21 Bernice L. Neugarten and Dail A. Neugarten, "Age in the Aging Society." For a theoretical treatment of the contradictions of goals in American social policy, see also James S. Fishkin, Justice, Equal Opportunity, and the Family.

40

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain society where the principle of seniority has historically been used as a safeguard to social order.22 But even after Japan formally embraced the principles of social equity in the new constitution of postwar democracy, the question of natural inequities has not become a central social dilemma as it has in the country that introduced the new constitution to Japan. Competition is encouraged, and meritocracy is promoted, but they are confined and compartmentalized within each social unit that can be biologically defined. Far from resolving unequal competition arising from natural differences through a unified ideology of meritocracy, compartmentalized meritocracy in Japan accepts the order of natural differences and confines competition to people who are equal within each ascriptive class. This strategy has serious implications, particularly to minorities defined by the ascriptive statuses of gender and ethnicity. With few exceptions, Japanese women rarely compete in the same job market as men;23 occupational segregation of minorities is also rampant. But age has survived as a preferred criterion for allocating resources and distributing rewards in the society as a whole, because of the social recognition that there is something inherently fair about the process of aging. Age, unlike gender or ethnicity, is not a permanent characteristic attached to a set of people throughout life.24 Every young person moves on to take his or her turn in old age with time. It is fair because everyone ages: This appeals to the Japanese sense of justice. This principle of compartmentalized equity25 serves well in removing an ideological overtone from old-age policy in Japan, at least in comparison with its American counterpart. If old people are defined as a special class of people who do not stand on equal footing with the 22 Thomas Rholen, "The Promise of Adulthood in Japanese Spiritualism," 129-130; Chie Nakane, Japanese Society. 23 Mary Brinton, Women and the Economic Miracle: Gender and Work in Postwar Japan, chap. 5. 24 Nancy Foner, Ages in Conflict: A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Inequality between Old and Young, 130. 25 Ishida Takeshi also points to the notion of closed competition {tozasareta kyoso) in describing a similar phenomenon in the context of conformity and competition in the Japanese political culture. See Nihon no seiji bunka: Docho to kyoso, 116; and also Japanese Political Culture: Change and Continuity.

41

The Gift of Generations young regarding their abilities and privileges, the task of old-age policy may be a relatively straightforward one of promoting "welfare," rather than "welfare and justice." The Law for the Welfare of the Aged sets out governmental guidelines to address the interests of old people without invoking the question of independence and equity, as does the Older Americans Act. Japan's Law for the Promotion of Employment for Middle-Aged and Older Persons seeks to safeguard the labor force participation of older Japanese without invoking the question of discrimination as does the American Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Social justice in old age is less problematic because aging itself is considered egalitarian in nature. What remains for an old-age policy to accomplish, then, is to dispense the appropriate provisions.26 The promotion of equity and social justice is more central to American old-age policies than the Japanese not only because democratic principles are at stake, but also because the dignity of the elderly is more easily threatened in the environment of undifferentiated competition. To depend on social provisions has always come at a cost to one's independence and dignity since the beginning of social welfare history.27 Many of the past developments and progress made in the field of social welfare have been related to removing the social stigma from the benefits by turning them into entitlements. The question of degradation and dependency, however, is less serious in Japan, because old-age policies need not be legitimated with equity concerns. Although the stigma created by relying on social services is not eliminated, the dignity of the old does not depend on the same conditions as the young - on social activity, participation, and resourcefulness. The demands made on the old are different from those made on the young; after all, "the aged shall be loved and respected" because they are in an ascriptive class by themselves, to be judged by the accumulated credits and contributions they have made in the past. The credit builds up over a lifetime and remains in good standing so that the old become deserving of the benefits in a way that 26 Fukutake Tadashi also suggests that Japan has historically paid little attention to promoting distributive justice through its welfare policies. See Shakai hoshoron dansho, 137. 27 Margaret K. Rosenheim, "Social Welfare and Its Implications for Family Living."

42

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain the untested young are not. If individual responsibility requires that "the aged shall be conscious of their mental and physical changes due to aging," then they are a class of people who can legitimately expect protection from others. INDIVIDUAL, FAMILY, AND STATE

Although the notion of independence is made more explicit in the American policies, the concern is relevant to the Japanese context as well; it refers, however, to different units of self-sufficiency. In the comparative analysis of social provisions at the community level, two distinct notions of self-sufficiency emerge. In Japan, self-sufficiency refers to the independence of the family from the state. In the United States, it refers to the independence of the individual from the family and the state. The distinction primarily concerns the role of the family vis-a-vis the state, with significant implications for the way local administrators recognize and meet individual needs in the two communities. The different assignment of responsibilities to the individual, family, and state was evident in the practices of direct services in Odawara and West Haven. Formal services available to the elderly in West Haven were extensive in variety and range. The community directory listed approximately 450 nonprofit (provider) community organizations in the Greater New Haven region alone.28 Of these, more than half provided services that directly or indirectly benefited the elderly residents of the region. Notable among the programs were daily congregate meals, meals-on-wheels, transportation, day care, health care, employment services, legal aid, housing, fuel assistance, senior centers, and referral and coordination services.29 These services met an extensive range of needs, from nutrition and accommodation, to health care and companionship. The range of professional staff and volunteers who 28 INFOLINE, Directory of Community Services: South Central Connecticut, 1st ed. In 1993, there were more than 550 services listed; see INFOLINE, Directory of Community Services: South Central Connecticut, 5th ed. 29 Social services in West Haven discussed here are not distinguished by sources of funding from the federal government, the state of Connecticut, the Greater New Haven agencies, the city of West Haven, and the private nonprofit agencies in the New Haven and/or West Haven area. Some services are jointly sponsored by

43

The Gift of Generations provided the services on a day-to-day basis, accordingly, was also remarkably diffuse. The eligibility for these services was almost uniformly set with age - mostly at age 60 (by provisions of the Older Americans Act), and some others at ages 55 or 62. A few required recipients to be below a certain income level (e.g., public housing, legal aid), and some direct services obviously assumed physical need (e.g., day care, meals-on-wheels, transportation services). From a comparative standpoint, these eligibility criteria were minimal and allowed a greater number of senior citizens to utilize the community services in West Haven.3o The formal services available to the elderly in Odawara, by contrast, were smaller in scale, and also directed toward target populations according to stringent eligibility criteria. The groups especially targeted for the Odawara services were the bedridden (netakiri) and those living alone (hitorigurashi).31 Services were run primarily by two central organizations - the Division of Elderly Services of Odawara City and the Social Welfare Council - and by a small group of voluntary organizations. Notable among these programs were congregate meals, home helpers, friendly visitors, employment, telephone reassurance, and senior centers. Unlike in West Haven, there were also mobile bathing services, bedding rentals, and elderly festivals (keiro gydji).32 multiple providers, others by single providers. I cite what appear to be the most effective services regardless of organizational initiatives, because such distinctions are of little concern from the perspective of the recipients themselves. Today, the budget of the city of West Haven's Department of Elderly Services has increased in proportion to total expenditures. Although the city experienced a financial crisis in 1992 which required loan guarantees from the state of Connecticut, the department's operations remain relatively intact. See City of West Haven, Budget Adopted by the City Council, 1980-1981, A-41; Budget Adopted by the City Council, 1985-86, A-44; Approved Operating Budget, 1994-1995, 192. 30 For a discussion of the trade-offs between age and need eligibility criteria in the American context, see Bernice L. Neugarten, "Policy for the 1980s: Age or Need Entitlement?" 31 More recently, limited services targeted at the frail elderly {kyojaku rojin) and elderly with senile dementia (chiho rojin) have also been added. 32 Social services described for Odawara are funded and/or operated by the national government, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Odawara City. Private nonprofit organiza-

44

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain Most of these programs were targeted toward those aged 65 and over. More important, however, most were also targeted to those with limited family assistance. The marker of vulnerability for service provisions was not only need - low income and high disability - but also family status. In different town sections, congregate meals were available from twice a month to once every four months, only for those living alone.33 Home helpers (katei hoshi-in) were available for those affected by "adverse family circumstances."34 Friendly visitors attended to those living alone or only with a spouse. Telephone reassurance services were available for those elderly residents who were living alone and were below poverty level.35 Bathing and bedding services were also offered to those living alone or those who were bedridden.36 The implementation of such stringent criteria is impossible without the provider's knowledge of the exact whereabouts of the elderly and the status of their families and health. The target population37 was listed in a special registry, which was constructed, updated, and reported to the city by 209 welfare commissioners (minsei-iin)}% This listing, based on a roster of registered local residents, was then

33

34

35

36 37

38

tions of the region also fund services to a limited extent, separately or jointly with the public sector. Since 1993, Odawara City has begun a daily meals delivery service for 200 residents; again, over 90% of the beneficiaries comprise elderly persons living alone or with spouse only. The home helper program covered 30 cases in 1982, and 35 cases in 1994. See Naomi Maruo's "The Development of the Welfare Mix in Japan," 70-71, for a discussion of the drastically low helper-client ratio in Japan compared with the ratios in other postindustrial societies, This program, which covered 25 cases in 1982, was recently updated. The new emergency alarm service covers 316 cases, and it is again targeted toward elderly residents living alone or with spouse only. The coverage for this program ranged from 48 to 60 households in the past decade. In April 1982, there were 189 bedridden elderly in Odawara City (80 in West Side Odawara), and 412 elderly persons lived in single households (255 in Westside Odawara). These figures have increased in proportion to the growing elderly population in the city; in June 1994, there were 286 bedridden elderly, and 1,058 elderly residents living in single households. Minsei-iin are statutory voluntary workers. The Welfare Commissioner Law of 1948 stipulates that minsei-iin, designated by the minister of health and welfare, monitor the needy in each town district. Minsei-iin are unsalaried (i.e., reimbursed only for

45

The Gift of Generations made available to welfare council professionals, local police stations {kobari), elderly counselors (mjinsodan-in), and community organizations (chonaikai) to allow them to focus their efforts on those who fit the designated criteria. The use of family status as a criterion for provisions in Odawara was notable for access to direct instrumental services and nursing home facilities. Since demand continually exceeds supply in a climate of limited resources, Odawara service providers consistently referred to this criterion in selecting their clients and allocating their resources. Social services presuppose the primacy of family support and thus efforts were compartmentalized to those who have no family to live with them. The family as the unit of self-sufficiency was thus both legitimated and reinforced through these practices. Two legal guidelines have been especially significant in the practice of these direct services: the principle of private initiative (shiteki fuyo no gensoku) and the principle of household unit (setai tan 'i no gensoku). The former principle refers to the notion that private support takes precedence over public support, that is, individuals must exhaust private resources before resorting to public funds.39 The latter principle refers to the notion that individuals must first exhaust household resources before turning to state intervention.40 Service providers in Odawara adhered to these principles for the most part, and at times sought appropriate family members to solicit their cooperation. For American providers, no comparable prescriptions existed to restrict their services to specific groups of people among the elderly. These observations at the community level shed light on the different meaning of family responsibility and security in Japan and the United States. While family responsibility laws exist in Japan, the expenses), but they carry prestige and exercise discretionary power in the community. The West Haven counterparts - municipal agents - are fewer in number and carry less authority. In 1994, the number of minsei-iin in Odawara increased to 248. For a historical account of this system, see Stephen Anderson, Welfare Policy and Politics in Japan: Beyond the Developmental State, chap. 5; and also Eyal Ben-Ari, Changing Japanese Suburbia: A Study of Two Present-Day Localities, 125. 39 Daily Life Security Law 1950 Article 4 Section 2. 40 Akaishi Toshimi, "Kazokuho tono kakawari: Kotekifujo to shitekifuyo no kanren to mondaiten."

46

Rights and Responsibilities in the Public Domain United States, and other Western societies, the Japanese law is applicable to a wider range of family members than elsewhere:41 lineal relatives and siblings and, under special circumstances, all other relatives within the third degree.42 Although disputed cases brought to family court are limited in unlitigious Japan,43 the stipulation is well known among the general public. By contrast, few Americans are aware that the stipulation even exists. In the United States, family responsibility laws exist in 27 states, including the state of Connecticut, stipulating the responsibility of support to spouse, parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, and siblings.44 These state laws, however, remain virtually impossible to enforce across state boundaries.45 They are also at odds with federal regulations such as Medicare and Medicaid that proscribe the application of family responsibility laws to their recipients.46 The reason cited most commonly for effectively eliminating the legal responsibility of children is the elderly's own desire not to burden their children.47 Although family concerns remain an important component of support, expectations with respect to obligations between the elderly parent and adult child defy clear social definition in the United States.48 41 Yuzawa Yasuhiko, "Rojin fuyo mondai no kozo to tenkai," 22-28; Max Rheinstein, "Duty of Children to Support Parents," 442. 42 Civil Code Chapter VI, Article 877. For a discussion, see Daisaku Maeda and Youmei Nakatani, "Family Care of the Elderly in Japan," 196-197. 43 Toshitani Nobuyoshi, "Fukushi to kazoku: Roshin fuyo o chyushin to shite." Toshitani reports that, on average, only 600 charges concerning the elderly are brought forward annually. 44 The Family Responsibility Law in the state of Connecticut originated in 1958. See W. Walton Garrett, "Filial Responsibility Laws." 45 Alvin Schorr, Thy Father and Thy Mother: A Second Look at Filial Responsibility and Family Policy, 27-28; Eugene Litwack, Helping the Elderly: The Complementary Roles of Informal Networks and Formal Systems, 240; Max Rheinstein, "Motivation of Intergenerational Behavior by Norms and Law," 237-238. 46 Theodore Marmor, Politics of Medicare; David G. Smith, Paying for Medicare: The Politics of Reform; Robert Moroney, Shared Responsibility: Families and Social Policy, 11-12; Alvin Schorr, Thy Father and Thy Mother: A Second Look at Filial Responsibility and Family Policy, 28. 47 Alvin Schorr, Thy Father and Thy Mother, 11. 48 Alan Wolfe, Whose Keeper? Social Science and Moral Obligation, 85.

47

The Gift of Generations As John Campbell and James Schulz and colleagues have emphasized, the broad outline of contemporary old-age policies in Japan and the United States today is relatively similar;49 the social security and health care systems for the elderly, in particular, mainly provide comparable benefits with roughly similar eligibility requirements.50 Nevertheless, the normative conditions of social policy that I have discussed for the two societies affect the area of direct social services quite differently. These conditions have also influenced the public discourse over the social provisions: The establishment of the "Japan-style welfare society" - which induced a series of legislative reforms to curb rising social security expenditures in the 1980s - relied on normative prescriptions such as compartmentalized equity and self-sufficiency of the family for its legitimation.51 Although the attempt to invoke familism to legitimate social policy directions can also be seen in the United States and elsewhere,52 its impact on the popular discourse was far greater in Japan, because it resonates with cultural assumptions that are more readily recognized. 49 John C. Campbell, How Policies Change; James Schulz et al., Economics of Population Aging: The "Graying" of Australia, Japan and the United States, 341. 50 This assessment applies to the current provisions as a whole. However, since the Japanese universal pension system was established only in 1961, many elderly of the older cohort today receive substantially lower social security benefits from the National Pension or the National Welfare Pension; the recent pension reform has not altered these benefit levels. 51 Sato Susumu, "Nihongata fukushi kokka no hoseisaku no tenkai katei: Koreika to shakaiteki fuyo no genjittai to sono mondai o chyushin toshite," and Sekai no koreisha fukushi seisaku: Kyo, asu no nihon o mitsumete; Ogawa Masaaki, Shakai hoshoken: Ayumi to gendaiteki igi 52 Robert Moroney, Shared Responsibility: Families and Social Policy, chap. 1; Alan Walker, "Intergenerational Relations and Welfare Restructuring: The Social Construction of an Intergenerational Problem," 162.

48

The Practice of Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain We were both born and brought up in New Haven. My husband's father had a grocery store. We used to shop in that store as girls. . . . My husband was born a couple of blocks away from me. . . . We're basically always together. - Elsie Bowen (71), former clerical worker It was an arranged marriage. I was his second wife, so there was a big age difference between us. Some relatives became our go-betweens. - Sada Kiyo (80), former farmer

S

ECURITY, equity, and self-sufficiency, important to the discussion of the public contract, are also central issues for understanding the private contract in both Japan and the United States. Helping arrangements in the private domain consist of the noninstitutional, informal support offered to the elderly by their family and social networks, which usually includes relatives, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. These networks of private life are complex, because they are based on the dynamics of life cycle transitions, cohabitation, affection, intimacy, and companionship that lie at the heart of these interdependent relationships. We will explore these dynamics of private helping arrangements here and in the following two chapters. In this chapter, we will explore the conditions of helping arrangements in the two communities by examining the junctures of giving and receiving help at the aggregate level. As we will see, the objective conditions of proximity and the subjective conditions of evaluating vulnerability both play an important role in the practices of social support. Both of these conditions are essential in shaping the private contract, of which 49

The Gift of Generations we will identify two distinct types: the protective approach in Japan, and the contingency approach in the United States. The narratives of Elsie and Kiyo in the opening of this chapter demonstrate the different historical traditions of the Japanese and American family systems, which many scholars of the family have also described. Chudacoff and Hareven, for instance, have documented the prevalence of the nuclear family in the United States, dating back to preindustrial times.1 By contrast, the Japanese family originates in the extended stem family system, ie, illustrated also by social scientists like Chie Nakane, Kawashima Takeyoshi, and Keith Brown.2 Although American families are ethnically varied and Japanese families have also become increasingly nuclear in recent decades, family relationships in both societies do not escape these cultural influences. In the two communities of our study, the marriages of older people originate in entirely different notions of mate selection; it is therefore not surprising that the primary bonds of affection and interdependence differ in the two cultures along conjugal and filial ties. As we will see, these different priorities have distinct implications for relationships of reciprocity, obligation, and dependency forged in the private contract. It would be rather obvious to attribute the difference between filial family support in Japan and social network support in the United States to cultural and historical particularities. After all, the past experiences of primogeniture have been quite different in the two societies.3 As we map out the differences and similarities of helping arrangements in the two communities, however, we will find that more factors than different family traditions are at work. Anticipated life course trajectories and assumptions about the nature of security and self-sufficiency play an important role in shaping such helping arrangements; socioeconomic factors - such as geographical mobility, occupational changes, 1 H. P. Chudacoff and T. K. Hareven, "Family Transitions into Old Age." 2 Chie Nakane, "An Interpretation of the Size and Structure of the Household in Japan over Three Centuries"; Kawashima Takeyoshi, Nikon no kazoku seido; L. Keith Brown, "Dozoku and the Ideology of Descent in Rural Japan." 3 The formal abolishment of primogeniture in the United States predates that of Japan by 170 years. Carole Shammas, Marylynn Salmon, and Michel Dahlin, Inheritance in America: From Colonial Times to the Present, 208; Shimazu Ichiro, Shinzoku sozokuho, 179.

50

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain and housing options - also influence the practices of support. The difference in these expectations, commitments, and social constraints will become evident as we examine the practices of giving and receiving in the two communities. We will find that these conditions also effectively recreate and reinvent the historical traditions.4

INSIDE THE HOUSEHOLD

Ordinarily people spend much of the day with those who share the household with them. In old age, when less time is spent outside the home at full-time work, much of daily routines - eating, sleeping, talking, playing, and working - are also shared by those living together. Through these shared experiences of daily living, people who live together reach a level of intimacy that is entirely different from that of close relationships established outside the home. People who live together tolerate and bear one another's habits, flaws, idiosyncrasies, and needs, both at their best and their worst; among themselves, they develop a more committed pattern of reciprocal care, one that is not easily retractable even in times of conflict. People most often rely on household members when in need - emotionally, instrumentally, and financially - whether out of affinity, responsibility, or necessity. Household members, then, represent the most essential resources of help in everyday life; and the household is, in this sense, the most basic social unit of sufficiency. People living together are usually, but not always, members of a family.5 Thus living arrangements vary, mostly depending on 4 See Robert Smith, Japanese Society: Tradition, Self and the Social Order, chap. 1, and "Presidential Address: Something Old, Something New - Tradition and Culture in the Study of Japan." See also Eric Hobsbawm "Introduction: Inventing Traditions," 1-4. 5 The definition of "family" varies not only from one society to another, but also from one individual to another. This is especially true regarding the inclusion of married children and their spouses who live away. People also shift their definition of family situationally, depending on their perception of intersubjectivity: When addressing outsiders, the family membership tends to be more inclusive, and when addressing insiders, the membership tends to be more exclusive. Thus, the term family in this study refers to the members whom each individual chooses to include according to his or her own definition; in both societies, it usually refers loosely but not rigidly to those sharing the household.

51

The Gift of Generations Table 4.1. Living arrangements in West Haven and Westside Odawara, in % (N) Living arrangement by household type

West Haven

One-generation Living alone Living with spouse Two-generation Living with unmarried child/children Living with married child/children Three-generation Living with children and grandchildren Four-generation Living with children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren Other Total

Westside Odawara

27.1 (71) 42.4 (111)

10.0 14.8

(21) (31)

17.9

(47)

12.9

(27)

2.7

(7)

6.7

(14)

6.1

(16)

46.9

(98)

0 (0) 3.8 (10) 100.0 (262)

4.3 4.3 100.0

(9) (9) (209)

whether or not individuals are married and have children.6 These family circumstances, in turn, relate to age and the stages of one's life cycle. In the later stage of the life cycle, living arrangements can be classified broadly into three categories: living with spouse, living with children,7 and living alone. We will examine these three arrangements in turn. In Odawara and West Haven, the living arrangements of the elderly are remarkably different (Table 4.1). In Odawara the majority of the elderly (70.8%) lived with their children, mostly in three-generation households, and sometimes even in four-generation households. By 6 U.S. Bureau of Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States (1979); Japan Prime Minister's Office, Statistics Bureau, Nihon no tokei 1982, 21. 7 In this study, respondents classified as living with children do so regardless of their marital status.

52

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain contrast, the most common living arrangement among the elderly in West Haven was the husband-wife household. Living with children was the least frequent living arrangement among the Americans, and indeed more lived alone than with their children.8 Moreover, the group of West Haveners who lived with their children did so under substantially different conditions from their Odawaran counterparts: They lived with unmarried children in two-generation households.9 The contrast between the prevalence of filial households in Odawara and that of conjugal households in West Haven is evident, confirming trends that are documented also at the national level.10 These different conditions of coresidence have profound implications for the way in which the elderly access their family members for help. The more people there are in the household, the more potential resources it has to share the earning, driving, cooking, cleaning, and caring for the ill. On average, there were twice as many family members in the Japanese household as in the American household,11 8 The small group classified as "other" in West Haven lived with siblings and siblings' spouses, and none lived with more distant relatives or with friends. 9 The higher proportion of West Haveners living with their children relative to the national average is likely to be due to ethnic factors. Of those living with their children, 48.5% were of Italian descent, whereas the corresponding proportions of Italian Americans among those living alone and those living alone nationally were smaller (35.4% and 39.1% respectively). In a study of 66 Italian American elderly in New England, Colleen Leahy Johnson also found that a higher proportion (22%) lived with children compared with the national average, although the proportion of those living alone was about the same (35%). See Growing Up and Growing Old in Italian American Families, 146. 10 National figures for Japan at the time of the survey were: living alone 8.5%; living with spouse 20.5%; and living with child 68.0%. The corresponding national averages for the United States were: living alone 32.0%; living with spouse 53.3%; and living with child 14.4%. See Soda Takemune and Miura Fumio, Zusetsu Rojin hakusho 1983, 41; and Carole Allan and Herman Brotman, Chartbook on Aging in America, 100. The 1982 national surveys conducted by the Japan Prime Minister's Office show fewer filial households in both countries (Japan, 52.1%; United States, 9.9%), but these figures were likely to have been deflated by the inclusive use of the "other" category (Japan, 17.0%; United States, 8.8%); see Rojin no seikatsu to ishiki: Kokusai hikaku chosa kekka hokokusho, 52. 11 The average number of persons per household was 4.2 in Odawara and 2.1 in West Haven. The Odawaran household members were also on average 17 years younger than their American counterparts.

53

The Gift of Generations although they both lived in the same size dwellings.12 These different patterns show the significant concentration of potential support resources in the Odawara household compared with that in West Haven. Our concern for identifying available resources also extends to the variation by individual circumstances, and in this connection, it is useful to observe the distribution of living arrangements by gender,13 marital status,14 and age. In both communities, significantly more women than men lived alone, due to their longer life expectancies and the fact that men are usually older than women at marriage. The two communities, however, show different patterns of association between living arrangements and age. In West Haven, living arrangements change significantly with age;15 in Odawara, they remain the same across different age groups (Table 4.2). The apparent increase of Americans living alone in the older age group is not surprising, considering the fact that the ability to maintain the conjugal household, the most common living arrangement, is contingent on the longevity of the spouse. Predictably in West Haven, the conjugal household was most common only for those aged 79 and under; the average age of people living with their spouse was

12 The average number of rooms per household was 4.9 in Odawara, and 4.8 in West Haven. 13 A note on the gender proportions derived from the stratified sampling procedure in West Haven is in order. The survey was designed to obtain an equal proportion of men and women for the purpose of investigating health status; this sample therefore entails a small overrepresentation of men (52% men, 48% women). The 1980 census showed that 40.0% of those over age 65 in West Haven were men and 60.0% were women; on the other hand, a Regional Planning Agency Survey conducted in 1977 showed a more even breakdown48% men and 52% women. To obtain even gender proportions, this sample also somewhat overrepresents married persons (who were men). My analysis of gender in this study is limited because of these constraints. See the appendix for details of the sampling procedures in both communities. 14 Of the unmarried category, 84.3% were widowed. 15 Associations described throughout this chapter are based upon tests of significance for /-statistics, chi-squares, Pearson correlation, or b coefficients. Results reported are significant at/? < 0.05.

54

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain Table 4.2. Living arrangements by age, marital status, and sex in West Haven and Westside Odawara, in % (TV)

West Haven Age** 65-69 70-74" 75-79" 80+ Total Sex** Men Women Total Marital status Married Unmarried Total" Westside Odawara Age 65-69 70-74" 75-79" 80+ Total Sex** Men Women Total Marital status Married Unmarried Total

Alone

With spouse

With child (2 generations)

With child (3 & 4 generations)

18.2 26.4 30.6 50.0 27.9 (70)

53.5 54.2 36.1 13.6 44.2(111)

23.2 13.9 27.8 25.0 21.5(54)

5.1 5.6 5.6 11.4 6.4(16)

14.4 43.3 28.2(71)

55.3 31.7 44.0(111)

23.5 19.2 21.4(54)

6.8 5.8 6.3(16)

— 72.6 27.6 (69)

71.6 — 44.4(111)

23.2 18.9 21.6(54)

5.2 8.4 6.4(16)

11.1 9.4 12.2 8.8 10.5(21)

23.6 17.0 7.3 5.9 15.5(31)

19.4 22.6 17.1 23.5 20.5(41)

45.9 50.9 63.4 61.8 53.5(107)

4.6 15.0 10.5 (21)

26.4 7.1 15.5(31)

20.7 20.4 20.5(41)

48.3 57.5 53.5 (107)

— 21.0 10.6(21)

31.6 — 15.7(31)

20.4 20.0 20.2 (40)

48.0 59.0 53.5(106)

Note: "Other" category of living arrangements is excluded. "Figures do not add up to 100.0 due to rounding. **Chi-square statistics are significant at 0.01 level. 55

The Gift of Generations 6 years younger than those in other living arrangements.16 By contrast, half of the West Haven elderly aged 80 and over lived alone, and they were predominantly women - a well-known phenomenon among the American elderly nationally.17 However, the three-generation household was common among the Odawaran elderly of all ages. The Japanese elderly lived with their children regardless of whether or not their spouses were still alive, and regardless of how many children they had.18 Although the incidence of coresidence in three-generation households is generally higher for those in older age groups, this increase was not statistically significant. It indicates that although living alone was as much a widow's experience in Odawara as it was in West Haven, the Japanese women were also somewhat more likely to move in with their children than live alone in advanced old age. By viewing the serial cross section of age groups as synthetic cohorts with some caution,19 we can surmise household transitions of the elderly by age - transitions that will also be confirmed in the case studies of the following chapters. West Haveners make a transition from conjugal household to single household with increasing age; the Odawara counterparts retain the same living arrangement across age 16 The average age of couples living in conjugal households was 71 years. As one would expect from their shorter life expectancy and marriage to younger wives, more men lived in conjugal households than women. In the American sample, the age of respondents ranged from 65 to 95 years. 17 See Karen Holden's "Poverty and Living Arrangements among Older Women: Are Changes in Economic Weil-Being Underestimated?" for an account of the drastic increase in single households among the American elderly during 1950-1980. Additionally, the small group of West Haveners living with their children were diverse: Some still had children of school age, and others lived with single, middle-aged children. In some cases, the parent and child had always lived together; in other cases, they had merged their households at the onset of a parent's illness. 18 The fact that there were fewer childless Odawarans than West Haveners (6% compared with 13%) has a small bearing on the greater Odawaran proneness to filial coresidence. This trend reflects the practice of adult adoption {yoshi engumi) discussed in Chapter 1, not a natural difference in the rate of childlessness. Adopted children were grouped together with natural children in the analysis. 19 The cross-sectional nature of the data makes the synthetic-cohort approach necessary. For an overview of methods in life course research and synthetic cohorts, see Angela O'Rand, "Stratification and the Life Course."

56

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain groups. Whereas in West Haven widowhood is an important marker that creates household transitions, in Odawara it does not. These patterns are consistent with trends found also at the national level.20 With the predominance of husband-wife households in the earlier years of old age among Americans, a major change in household structure is inevitable in the event of a spouse's death. Many people, especially women, must change their living arrangements to single households in advanced old age; only in exceptional cases does widowhood in the older age group seem to result in coresidence with (married or unmarried) children. In this way, the elderly in West Haven continue to make adjustments in living arrangements even late into their life cycle; finally, there is the possibility of making a further transition to a nursing home. As we will see in Chapter 6, relations with children, friends, and acquaintances also undergo changes as a result of widowhood. This anticipation of uncertain future transitions fundamentally affects the way in which Americans prepare for their security and self-sufficiency in old age. The Japanese three-generation household, by contrast, is seemingly more resilient in these life course transitions.21 The same life events that affect American households do not alter the basic household conditions in Japan, because filial households are the building blocks to which in-laws and grandchildren are added as a result of the child's marriage: Widowhood does not change this structure. Thus the tradition of primogeniture is reproduced in postindustrial Odawara, but today it is recreated as an arrangement that regulates interests in filial relationships, as we will see in Chapter 5. The different patterns of living arrangements in the two communities invite a series of questions regarding differences in the nature of helping arrangements of the elderly in the two societies. The durable nature of Japanese households, in contrast to more transient American 20 Jacob S. Siegel and Cynthia M. Taeuber, "Demographic Perspectives on the LongLived Society." 21 The lower incidence of divorce in Japan also induces stability and fewer household transitions. The divorce rates were 1.32 in Japan and 5.19 in the United States per 1,000 population. Japan Prime Minister's Office, Statistics Bureau, Kokusai tokei yoran 1982, 24.

57

The Gift of Generations households, suggests that older people in Japan come to rely on their children over a very long time span. On the other hand, the prevalence of the smaller-sized, transitional conjugal households and single households in the American community suggests that relationships with friends, relatives, and nonresident children may substitute for what is not found inside the boundary of the household. This is the subject to which we will turn in the following section.

OUTSIDE THE HOUSEHOLD

As we map out the patterns of older people's social ties outside the household, we discover more differences between the two communities: The Americans maintain much stronger peer group ties as part of their social network than do the Japanese. These networks outside the household represent potential support resources that are contingent on the availability of resources inside the household - a relationality that Ethel Shanas refers to as the principle of substitution.22 These networks play a key role in instrumental help and companionship for older Americans. As Marjorie Cantor, Virginia Little, and others23 have pointed out, this phenomenon speaks to the larger division of labor - among spouse, children, relatives, and friends that takes place in the American context; Toni Antonucci has also referred to this social network over the life course as the convoy of social support.24 The social network outside the household usually consists of nonresident children, relatives, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. Most elderly in both communities are close to their nonresident chil22 Ethel Shanas, "The Family as a Social Support System in Old Age." 23 Marjorie Cantor and Virginia Little, "Aging and Social Care." See also Ethel Shanas, "The Family as a Social Support System in Old Age," and Eugene Litwak, Helping the Elderly: The Complementary Roles of Informal Networks and Formal Systems. 24 Toni Antonucci, "Personal Characteristics, Social Support, and Social Behavior." See also Toni Antonucci and Hiroko Akiyama, "Social Networks in Adult Life and a Preliminary Examination of the Convoy Model." Examining the case for Japan, David Plath refers to these associates over the life course as consociates; see Long Engagements: Maturity in Modern Japan, 8-9.

58

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain dren regardless of living arrangement.25 However, the characteristic difference in the network patterns is found not in the role of children, but in the centrality of peer group ties. On average, the West Haven networks included almost 3 times as many close friends, and 1.5 times as many close relatives, as the Odawara networks.26 The fact that these American networks included many peer relationships attests to the importance of the old-age subculture that Arnold Rose and Arlie Hochschild have suggested.27 Although the Japanese are more noted for their regard for age grading than the Americans,28 they paradoxically maintain weaker peer group ties among their age-sets. These peer group ties are limited partly because filial attachments are strong, and also because adult peer relations in an age-stratified environment are competitive. Takie Lebra suggests that vertical alliance in Japan is indeed forged at the expense of horizontal alliance.29 Conversely, the stronger age-group solidarity among the elderly in the less age graded of the two societies, the United States, may be accounted for by the relative absence of clear definition about intergenerational differences.30 Along these lines, Jennie Keith has argued that age homogeneity among older people is often evoked when intergenerational relations no longer work to their relative advantage.31 The relative advantages of age segregation versus age integration is a controversy discussed more commonly among West Haveners than Odawarans, who conceive the matter more as a choice between two equally feasible alternatives than as nonnegotiable social imperatives. This perception of choice, and its connotation of voluntarism 25 Of the elderly not living with children, over two-thirds in West Haven reported having at least one child in the same city region, compared with one-half in Odawara. The average number of surviving children was 2.3 in West Haven and 3.4 in Odawara. The number of children does not differ significantly by age in either sample. 26 The average number of close friends was 5.1 in West Haven and 1.8 in Odawara. The same for close relatives was 3.1 in West Haven and 2.1 in Odawara. 27 Arnold Rose, "The Subculture of the Aging"; Arlie Hochschild, The Unexpected Community: Portrait of an Old Age Subculture. 28 For a description of age grading and rank order by seniority in Japan, see Edward Norbeck, "Age-Grading in Japan," and Chie Nakane, Japanese Society. 29 Takie Sugryama Lebra, Japanese Patterns of Behavior, 11. 30 Bernice L. Neugarten and Dail A. Neugarten, "Age in the Aging Society." 31 Jennie Keith, "Age in Anthropological Research," 253.

59

The Gift of Generations and autonomy, lies at the heart of the formation of extensive networks in West Haven, which we will turn to in greater detail in Chapter 6. In Odawara, by contrast, the local network is perceived only as a second choice for support at best, something that the elderly resort to when all possibilities of family help have failed to materialize.32 The elderly in the two communities usually refer to the same people as close relatives and close friends: siblings, brothers- and sisters-inlaw, cousins, and friends from former workplaces, social clubs, neighborhoods, and even old schools. Despite their longer residence33 and greater rootedness in the community, the Odawarans had limited ties with their lifelong peers who grew up in the community with them. Many had no close relatives and friends in their local network; over one-third had no close relatives and almost one-half had no close friends at all (Table 4.3). By contrast, the majority in West Haven had many close relatives and friends in the local area, and over a quarter reported more than 10 close friends.34 The importance of friends in West Haven is rooted in the "peer group society," which Herbert Gans observed,35 and in the strength of community bonds in American society, which Rubin, Bellah and his colleagues, and others have also described.36 32 Marvin B. Sussman and James C. Romeis's comparative study of Winston-Salem and Tokyo also shows that Americans are much more open to the possibility of assisting friends than the Japanese, which is consistent with my findings in West Haven and Odawara. See "Family Supports for the Aged: A Comparison of U.S. and Japan Responses." 33 The average length of residence was 50.7 years in Odawara, compared with 33.5 years in West Haven. 34 In the American sample, 27.3% cited that they had more than ten friends, compared with 3.1% in the Japanese sample. Although many, especially Italian American, elderly tended to socialize with relatives as "friends," the survey specifically requested that they separate these network members into the two nonoverlapping categories. 35 Herbert M. Gans, Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian Americans, 93. His observation is relevant in this context, because 41% of the West Haven respondents were second-generation Americans of Italian descent, as described in Chapter 2. 36 Lillian Rubin, Just Friends: The Role of Friendship in Our Lives', Robert Bellah, Richard Madsen, William Sullivan, Ann Swidler, and Steven Tipton, Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life, 116. There is no comparable work on Japanese friendship patterns, which partly reflects the relative weakness of such intimate, peer group ties.

60

Table 4.3. Patterns of association with close relatives and friends by living arrangements, in % (N)

West Haven Alone" With spouse With child Total

(AO Westside Odawara Alone With spouse With child Total

(AO

No close relatives

No close relatives in same city region

At least one close relative in same city region

21.7 15.5 25.7 20.1 (50)

24.6 19.1 12.9 18.9 (47)

53.6 65.4 61.4 61.0 (152)

(69) (110) (70)

25.0 34.5 38.1 36.2 (71)

25.0 24.1 20.4 21.4 (42)

50.0 41.4 41.5 42.4 (83)

(20) (29) (147)

Relatives

(AO

(249)

(196)

No close friends

No close friends in same city region

At least one close friend in same city region

Friends

(AO

14.7 9.2 14.5 12.2 (30)

5.9 1.8 2.9 3.3 (8)

79.4 89.0 82.6 84.5 (208)

(68) (109) (69)

33.3 38.7 47.6 44.6 (87)

0.0 12.9 6.3 6.7 (13)

66.7 48.4 46.1 48.7 (95)

(21) (31) (143)

(246)

(195)

Note: "Other" category of living arrangements is excluded. City region for West Haven is Greater New Haven; for Westside Odawara it is Odawara City. "Figures do not add up to 100.0 due to rounding.

61

The Gift of Generations At the same time, the significance of friendships also makes sense as an extension of the close conjugal (peer) ties that are part of the American couple culture.37 American couples living by themselves tended to have more friends than those living alone or with children; this distinction was not found among Japanese couples. The distinct boundaries of the support networks also become more evident when we observe how the elderly in the two communities chose their confidantes ("special person") in the surveys. The most common confidante - the person to whom the elderly felt closest - in West Haven was a friend; in Odawara, it was a child (Table 4.4). Conversely, the least common choice among West Haveners was a child; and in Odawara, a spouse. In West Haven, friends were consistently important for all categories of living arrangements, and especially for women and for widows. Spouses, for those who had them, were favored less than relatives, perhaps because they were more easily taken for granted and because confidantes, at least in the United States, require a valued place outside the household. By contrast, the special person in Odawara lived inside the household. Coresident children (especially sons) mattered consistently more than others - spouse, relatives, and friends - especially for women and for widows. The small group of Japanese elderly who lived alone, however, favored their friends over children, and those living with their husband or wife confided more in their spouse than they did in their children or friends.38 37 Both Gans and Johnson observe that Italian Americans are characteristically adultcentered and maintain relatively weak conjugal ties, compared with other ethnic groups; Gans has attributed this pattern to social class, and Johnson to ethnic culture. The strength of husband-wife ties in West Haven on a whole, however, remains remarkably significant especially in cross-national perspective. See Herbert J. Gans, Urban Villagers: Group and Class in the Life of Italian Americans, 229, and Colleen Leahy Johnson, Growing Up and Growing Old in Italian American Families, 46. 38 Surveys conducted by the Japan Management and Coordination Agency also confirm these differences between Japanese and American confidantes at the national level; see Rojin no seikatsu to ishiki: Dai 3 kai kokusai hikaku chosa kekka hokokusho, 35. For further details of interpersonal relationships in Odawara and West Haven, see Akiko Hashimoto, Old People in Japan and America: A Comparative Community Study, and "Rqjin kea no nichibei hikaku"; and Fujisaki Hiroko, "Ronenki no shakaiteki nettowaku."

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Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain Table 4.4. Choice of confidante by living arrangements, sex and marital status in West Haven and Westside Odawara, in % (N)

West Haven Living arrangement** Alone With spouse" With child Total Sex** Men" Women" Total Marital status** Married" Unmarried Total Westside Odawara Living arrangement** Alone With spouse With child Total Sex** Men" Women" Total Marital status** Married" Umarried" Total

Spouse

Child

Relative

Friend

16.7

13.4

20.4

49.5

— 27.4 16.1 16.7(35)

19.0 9.5 16.1 13.9(29)

20.7 21.1 19.6 20.6 (43)

60.3 42.1 48.2 48.8(102)

24.1 9.3 16.7 (36)

9.3 17.6 13.4(29)

20.4 20.4 20.4 (44)

46.3 52.8 49.5 (107)

27.3 — 16.7 (36)

11.4 16.7 13.4(29)

19.7 21.4 20.4 (44)

41.7 61.9 49.5 (107)

13.2

41.2

25.7

19.9

— 36.8 10.4 13.1(17)

33.3 15.8 47.9 41.5(54)

20.0 31.6 24.0 24.6 (32)

46.7 15.8 17.7 20.8 (27)

26.5 5.7 13.2(18)

26.5 49.4 41.2(56)

34.7 20.7 25.7 (35)

12.2 24.1 19.9(27)

26.6 — 12.7(17)

31.3 51.4 41.8(56)

31.3 21.4 26.1 (35)

10.9 27.1 19.4 (26)

Note: Respondents who claimed no confidantes (West Haven 15.6%, Odawara 27.2%) and those who cited "others" (West Haven 0%, Odawara 7.5%) were excluded from this analysis. "Other" category in living arrangements is excluded. Child category includes children-in-law. "Figures do not add up to 100.0 due to rounding. **Chi-square statistics are significant at 0.01 level.

63

The Gift of Generations FAMILY AND NETWORK

The different resource networks of West Haven and Odawara are thus evident in comparative perspective. In the American context, children, relatives, friends, and neighbors39 are all essential members of the resource network. There is a greater degree of triangulation of resources in West Haven, extending widely outside the confines of the household. If seeking help can be spread among a wide network of people, then the relative independence of the elderly person at the center of that network can be enhanced as a result. In other words, the extensive network can help to facilitate the autonomy of the elderly in the American context. The network in Odawara, on the other hand, shows a greater concentration of resources in the household. The strength of filial ties is evident in contrast to the weakness of community ties we have observed. If the triangulation of resources in the American network can reduce the dependency of the elderly on each individual in the network, the concentration of resources inside the household in Japan can also intensify the dependency of the elderly on a few, specific individuals. Thus greater independence as an individual can be attained in a triangulated network, yet greater independence as a household unit can be more easily attained in a concentrated network where the boundary of mutual obligations can be more clearly defined. Different boundaries of "self-sufficiency" operate in the two communities around the individual, couple, family, and community, and in this connection we can also point to the weaknesses of the American and Japanese networks. Where a concentration of resources is the norm, as it is in Japan, those with no children or distant children can be vulnerable, because 39 The significance of American neighbors also merits special mention at this point. As Marjorie Cantor has observed, the elderly in American communities receive extensive help from their neighbors, especially when they have no family nearby. Even though many West Haven elderly received support from their children, a large proportion (69.9%) also reached out to their neighbors for instrumental help (e.g., borrowing, shopping, checking mail); a similar proportion of Odawarans (68.5%), by contrast, reported that they never or rarely did so. See Marjorie Cantor, "Neighbors and Friends: An Overlooked Resource in the Informal Support System."

64

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain there are fewer alternative resources that can substitute for filial relationships. Where a triangulation of network is the norm, as it is in the United States, those who survive spouses and friends and still depend on an increasingly shrinking peer network are likely to be vulnerable. At the same time, the extensive network in West Haven seems more suited to a society that embraces household transitions as a necessary condition of changes in the family cycle. Since "leaving home" is a concomitant of adulthood,40 a shared expectation on the part of both parents and children, individuals and couples form extensive networks outside the household to promote diffused security that does not depend only on children. The filial orientation found in Japan, on the other hand, is conducive to forming a concentrated network focused on coresident children, which promotes structured security inside the household. THE RECOGNITION OF VULNERABILITY

In comparing the objective conditions of household and network compositions in Odawara and West Haven, the different patterns of association inside and outside the household appear evidently enough; understanding the nexus of need, protection, and intervention, however, requires a clarification of how these potential resources among family and friends are converted to actual helping arrangements. Thus, in this section, we will ascertain how much help these family and friends actually gave in the two communities. We will find that the helping practices differ according to the distinct ways in which helpers recognize the vulnerability of individuals who require support. These distinct patterns of recognizing need reveal the different subjective judgments - and criteria of "eligibility" - applied to those deserving help in the private contract. In both communities, the elderly received a great deal of support,41 but the characteristics of those who receive help, compared with those 40 Robert Bellah et al., Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life, 57. 41 The informal support index was constructed from responses to three questions regarding financial, instrumental, and emotional support received in the past year. An

65

The Gift of Generations who do not, differ. We find that Odawarans take a.protective approach, one in which the elderly receive help in anticipation of need. West Haveners, by contrast, take a contingency approach in which the elderly receive help directly according to need. Thus, Odawarans and West Haveners receive protection and intervention according to different patterns of recognizing vulnerability and criteria of need. In their general profiles - such as age, living arrangement, marital status, gender, employment status, past occupation, education, and length of residence - the elderly who received help were similar to those who did not receive help in both communities (Table 4.5). The significant difference between the West Haven and Odawara receivers of help lies not in these general characteristics, but in their conditions of need: income42 affirmative answer in at least one category classified the respondent as a receiver of informal support for our comparative purpose. In West Haven, 88.9% received at least one type of support, and in Odawara, 73.1%. The higher proportion of support in West Haven compared with that in Odawara can be explained partly by the different notions of support that respondents had in mind. While it is relatively easy to solicit comparable information on instrumental help cross-nationally, the same is not true for emotional and financial help. The Japanese tended not to recognize emotional support as "support," especially when they shared the household with those who provided it. They also tended not to perceive financial help as "help" when it did not come in regular and explicit monetary forms. This is the primary reason I have aggregated and dichotomized the support index, instead of developing the accumulated responses into an ordinal scale index. 42 Income was reported in 6 categories: $0-1,999, $2,000-4,999, $5,000-6,999, $7,000-9,999, $10,000-14,999, and $15,000 and over. Yen equivalents were also reported in 6 categories, using the exchange rate of January 1982 ($1 = ¥250). Although the response categories were comparable in the two samples, the reporting units were not: West Haven respondents reported the couple's income if they were married, but Odawara respondents reported individual income regardless of their marital status. To correct this discrepancy in the two surveys, I calculated the effect of being married on income for the West Haven sample, subtracted it from the original responses, and made separate estimates for male and female respondents. The regression equations that yielded the highest proportions of explained variance included education, employment status, age, disability, and marital status (male: R2 = 0.38, female: R2 = 0.33). The estimation equations for males was: Y = 12,884 + 490*EDUC + 1,334*EMPLOY - 116*AGE - 229* DISABIL + 1,687* MARITAL; and for females: Y =8,583 + 321*EDUC + 2,604*EMPLOY 75*AGE - 1*DISABIL + 2,968*MARITAL. As a result, the incomes of 100 married persons in West Haven were classified downward. Of these, 63 were men and 37 were women. The majority of men (59%) moved down one category while the majority of women (81%) moved down two

66

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain Table 4.5. Receiving at least one type of informal support: Logistic regression estimates

West Haven

Age Living with children Married Female Blue-collar Years local residency Children within city region Close friends within city region Close relatives within city region Close neighbors Income Disability Constant Chi-square d.f. N

Coefficient

(SE)

.02 .76 -1.67 .59 -.70 .01 .38 .22* -.14 .09 -.95* 1.42* 3.91

(.07) (.72) (1.09) (1.00) (.72) (.02) (.34) (.10) (.10) (.14) (.42) (.72) (6.52)

33.49** 12 189

Westside Odawara Coefficient -.07 -.05 .22 .88 -.18 .00 .08 -.17 .02 .06 -.16 -.05 6.55*

(SE) (.04) (.50) (.56) (.61) (.47) (.01) (.17) (.09) (.14) (.09) (.16) (.52) (3.20)

12.69 12 152

*p < 0.05. **/?<0.01. and disability.43 West Haveners received help according to need; they received significantly more help when they had low income and high disability.44 And West Haveners received more help when they also had categories or more. The estimated average income in West Haven was $5,160; the average reported income in Odawara was $4,130. 43 The disability score ranged between 0 and 33. "A lot of difficulty" was assigned a score of 3, "some difficulty" a score of 2, "a little difficulty" a score of 1, and "no difficulty at all" a score of 0. In West Haven, the mean score was 3.3 and the maximum score was 33. In Odawara, the mean score was 2.5 and the maximum score was 28. 44 In a large-scale state survey of emotionally distressed American elderly, Greg Arling finds a similar increase in informal support for those in physical and financial need. See "Strain, Social Support, and Distress in Old Age." 67

The Gift of Generations more close friends. The triangulation of resources therefore matters at the crucial moment: Helpers intervene when need is demonstrated. The Japanese counterparts, however, received help regardless of need. This apparent disregard for the need criterion in providing help requires an appraisal of subjective perceptions - anticipations and expectations - which is explored here and, in fuller detail, in the next chapter. The protective approach is practiced not according to the demonstration of actual need on the part of the elderly, but the expectation of potential need on the part of the helpers. In Japan, people give help just because the elderly are old; caregivers link the life stage of old age itself with the need for help. Since increasing age is associated with greater proneness to chronic health conditions that affect physical capacity and strength, and with loss of earning power that affects financial resources-a fact also confirmed in these surveys-the Japanese attempt to forestall these crises by providing support before circumstances deteriorate. Starting the protection early, as we saw in Shizu's and Masa's plans in Chapter 1, is critical: Helpers protect before need becomes apparent.45 Of the two societies, life course trajectories and needs are more closely intertwined in Japan. Historically, Japanese life stages have been clearly defined, punctuated by age-related celebrations that were expressed as rites of passage. As Takie Lebra describes, these definitions are notable also for old age.46 David Plath also points to the importance of expressing models of maturity in age-specific terms.47 The fundamental assumption that the young and the old have distinct needs in different life stages by ascription was also noted in Chapter 3. The life stages are associated with different strengths and weaknesses according to age status and imply that age differences are irrevocable. While this understanding endorses the inequities of health, wealth, and other qualities according to life stages, it also reinforces the recog45 In this connection, I conjecture that if the middle aged (40-64 years) had also been sampled in the surveys, old age (65 years and over) might have emerged more clearly as the eligibility criterion for informal support in Odawara. 46 Takie Sugiyama Lebra, Japanese Patterns of Behavior, 97. Lebra refers to the junctures at ages 60, 70, and 77. 47 David Plath, Long Engagements: Maturity in Modern Japan, chap. 1

68

Protection and Intervention in the Private Domain nition that unequal needs according to age are to be expected. Thus, increased need in old age is recognized as a given part of the life script, assumed as a matter of course for each succeeding generation. As individuals, the elderly have different life circumstances, but as a collective group they are perceived as a seasoned but vulnerable population. This stronger consciousness of age differences in Japan - and of needs associated with specific life stages - is also confirmed in comparative surveys at the national level. The attitudinal survey published by the Prime Minister's Office, for example, shows that most Japanese elderly think of themselves as unequal to the young, whereas the American elderly feel that they are equal.48 The American life script, on the other hand, offers a sequence of status transitions that presumes life stages to be distinct but generally equal in their perceived merits and rewards. The young and old are inherently different, but the demarcation between life stages in adulthood is not always as clear-cut as it is in the Japanese life script. As Bernice Neugarten and colleagues suggest, age norms significantly define the shared timetables in American society;49 yet in comparative perspective, the American life script also seems to assume a great deal more individual variation so that age differences can at times even be revoked - such as taking part in marathons or remarrying at age 70. Sharon Kaufman has also noted that milestones between birth and death such as marriage, childbirth, and divorce have become increasingly flexible and age-irrelevant, as preferences and choices of life-styles override the traditional demands of age 48 Japan Prime Minister's Office, Rqjin Taisakushitsu, Rojin no seikatsu to ishiki: Kokusai hikaku chbsa kekka hokokusho. The survey covered persons aged 60 and over in Japan, Thailand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France: 37.5% of the Japanese and 67.9% of the Americans felt they were equal to the young. Of the Japanese who felt unequal to the young, 19.1% felt superior, 22.9% felt inferior, and 20.5% were unsure. Erdman Palmore and Daisaku Maeda contend that the stronger age consciousness in Japanese society is associated with the respect for elders (and seniority) inherent in its age stratification; the survey results, however, remain inconclusive on this point. See The Honorable Elders Revisited: A Revised Cross-Cultural Analysis of Aging in Japan, 17-18. 49 Bernice L. Neugarten, Joan W. Moore, and J. Lowe, "Age Norms, Age Constraints, and Adult Socialization"; Gunhild Hagestad and Bernice Neugarten, "Age and the Life Course."

69

The Gift of Generations appropriateness.50 If aging cannot be entirely controlled, it is still individualized and assumed to be "manageable" in postindustrial America by individual effort.51 Age can be just a mind-set; as the saying goes, "you are only as old as you feel." Given the ethnic variety and the country's relatively short unified past, the American sense of the life course is more abstract and unmolded than in Japan; it is therefore more amenable to individual adjustments. "Very" old age signals vulnerability and need, but it is not easily made part of a collective life script, because it is also expected to vary individually. The tension between the realities of the life cycle and the ideals of making a possible fresh start at any life stage creates an ambivalence in directly associating need with old age. As the conditions and practices of helping arrangements differ - in the households and social networks - it is reasonable to expect that the rules of entitlement, obligation, and reciprocity that constitute the heart of the social contract would also vary in the two communities. In the following chapters, we will explore the subjective conditions of the social contract as the elderly of Odawara and West Haven speak of their perceptions, desires, options, and constraints in their helping arrangements. As they talk about vulnerability, security, and independence in their own voice, the web of cultural assumptions and assignments that underlie protection and intervention will become clear: They also do not come without a price. 50 Sharon Kaufman, The Ageless Self: Sources of Meaning in Later Life. 51 For an excellent discussion of how this perception has evolved in American culture, see Thomas R. Cole, The Journey of Life: A Cultural History of Aging in America.

70

5

The Japanese Viewpoint

T

HE subjective perception of vulnerability differs from one society to another according to customs, values, and resource affluence. Tolerance for pain, poverty, and loneliness varies because of different cultural prescriptions, social definitions, and relative sense of deprivation. The degree to which this vulnerability is anticipated as an inevitable process of old age is fundamental to the way societies prepare for - and ultimately deliver - social support for the elderly. In Japan, this anticipation is far more prevalent than in the United States; the assumption that everybody will need help - the preparation for an eventuality rather than a possibility - creates a greater willingness on the part of givers to commit the time, energy, and resources necessary to help, as they themselves stand to benefit from this arrangement in their own later lives. The perception of help also differs from one society to another according to access and desirability. Cultural assumptions and norms that shape social ties - transcending individual cases of need - produce smaller, focused support networks in Japan. The mutual helping arrangements forged by obligation and affinity are explicit in these small units and have important consequences for the security and independence of the elderly in Japan. How an individual attains security and independence in old age, however, is not an abstract but a concrete issue that affects the quality of financial, physical, and emotional well-being. As we shift our discussion from the aggregate level to the individual level, the emotional and cognitive content of security and independence becomes more apparent. It derives from a sense of deservedness and assurance that the necessary help will materialize when needed. It rests on the assessment 71

The Gift of Generations of the present as well as the anticipation of the future, especially because need is expected to be inevitable. For some Japanese elderly, this assurance comes at a high price to their independence, whereas others perceive that such assurance is earned. Many choose a path that lies somewhere in between this sacrifice of autonomy and the sense of deservedness. The helping arrangements in the two societies reflect different nuances of security and independence as concrete conditions of everyday life; they point to the hidden assumptions underlying entitlement, obligation, and reciprocity that constitute the essence of the private contract. When translated into daily decisions, these hidden assumptions about who should do what for whom are sometimes shared by different generations, but other times not. Clearly, much more is at work here than romantic stereotypes would suggest.1 The elderly in the two societies both seek fair and equitable helping arrangements that are based on their own sense of deservedness; and this basic principle takes us beyond the attributes of traditional values such as Confucian ethics, collectivism, or democratic individualism. The meaning of deservedness and fairness will therefore be examined in this analysis. The fourteen case studies that follow here and in Chapter 6 (Japan and the United States respectively) present the perspectives of older people themselves. The stories offer portraits of elderly people who find themselves in different helping arrangements, and illustrate the distinct meanings, constraints, and implications of these practices in their everyday life. These cases are selected from the survey respondents in Odawara and West Haven2 who articulate their own subjective views on vulnerability and deservedness, and talk about their own personal circumstances for making the choices as they do. The portraits also offer tangible examples of different individuals who comprise the two distinct aggregate patterns described in the previous chapter. These stories therefore depict the reasons why individuals embrace those protective and contingency practices, how they construct the meaning of those practices in their own terms, and how they 1 Joseph J. Tobin, "The American Idealization of Old Age in Japan." 2 The individuals are not, however, intended as representatives of the two community samples; see the appendix for the method of selection.

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The Japanese Viewpoint construe their own cultural conceptions of security, protection, and intervention. The retrospective accounts in these portraits also bring a time dimension into the discussion of the social contract, and extend our scope of analysis to the past and to the future. We will begin first with examples of the Japanese in Odawara.

VOICES FROM ODAWARA

Yoshino Fuku (81), Former Farmer Fuku is a small and slender woman. The shades of many, many wrinkles on her face seem to indicate the years of outdoor labor. She was widowed at age 30. From then on, she raised four children by herself. And now she lives with six family members-her daughter, her daughter's husband, her grandson, her grandson's wife, and her two great-grandchildren - in a four-generation household. Her personal annual income was $1,000 when we met, but she received financial help from her children. Her health was far from perfect - with heart enlargement, high blood pressure, glaucoma, and hearing problems - but she reported no difficulties in her functional ability: Her disabilities did not bother her. She is intelligent, very articulate, and she remembers the past very vividly. When I was ten, there was that great flood. This whole area was under water, so much water. The embankment broke, yes the embankment of the Sakawa River. It rained for several days. You couldn't see the rice fields for all the water. Couldn't tell the roads from the rice fields. People were yelling and we had to run. We - me and my sister - we had to go and live with other relatives for some time. My father died when I was thirteen. The following year there was the fire that swept the neighborhood - quite rare, you know, for a rural village. Big fire sparks were flying here and there and many houses burned down. We were afraid, especially with no man in the house. It was very scary to be without a father. 73

The Gift of Generations Then I married and came to this house. I was eighteen when I came here as a yome? Right. I didn't have a father, but my mother was alive when I came here. Yes, and both of my grandparents were still in good health, too. But I had no father. We were five siblings. Four girls and a boy. Well, not having a father was pretty hard on us. We did have a hard time, you know. The year after I married into this house, my father-in-law here passed away. We gave his funeral. Oh, how many funerals we had to give over the years. My first child was a boy. But then he died fifteen days after he was born. He died in the same year as my father-in-law. When my first daughter was still a toddler, we had the Great [Kanto] Earthquake. At the time, my husband was out making funeral arrangements for his sister who had just died that morning. I was eating lunch with my husband's brother and my child. Then, with this big roar, the earth started shattering incredibly. We rushed outside. When I realized what was happening, I had my chopsticks in one hand and my child in the other. We turned around and saw that the house had collapsed. The roof was flat on the floor. And the earth was still quaking. It went on, you know. We could see the fire in downtown Odawara. All of our food was gone. We had to build a shack in the field because we didn't have a house anymore. Then came the war. . .. We made rice, vegetables, and saw them taken away from us for quota delivery. The war - it was hard on everyone. I had four girls and a boy when my husband died. . . . He died of pneumonia. You died of pneumonia in those days. The war came right after he died. It was hard. My 3 Yome refers to the woman who marries into her husband's family. The term is most often used when the woman is relatively young, and therefore it usually refers to a bride, a young wife, or a daughter-in-law. In the ie system, the yome has always maintained a structurally weak position; see Dorinne K. Kondo's account in Crafting Selves: Power, Gender, and Discourses of Identity in a Japanese Workplace, 132-137.

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The Japanese Viewpoint youngest was five years old. And my mother-in-law was ill. We had no man in the house to work the fields. I'd go to help out in some households so that in return their men would come to help me plow the fields. Yes, we plowed with horses and oxen in those days. I had a son. My husband died six months after he was born. I thought that I might be able to rely on this son. But then, he got cerebral palsy. He was retarded all his life because of this. I had much, much more trouble taking care of him than anything else - food shortage or anything else. You know, if only there was some hope of getting better. . . . I would have paid for any medicine, any operation . . . it's so painful. You hear on TV about parents doing their [retarded] children in, you know, out of despair - I think it's really true. I know how it feels. . . . I'd send him off to school, and he'd come home with none of the things he'd left with. Notebooks, pencils, lunchbox, and even his clothes sometimes. How I cried. . . . oh, the other children really had a hard time living with this boy, too. None of the surgical operations helped. Then he developed epilepsy after the operations. We'd go and search for him in the middle of the night when he wandered away. He died when he was thirty-six. . . . Lots of times I couldn't understand why I had to live. I didn't know what to live for. What could the future bring - it was so uncertain? My husband was dead. And my son .. . No, I never turned to religion. I had to work! Some people thought it might help, but I never had the time. Well, I've come all this way without it, there's no way I could need it now. I said there couldn't possibly be anything worse than what I had already - more misfortune than what I had already. I said, you call this unhappiness and, if I had to have any more of it, I don't even want my life. I really meant it. Oh, there was no time for it anyway. I used to get up at three in the morning to put the wash out to dry. No, no spin dryers. I didn't even have time to warm 75

The Gift of Generations myself at the kotatsu4 when I was cold, you see. And I did all the sewing after everyone had gone to sleep. And then we, yome, got up early in the morning before anyone else. There was lots of work to be done, yes, we hardly came to the kotatsu. We wove everything too. We made threads. We women had a lot of work. You know, all of us yome in any household had to work very hard. We had to be the first to wake up, opening all the shades And the field labor.... Women went out to the fields, too, especially in May, June, and July - weeding out grass by hand in the heat.... In winter we worked on the wheat with our noses dripping in the cold. When it rained we did all the sewing. In those days we did all the cooking on fires. We'd start the fire early in the morning. Difficult to do on rainy days, but we did it. Fish, rice, everything tastes better when cooked on fire. Oh, rice cooked with gas or electricity doesn't really taste the same. It's different. It absorbs the moisture better. .. . Baths were warmer and softer when made with fire, too. The heat comes too suddenly with gas. Tap water is not good for the tea. You see, everything has changed so much. What we eat, how we cook. Adjustment? Well, no, it was gradual. It would have been a surprise all at once, but it was gradual. To be born in modern times? No, for us, you see, it's all in the past and gone. I tell the younger ones how it was and how it's so much more convenient now. But it doesn't mean I'd have liked the conveniences in my time. It doesn't make sense to want it. This is the only path we could have come along. It's just different. There used to be just the three of us here - me, my daughter, and her husband. The younger ones lived out. Last summer, my grandson, his wife and the two children came back to live with us. They came back, because the little one goes to preschool this year. He had to come back some time anyway. He's the eldest son. 4 A heating system, which is usually located in the living room. The charcoal burner is covered by a blanket over a table.

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The Japanese Viewpoint No, I have no anxiety over my old age. None. Even my grandson is here now, see. I have nothing to worry about. I never take breaks - always working - in youth and in old age. Oh, I might weed out the garden; there are always things to do. Cooking -just a little bit sometimes. Young people don't do much nimono5 these days, so I sometimes cook my own vegetables. Young people only cook what's fast. Nimono takes too much time and too much work. But I have to watch out for my blood pressure. When the food at dinner is too spicy, I take just a little and thin it with hot water. I can manage that by myself. I do tell the younger people about the old days. They should know, I think. When I start the nimono in the kitchen, my grandson's yome comes around to ask me how I do it. She goes out to buy a pumpkin, and asks me to cook it for her. I tell them we never ate any white rice unless we had guests. We ate wheat rice. I miss good old brown wheat rice. But you can't really cook it just for yourself. So I eat what everyone else eats here. Well, I've traveled enough, and now that I'm old, I don't really want to cause any trouble. My grandson said to me the other day, maybe I should visit Hawaii. So I said someone has to come with me - 1 don't want to go alone. No, I don't really want to go. Last year when I turned eighty, my daughter asked me if I wanted a new kimono. I don't need a new kimono. So, they took me to Okinawa instead. They said [at the clinic] that I could live to be ninety. I said there's really no need to live that long. Too lively in this house? No, it's all right. I'm all right. Well, I shouldn't really say this, but, you know, the television.... Well, I go to sleep before they do, and s o . . . . But they don't think about turning it down. It would help if they did perhaps. Just a bit, you know. 5 A traditional form of cooking with soya sauce and Japanese wine.

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The Gift of Generations Fuku is living witness to the tremendous social change Japan has undergone over the past several decades. The part of Odawara where she lives used to be a small village inhabited only by agricultural farmers. None of the public works, stores, or factories existed then. The types of natural disasters she encountered are no longer as devastating in contemporary Japan. The kind of manual labor she used to perform in the course of daily work has now largely been taken over or aided by modern gadgets, saving much time and effort. Much has changed, as is clear from Fuku's own testimony. The sense of continuity Fuku maintains with the past despite these social changes is therefore all the more striking. The social values that tie the different generations within her family remain basically intact. She lived with and took care of her in-laws in her time - not only parents-in-law but also her husband's siblings. She continued in this task dutifully, even after her husband, her link to the Yoshino household, died. Now it is her own turn to receive the kind of care and security she provided to others. This arrangement continues to be reproduced by her children; since both of her sons died, the youngest daughter married a man who was willing to become a yoshi.6 Fuku's daughter, in other words, has never left her maiden home to live away from her mother. The eldest son of Fuku's daughter has also now moved in with the family. Although his generation of sons may initially have had the freedom to live away from parental homes to start their own families, Fuku's grandson has now returned to continue the family line and fulfill his family obligation. The reason cited by Fuku for his return is not "affinity" or even "convenience." It is simply because he is the "eldest son." The Japanese system of filial responsibility has undergone some changes in practical form, such as in the use of temporary separate residences; but the norms that reproduce the sense of filial obligation among the younger generations continue to be felt in families such as Fuku's. Cultural values that underlie the system of filial obligation certainly reinforce its perpetuation; there are also informal social sanctions 6 A form of marriage in which the husband marries into his wife's family, and takes over her family name.

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The Japanese Viewpoint applied to children who do not fulfill their obligations, since their "character" might be called into question. But it seems that the sheer amount of hardship Fuku encountered, fought, and survived earned her the right to be cared for by her family. She has made her contribution (to the family) over time. She has paid her dues to the system, and she seems to feel that she has earned the right to support, in much the same way as pensioners feel they deserve their social security checks. Now the entitlement is hers, while the younger generations pay their own dues in turn. Their time for entitlement will also come in due course. The Yoshino household operates under a "social security system" that is entirely concrete, direct, and immediately confined within the family. This is the informal social security system that operates in many three- and four-generation households in Japan. When the sense of entitlement to care over time is acknowledged by other members of the household, the notion of dependency is not called into question at any given point in time. At age 81, Fuku's resources for financial and physical support come primarily from her children and grandchildren. Objectively, she is very dependent on her family for an allowance and for the daily help that provides her with meals and other essentials. She does not appear to feel this dependence as a constraint. She retains her sense of self-worth because she "deserves" the care received, by virtue of the hard labor she has accumulated to her credit. Fuku's strong sense of security must be understood within this context of entitlement to informal care in the family. Her trust in the system of informal care derives not merely from the normative structure of filial obligation based on tradition; there is also a notion of reciprocity that reinforces what is essentially a serial order of care for the elderly. The care she has previously given to the children bears fruit in her old age, and this sense of mutual care is shared by both parent and child. Fuku's contribution had been particularly visible in the absence of her husband and in the face of unusually harsh historical circumstances such as the war. For her children to choose to let Fuku live alone in old age, for example, would be tantamount to "abandonment" according to the rules of mutual care. The give-and-take between parent and child can in fact only take place along these 79

The Gift of Generations longitudinal dimensions. This relationship forms the essence of what I have called structured security in Japan. The continuation and maintenance of the longitudinal give-andtake between generations can be assured only as long as younger parties are still willing to participate in the private contract. There are often economic advantages that make the three-generation arrangement attractive to the young. The younger generations have no need to pay rent or save for a down payment in a household such as Fuku's. It is also convenient and efficient to divide the household labor among greater numbers of family members living under the same roof. Fuku babysits and occasionally cooks. Her daughter can go out to work full time. This living arrangement of the extended family makes economic sense for all parties concerned, and it embraces their mutual interests. When the sense of mutuality breaks down in the informal social security system, the relationship between generations can become strained. For Fuku's sense of security to remain intact, her accumulated credit must be recognized. It seems important, however, that there is also a genuine wish on the part of the young to reciprocate, to keep the relationships running smoothly. Fuku's granddaughter-inlaw makes sure there are some useful tasks for Fuku to perform, yielding to share her control of the kitchen. Fuku, in turn, gives in to the television noise that she does not like. Mutual consideration based on daily compromises seems to be an important component of unstrained generational living arrangements. Not all multigenerational households work out as smoothly as does the Yoshino household. We now turn to an example of strained relationships in the Ueyama family. Ueyama Teru (84), Former Caterer Teru is a widow who used to clean, cook, and wash for the dormitory of the local bus company in Odawara. She was born in Odawara and had returned there to raise her son with her maiden family after her husband died in Kawasaki. She now lives with her son and his wife in a rented house consisting of two rooms. The house faces directly onto 80

The Japanese Viewpoint a national road with tremendous traffic. Buses and trucks go by, vibrating the house as they pass. The bus stop is right in front of her entrance. The bath in this house is heated by wood and the toilet is without a flush. Her only income is a stipend from the old-age welfare pension. The remainder of her living expenses are provided by her son, a construction worker. Her health restricts her activity greatly. With diabetes, high blood pressure, rheumatism, and glaucoma, she has more difficulty with daily chores than the average elderly person in the Odawara sample. My husband was a good man, but he died. You can't do anything about that. We had some happy years - 1 have to be content with that. It's fate, maybe. Everyone has it tough one way or another. I guess it's all right now that everyone is good to me. Nobody in her right mind today would do what I did. They'd go off marrying again, or do something else something easier. It wasn't that easy then. Yes I might have remarried, but [I didn't because] it's so sad for the child. You see, if I go to another widower, he's got his children. If my child gets into a fight with the other children, then, what do I do? I'd have to scold my child even for the wrongdoings of the other. The child would be sad. I would feel bad and my child would feel bad. It was bad enough for him that his father was sick for a long time. It's too painful for the child. So I didn't do it. Oh yes, I put up with a lot of hardships. I shouldn't talk about it so, but, yes, I endured . . . a lot. If I didn't have the child, I would have married again. It was only for the child. We're three persons here - my son, his wife, and me. The young ones do the grocery shopping. I just look after the child [her great-grandchild] during the day. I don't go outdoors at all. It's not safe for m e . . . . There aren't that many elderly in the neighborhood. I've been to a couple of meetings at the senior club, but they're all middle-aged - all in their fifties and sixties. You can't really talk to people that age. They haven't 81

The Gift of Generations really worked, so there's not much to talk about. . . . It's difficult to make friends. I have no worries here. There's nothing I'm worried about. I've never been to a nursing home. I won't go. It's best to stay at home. You see, when you go away you're as good as strangers. I suppose it's all right if you get many visits, but if you don't, it's lonely, you know. I think it's best to stay home as long as you can. [With the yome] it's working out. Well, it's not always at its best. It's a long-standing relationship, so there is much in the past, too. Can't do anything about that. You're not [blood] related to a yome, after all. It's best to keep quiet. It's best not to say anything. Just don't say it. Just say it's OK. It doesn't make me sad. Once it's in the open, it's the end. There's no point in having any conflict in the house. They're good to me, and . . . It's just no good being a failure in life, you know - really. We didn't get anywhere, not even a house. My son lost the down payment to some fraud. Can't get the money back. . . . I thought we'd get somewhere, you know, if only we worked hard. I thought as long as you had good health, as long as you worked diligently. . . . My sisters have got their houses now. I'm the only one. . . . My sisters moved far away. Too far. We talk on the phone, but you know, you have to live close by to stay close. You have to live nearby. Otherwise, you can't do anything, can you? Well, it's all right. Everyone is good to me, so let's say it's all right even though we're poor. Can't do much about it anyway, right? There's nothing I want to do particularly - no, it's true. I don't really want anything. It's all right the way it is. I don't need anything. I'm not interested in traveling - think of my leg. . . . Can't go up and down the stairs. Imagine if I fell. . . . Can't afford accidents. I've been to enough places. I went to Kyoto and I went to Osaka. Yes, it's all the same. You have mountains, valleys, and houses - that's all. There are mountains everywhere, you know. It's enough. 82

The Japanese Viewpoint It's really because I don't have a friend to travel with. I have a good friend like a sister, but, you see, her eyesight is bad.. .. You see, I could go anyplace with her, but not anymore now. Teru's personal history is not dissimilar to Fuku's. Both women were widowed in their 30s, and worked hard, albeit in different occupations, to make a living and to raise children. Teru also lives with a sense of security of being looked after by her son and his wife, a sense of entitlement that is due to her now that she is old and disabled. What is striking in Teru's situation, however, is the kind of bitterness with which she lives, focused on the self-sacrifice she has endured for the sake of her child. It is not clear from her testimony whether it was actually and objectively impossible for her to remarry because of the child. Nevertheless, it remains true that her subjective perception is one of self-sacrifice, a sense of having foregone an opportunity for the sake of someone else, and of having earned her old-age security through this act. Still, Teru's contribution to the traditional family system itself is less than Fuku's, because she went back to her maiden home when her husband died. In her life's expectations, Teru remains wholly unfulfilled. Had her fortunes with her son and his family turned upward even a little, her regrets for past decisions might have been alleviated. We can detect her sense of despair over her current predicament, as well as her struggle to make peace with it. The Ueyama family did not improve its social and financial position, unlike Teru's sisters' families. While others were able to go through life on a progressive scale, Teru sees no progress in her life. It seems necessary for her to blame her predicament on external circumstances, such as the social norms that prevented her from remarrying. Her sense of resignation is in part an attempt to make peace with her emotional turmoil. Her labor has at least borne fruit so that she can benefit from the informal social security system, after having dutifully paid her dues. She continues to talk over and over again about her selfsacrifice, partly to reinforce her entitlement, and partly to resist the strain in the household as best as she can. She apparently does not get along with her daughter-in-law; yet, the two women stay at home together every day. The situation makes it necessary for Teru to feel that 83

The Gift of Generations she should not voice matters that might lead to conflict. There is sadness to the peace Teru seeks, for her sense of past regrets and also for the lack of freedom she endures to maintain her security. Because the household relations are strained, her dependency on the younger generation is not a comfortable one. The mutual care rule operates at the Ueyama's, but seemingly not out of genuine wish or affinity. The emotional price Teru pays for her security is high. Previously she had been able to air her frustrations with a close friend, but this avenue is closed because the friend has become ill. She passes her time looking after a great-grandchild during the day, while her (adopted) granddaughter goes out to work. This child will stop coming next year when she starts preschool. Probed to think what she might do with her day once the child is no longer there, Teru is most evasive and ambivalent in giving a definite answer: "I'll just have to see," she says. The entitlement in the informal social security system seems eventually secure for Teru as well as Fuku because both women are also very old and weak, and perhaps because people of their generation were subject to hardships physically more severe than those of the later generation. Hiro, our next case study, is an example of this later generation. We will now turn to the Fukaya family where tensions in the household seem to derive from the different levels of commitment made to the informal social security system by two generations. Here, the values regarding who "deserves" care are no longer shared between generations. Fukaya Hiro (68), Homemaker Hiro is a woman who had aged visibly beyond her years. Her dark wrinkles and skin texture seem to reflect the toll of bearing 10 children. Most of her children live nearby: 7 live in Odawara City, and she sees or talks to 6 of them at least once a week. Her husband, a bamboo craftsman, died 4 years ago, and she now lives in a threegeneration household. In addition to her son, her son's wife, and two grandchildren, there are also two middle-aged unwed daughters; altogether, there are seven members in the household. Physical problems caused by arthritis in her right knee seem incapacitating. She has a lot 84

The Japanese Viewpoint of difficulty getting up, walking, climbing stairs, and holding, pushing, or pulling any heavy objects. She also has some difficulty in bending and using the toilet. The constant pain inevitably seems to have a depressing effect on her. She also has high blood pressure and rheumatism. Consequently, she receives much more help from her children than she can give. Included in this help is a monthly allowance of $80 from her eldest son. Around bonus time, she also receives an allowance from her other children.7 State aid reaches her in the form of an old-age welfare pension and subsidized health care. I had ten children. Not a break in my life -just work. There was such a food shortage [during and after the war]. Large families like ours just didn't get enough. Large families really had a tough time with the food shortage. Every day we went out to look, to see what we could g e t . . . . It was rare in those days that all children [in the family] survived - ours did. . .. When I talk about having no rice and so on, my children hate it. They say it sounds so poverty-stricken. My right knee - it's been bad for ten years now.... It never got any better. . . . These days I don't really go out much. I think I might disgrace myself. It hurts so . . . so I can't. When you're old - oh, there's not much you can do. No, it can't be helped. My body went through too much battering, so this now can't be helped. [About the children] I can't really say this in front of them, yes, there are those you do and don't get along with. Perhaps in crisis boys are dependable, but otherwise girls are nicer. The boys are not really . . . the girls are nicer. I made up my mind long ago - what to do when my husband was gone. He used to say I should go with the one I liked. But the right thing was to be with the eldest son. This was all for the best. It's not done otherwise. It's not pleasant to mention [another option]. So, I never said [wishes to the 7 Lump sum payments made biannually (in June and December) to Japanese employees, as supplement to regular salaries and as a form of profit sharing. The amount usually totals two to four months' wages.

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The Gift of Generations contrary] to anybody. I was going to go with my eldest son, unless something really bad happened. There are all sorts [of conflicts] when there are ten of them. I don't worry about not getting care. If I'm ill, see, we are parent and child after all. No, I'm not worried about that. I think someone will come to help. I'll worry if something happened to my son. I'd manage if I had my own pension, you know. But we were self-employed. We don't have pensions. Yes, there are things that make me angry. But when you say it - when you bring it out in the open - the damage is irrevocable. You know, that's why I don't let it out. That's how I feel. I don't say things that might irritate. . . . if we're going to stay together, we try to avoid bad feelings. I don't cook. I'd rather not bother them. People don't like having old people do [housework] these days.... They say old people are dirty [kitanai]. . . . You know, it's not true.... We aren't dirty.... You take in the wash, say, and then you fold them, right? It saves trouble. But they say it's dirty because old people did it - so they unfold and redo i t . . . . It's the same with kitchen work. In homes where the young ones cook, they say it's dirty when old people do it. Some won't cook anymore because of that.... This sort of thing didn't used to happen before.... It's all the affluence. You know, you can get things done yourself now without getting help from the old. All families are smaller, see. In the old days, in busy times, you wanted all the help you could get. The old used to feel useful, and they felt good about helping. Now, with all the affluence they think that our work is filthy. . .. I don't go up and down the stairs in this house. But really, the younger ones live upstairs, you see . . . so, I don't have any business going up there. I don't go. I stay here downstairs. . .. Well, at home, I'm just by myself. . .. When my husband was still here, it was better. But they [the family] don't say anything to me. . . . And they do what they please. They don't like the things I do. . . . I would go to the senior center bath if I could. I could talk there. 86

The Japanese Viewpoint Some people I know live alone [in old age]. If you can support yourself, that's good. You have more freedom. If your husband's got a pension, you see, you get half the benefits after he dies. . . . You can manage with that if you watch out. Better to do that than to feel nervous about your children, I think. In any case, you see, I can't move. It can't be helped. You know, it might be lonely living alone. I get lonely even when I'm watching television alone here. I guess there are many different circumstances, but they say it's free and easy to live alone - you can call up a friend whenever you want without worrying about the family. When did these things change so much? It didn't used to be like this before. I know some people find support in religion.... I can't get excited about it. Objectively, you know, there are too many mistakes. Even for God. He's dealing with humans. There are just too many wrongs. Despite the frequency of contact with her family, Hiro has an overwhelming sense of loneliness that could not be detected from looking at objective indicators of contact. She does not consider the quality of these contacts intimate or caring. Strictly speaking, she does not want for money, food, or shelter; she is provided for instrumentally and financially by her family. But the emotional isolation and alienation she experiences from the rest of her family in her household is evident. Hiro feels dependent and unwanted. Unlike Fuku and Teru, Hiro has been widowed only for 4 years. She speaks fondly of her late husband and of her daughters who live outside this household. She also has a very close friend in the neighborhood, whom she sometimes visits. For Hiro, alternative resources for support are available but not accessible. She feels that the rules of mutual care have forced her to take up the household with her son's family; she does not feel free to do what she really wants. To live in a household where she feels disliked is all the harder to bear where there are glimpses of alternative options. Fuku and Teru's generation did not have these other options; for Hiro's generation, obligatory conditions now tend to be perceived as constraints. 87

The Gift of Generations Had Hiro decided to take up a living arrangement with one of her daughters with whom she feels closer, the sibling relations between sons and daughters might have been torn beyond repair. She decided to live with her eldest son, for whom she does not particularly care, to abide by the rules of filial care on which all can agree. In theory, Hiro made a decision to go with the eldest son, but in practice, she feels there was no choice but to go with the eldest son. Her entitlement to care is, in fact, more clearly defined and dependable if she abides by the social rules of filial obligation. Living with her son was a safer choice, one guaranteed by the normative regulation of the society. In abiding by the old rules, she also found clearer boundaries to define her action and to avoid conflict. She pays a high price for attaining this greater security: emotional isolation. She resents but resigns herself to the situation, externalizing the blame on traditional customs and the lack of pension benefits. She would have liked the entitlement, but for a lower price. The physical price of hard work to build the family was acceptable, but the emotional price of following the rules of family care was not. Her sense of control is doubly violated by her physical disability. Her constant pain is visibly taxing. Her loss of freedom to move, loss of husband, and consequent loss of control over the household came one after the other within a span of 10 years. She entertains no hope for any of these conditions to improve. She has nothing to do all day except to feel the continuous pain in her knee. Hiro's sense of security and freedom seems to have grown out of balance. Her entitlement borders on dependency because it is perceived and treated as a burden by the younger generations living with her. The social expectations of reciprocal care no longer seem to be genuinely shared by the younger Fukayas. Without affinity, the rules of obligation remain skeleton regulations that only constrain both parties in siding with their natural allies. Since our story is far from complete, we do not know of all the factors that have led to this high domestic tension. It seems that demonstrated hardship such as raising 10 children, however, does not suffice for Hiro to earn her help. Hiro seems to feel the change of times and values more than Fuku or Teru. For the younger of the elderly in Japan such as Hiro, there is a new ambivalence regarding the private contract. 88

The Japanese Viewpoint We must now turn our attention to some case studies of men, also of different age cohorts, which illustrate further the workings of security, dependency, and deservedness in old age. The new changes that seem to be taking place among the younger generation of old people in Japan is again evident.

Nishikawa Yasumasa (75), Rice Store Owner Yasumasa lives in a prototypical three-generation household of a kind found often among self-employed storekeepers in Odawara. The store is in front of the house, in which five members live: himself, his wife, his eldest son, his son's wife, and a grandchild. When we met, he was in the process of handing down the business to his son, but still maintained his owner and accountant status within the business. He also held many positions in community organizations, including the senior club, veterans' association, trustee of the chonaikai (neighborhood organization), rice store union, and some political and religious activities. These activities seem to reflect a high level of neighborhood integration for this long-standing family, and the importance of local networks, particularly for a delivery business such as his. He maintained an income over $12,500 at the time of the interview, and, despite diabetes and rheumatism, reported no physical disability. The Nishikawa Rice Store [komeya] has been in business for 110 years. I was born as a son of komeya, and raised as a son of komeya.... I was the second son, so I opened my store in this district. My elder brother runs the main store. It's in downtown Odawara. Yes, my son finished school, and he works for the business now. Yes, he's going to take over my business. Right now, I'm still the owner. I still see to all the administrative stuff. I know you young people think that occupations should be chosen freely. I know it's not like being in Meiji or Taisho times8 you're more free. Well, when my son finished school, I did 8 Meiji Era (1868-1912); Taisho Era (1912-26).

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The Gift of Generations tell him he didn't have to take over the business, you know. I said, go and work for a firm, or for a bureaucracy if you want. But then he said he wanted to do it. So, I'll help him out as much as I can. . . . See, that's why I'm still out working at age seventy-five. In my spare time, I love to fish. All kinds of fish - in the river, in the sea. My favorite is sweet fish. Oh, I can't wait till June. . . . I go mostly alone. But sometimes I have company too. It's my second son, my younger brother, and my daughter's husband. We all get together and go. They're better than I am, now that I'm getting on. I taught all of them! Old age? No, I have nothing to worry about. Absolutely. My children are doing well. We get along. Never had any trouble with them. There's nothing to worry about. . . . I also talked with my daughters. I said, "Will you care for your father and mother when they're old and ill? We did a lot to take care of you when you were small and growing up." And they said, yes, of course they will. I really think they will. Barring unforeseen circumstances, yes, we'll be all right. . . . If you do right, then the children turn out right, I think. It's a great joy that all the children have their families now, and they're doing well. I try to be as thoughtful as I can with the children. If we have disagreements, I ask for time to think it over. Then I tell them that I understand and that they're right in what they're saying. When we really disagree and I can't make out what they're thinking, then I ask my wife. We talk it out and try to figure it out. We've never had any big conflict. Oh, they complain that I'm a stubborn old man, but we never fight. I have eight grandchildren. The other day we planned a party for them - it was Children's Day, see. We thought we'd invite just the kids, but then, all the adults wanted to come, too. Do you know how many we are together? We're sixteen in the family! All showed up. They were so happy. Yes, it's very lively. 90

The Japanese Viewpoint Yasumasa represents a male counterpart to Yoshino Fuku in old age. Whereas women earn their entitlement through work contributed to the household, notably in raising children, men such as Yasumasa earn their entitlement through their lifelong breadwinner status. Yasumasa's patriarchal position in the family is evident, and is easier to demonstrate because his work (the store) is the household under one and the same roof. His control over both work and family remains firm in old age and reinforces the obligation on the part of his children. The unquestioned value of male work is evident in the Nishikawa household. Far from finding himself in need of support, Yasumasa still likes to see his children as something close to being his dependents. His financial control seems to be an important key to this formula, yet we also see a genuine sense of reciprocity between the generations. These values of reciprocity are reinforced by the sense of continuity that runs through multiple generations of Nishikawas, who have handed down the komeya business for over a century. Yasumasa has a wide range of acquaintances, but his close friends remain within the extended family (his brothers and cousins). This family solidarity preempts any other possibility of living arrangements. Yasumasa's sense of security derives from a firm notion of progress and continuity, of both family and business. For many of the younger aged men interviewed in Odawara, work took place outside of the home. Unlike Yasumasa, they have made a more abrupt transition to old age through mandatory retirement. The following are examples of such men in their late 60s, who had retired from full-time salaried work. Each of them lives in a different kind of household. All three cases represent the new changes in values and options available to the younger cohort of elderly in Japan. Shimada Toshio (67), Former Gas Company Employee Toshio retired 9 years ago from his regular work as supervisor in a utility company, and works part-time in the Shimada futon business run by his wife and son. In his spare time, he is involved in many community activities. He is the elder (sodai) to the local temple and 91

The Gift of Generations guardian to the local shrine. He is also an advisor to the local group insurance association and a counselor to the children's section of chonaikai. He used to run the Odawara Chapter of the Rotary Club. He came to Odawara after the war to marry into the Shimadas (as a yoshi)9 from a relatively well-to-do family that ran a textile shop in Wakayama Prefecture. He was one of a handful to enter the municipal high school in the area before he was drafted into the army. He lives with his wife in a spacious house of five rooms, which he had built two years prior to our interview. Until that time, he lived with his wife, wife's mother, son, and son's wife in a three-generation household on the second floor of the Shimada business. His annual income from pensions and from returns on investment exceeded $12,500. He had no major illness or functional disability. Well, as an elderly person myself, I see that the anxieties of old age are, you know, the worries in not knowing whether the children will really take care of you until the very end. It's really the yome that we worry about most. What sort of care would she . . . ? Or won't she . . . ? This is our ultimate worry. In my particular case, and, you know, I don't really want to say this - and I shouldn't really say this - but my yome. . .. Her character is reasonable, maybe, but when I was down with pneumonia - it's even embarrassing to tell you this - she wouldn't even come once to see me while I was taken to bed. This sort of thing is very hard on us old people. It makes us feel lonely. I may sound like I'm complaining about my daughter-in-law, but the truth is that this is our ultimate problem in old age. A son is your own child, but theyome isn't [blood] related. If only she'd say something warm and considerate, we could be so happy. I really think this is true for all of us elderly people. You hear it everywhere. In my case, we don't live with them anymore. Since we're independent, we don't have to face the situ9 For an analysis of the yoshi's status in the family and his role in family succession, see L. Keith Brown, "Dozoku and the Ideology of Descent in Rural Japan," 1143-1144. Matthews Hamabata describes the consequences for individuals in Crested Kimono: Power and Love in the Japanese Business Family, 44—45, 150-151.

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The Japanese Viewpoint ation anymore. We're really better off this way. I feel much freer when we're away from them in the evenings. My yome isn't that way, you see. When we're here in this house away from them, we don't have that constraint. We're old, my wife and myself- we don't have much to say to each other in the evenings - but there's always the television, you know. We watch television, and it's all to the best to spend evenings this way. It's all right while you're still healthy enough to take care of yourself. But what if you have to be in a hospital for a long time? We don't want to be forced to impose on the young. Heavens, when I go, it would be so nice to go, just like that. A kind yome . . . It's very lonely otherwise. I had this operation for a lump the year after I retired. I went by the shop on my way to the clinic. I told my yome about it and she just said, "I see." Now the yome next door to our shop, she said, "Oh, my goodness, you must be very worried. Please take good care of yourself." Those were really kind words. The operation took forty minutes. The doctor told me to go rest at home as soon as possible. The yome next door was shocked to see me in a bandage: "You must really go home straightaway and take a good rest." I go to my own yome, and she doesn't even acknowledge the bandage. She just told me coldly that no one else was home. Not a word about my operation - about the way I looked. It made me so mad. All she had to do was suggest to call a taxi! I decided to walk home because I was so angry. I nearly fainted on the way home . . . it was so pitiful. I was so miserable. Toshio lives with none of the emotional security that was characteristic of Fuku or Yasumasa. His anxiety over the future is his central concern, yet he has sufficient income from his pensions and good health on his side. He is worried since he feels the informal social security system is not yielding returns. His demand for filial obligation is not being met by his children, particularly his daughter-in-law. The sense of betrayal in the estrangement between parent and children hurts and depresses him. 93

The Gift of Generations He is not dependent on his children, and neither are the children dependent on him. In a society where an informal social security system operates, the lack of mutual dependency can be experienced as a deprivation. Particularly for men who have been socialized to control, the loss of power over dependents (children) and loss of work can be difficult. Toshio has no external constraints to blame, and magnifies the internal family tension as the cause of his troubles. He has no close friends, and none of his community positions seems to compensate for the void and loneliness that he feels. Since Toshio believes firmly in familial care, his case is one in which he paid for the cost of security, especially as a yoshi, without receiving any assurances of its delivery. This is one of the reasons why we detect a sense of betrayal in Toshio that we do not see in Fuku and Yasumasa. Sakuma Fumihiko (66), Former Factory Maintenance Worker Fumihiko retired 6 years ago as maintenance man of a vegetable oil processing factory in Yokohama. He commuted from Odawara and worked there for 30 years. He is a man who centers his daily life around practicing Japanese dance, which he performs weekly at the senior center. Japanese music records abound in his house of four rooms, in which he lives alone. His wife died 5 years before our meeting, and his four children see or talk to him regularly - at least once a week. Corneal inflammation had cost him his left eye. He consequently had trouble with vision and in movements requiring eye coordination. He reported no other physical disability, however, and drew an income of $8,500 from his pension at the time of the survey. I never felt happy as a child.... There was much pain all the time. I don't really like talking about my late mother. There are too many sad memories I have as a child about her. She was paralytic. She couldn't talk.... On cold winter days I had to take her by the hand to the temple. She went to pray, so she'd get better. It was cold. We walked and cried.. . . My other siblings couldn't follow her speech. I was the only one who understood what she was saying. .. . Kids would tease me about my mother. No, I don't talk much about my mother 94

The Japanese Viewpoint to my children. It's just too pitiful. . . . It hurts. . . . And my father was a heavy alcoholic. . . . He used to get violent. He battered me when I was a child. He'd kick me around when he was drunk.... It was a hard time.. .. Oh, and when he didn't drink - when he was sober - we'd laugh together, go to the fields together and . . . There were very few moments like this. My eyesight was failing. I quit work when I was sixty. It was time to retire. The ten years before retirement were hard. My eyesight was going, I was getting older. . . . Then my wife died five years ago. .. . She was not in very good health. She was a tranquil person. When she was in the hospital, I tried to take care of her. She had a stroke. She couldn't talk and she was bedridden for three months. I tried to feed her. I saw to her incontinence. I never thought it dirty or anything, no. I'd stay with her all night and run back home at the crack of dawn to wash her diapers, put them out in the sun to dry, and then rush back to the hospital again, to make it to feeding time. Then my daughter would come for her shift - I'd take all the diapers again, take them home again to wash and . . . The younger ones used to live here upstairs, when they worked here. Then, my son was offered the shop over in Fujisawa, so they moved. It's his own tempura shop now. . . . So, after my wife died, I started to live alone. It didn't cross my mind [to join my son's household in Fujisawa when my wife died]. This house here is my reward for many years of labor. It's a small house, but it's mine - 1 built it and I want to stay here. After the funeral, the kids got together to discuss my situation. . . . My son is a good man and a very hard worker. Then, we all have failures too, don't we? He is very short-tempered, you know. So you see, the oyome-san10 would have a hard time. So after the funeral, I was still in such a daze, but the children and their spouses came to me. They asked me what I would like to do. So I told 10 A form of addressing a yome (daughter-in-law) with affection and respect.

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The Gift of Generations all of them that I would stay here by myself. I told them they shouldn't worry about me. I also said, right in front of all of them, that I wanted Mari-chan [daughter-in-law] to look after me. I said, I wanted it very much that Mari-chan would be the person to look after me when I couldn't move about anymore. Mari-chan might have felt burdened too, but it also gave her recognition. I had preferred the oyome-san over my daughters. It was significant for her. And yes, she's been absolutely wonderful. A really nice yome. I place more importance on Mari-chan than on my own son. . . . My daughters offered that I should stay with them.. . . You know, it can only be temporary [as a living arrangement]. They have their own lives to live. With my eye problem, I don't see well. That's why I decided to go help at the tangerine fields. Oh, the tangerine trees are so green. White flowers are just starting to bloom right now. It's just beautiful.... I go because it's good for my health . . . yes. It's such a shame to sit around at home on a nice day, so off I go to work. It's really enjoyable. Yes, they are considerate enough to give me something in return, but that's not what I'm after, oh no. I go there really to enjoy myself. I don't find it hard work at all. Then, on a rainy day, I like to dance [Japanese traditional dance]. I just love it. I go off and buy the records that I like, and then choreograph to the music myself... . There are some wonderful songs [enka] I dance to, like Murata Hideo and Sen Masao.11 They sing about life. People thinking about each other and helping each other and so on. So all the dancing is good not just for my health, but also for my soul. Of course there are times I feel lonely - I'm human. But loneliness is different from boredom. . . . The oyome-san who looks after me is so wonderful, so nice. You know, she sometimes stops by to leave me something for supper. Yes, she drives out here with the kids. I was out last time she was here. She didn't call, you see. So when I came 11 Singers of contemporary Japanese music.

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The Japanese Viewpoint back from the fields there was a letter here, and the refrigerator was full of food. This was about two weeks ago. Oh, she is so thoughtful. My son isn't really the sentimental type - but he does say I should spend all my money for myself. He says there's no need for me to save. "What about it when I'm ill?" I said. He said he'd put me under the best medical care in the best clinic. He would pay for it all and I shouldn't worry about a thing. This, my oyome-san says, too. Nursing home? No, it never crossed my mind. Yes, when I can't manage anymore by myself in old age, my son in Fujisawa is going to look after me. And my oyome-san is just a jewel. I have truly nothing - nothing at all - to worry about. Yes, eventually - yes, I will move to Fujisawa. People seem to envy me for the freedom I enjoy living alone. I was talking to someone the other day who feels nervous living next door to his oyome-san. Of course he doesn't say anything bad about her, but... . Whenever I meet someone who talks badly of his oyome-san, I always tell them to persevere [gaman]. Because oyome-san are the ones who will take care of us. I'm also human and I might catch myself gossiping too. But I don't say anything [about the yome]. Oh yes, there were difficult times, too - things were not always smooth when we lived together. But you know, she looks after me well. And I would never want to do anything to hurt her. So it's really important for me to keep the peace within myself. Peace in my heart.. .. And sometimes when I'm filled with joy, I call her up because I want to share it with her. Old age is best when you're taken care of by your family. So, it's important that we love each other. If you want to take care of yourself, you must take care of your family - the oyome-san and the grandchildren. You get no where just loving yourself.. .. Our world gets smaller as we get older - year by year. We don't seem to extend ourselves as much. .. . We become selffocused. It seems to happen to all of us. We become somehow narrow in old age. The family is within this narrowed 97

The Gift of Generations horizon. . . . Yes, I mix with a lot of others too, but to take care of yourself, you have to take care of your family. . . . We all deserve to be very happy. All of us - really. We can accumulate the little bits and pieces of happiness that we have, toward fulfillment. I think you achieve happiness for yourself. . . . Add up the happiness around you. And go on - till we die - that's a fine life. Unlike Toshio, Fumihiko is more aware of the kind of care that must go into in-law relationships. Fumihiko understands that the dynamics of demands made between generations need to be adapted to the new environment. He strives to keep the dependency on his children to a minimum and maintains an independent life-style despite his physical disability. Compared with Toshio, he seeks a less dominant role vis-avis his daughter-in-law and he manages to balance his family relations without overt tension. The security he feels regarding his future care is not presented as an earned right. It is the affinity in the family that makes him feel secure, not the traditional structure of obligations. By living in a separate household, he retains his sense of control and freedom, opens himself to peer friendships, and avoids the tensions of the informal social security system until it becomes a necessity. In this way, Fumihiko steers his life in a positive direction rather than dwelling on the past. The kind of arrangement he pursues is quite individualistic and accommodates the realities of the changing social environment. Much care goes into his special relationship with the daughterin-law. Fumihiko's precious ability to express love is directed often toward the oyome-san, Mariko, who is married to his son. He consciously cultivates the affinity in this special relationship and is wary of both burdening her and of taking her for granted. Fumihiko takes to this effort with the long-term inevitability in mind: He assumes that he will need her in the future, especially after seeing his wife through her illness before death. His affinity for his daughter-in-law is all the more important to him, because she, more than any other family member, will be the most intimate person for him when it is his turn to be confined by illness. In Fumihiko's case, the present and the future blend well together through the solid presence of his daughter-in-law. 98

The Japanese Viewpoint Tsuda Yukio (66), Former Chemical Engineer Yukio is a retired engineer who worked for one of Odawara's large photographic supply manufacturers. He is educated and cultured, and seems content in retirement. He is a man with a great passion for painting and calligraphy, and is recognized for his accomplishments by a large artists' association of which he is also a jury member. He sends his paintings annually to Nitten, a prestigious national painting competition. Artistic talent seems to run in his family. His father, a farmer of Akita Prefecture, was also a painter. His wife writes poetry (haiku).12 The studio in his house is filled with a midsized collection of antique pottery. He owns his house, where he lives with his wife, son, son's wife, and two grandchildren. His pension income was over $8,500 at the time we met, and he reported no health problems. He is a person with a very natural style and keen self-awareness. His observations are both confident and thoughtful. You work hard at the company because you have to make a living. Of course, we had to work hard because if the company went under, so did you. Hey, but that's not all there is to it. The company is a for-profit organization. They pay you for your work because you are useful. Once you reach retirement, you're an old soldier. Time to bid farewell. Farewells always come. It's a system to let go of people who are no longer useful to the company. Thank you very much - let's take the [lumpsum retirement] money and leave gracefully. Hell, we've worked hard, raised a family, and paid a lot of taxes, too. With the rest of your life, why not do what you want? Working life is tough - it's hard work - now, finally, you're free. Three-generation households? - well, I suppose there must be people in all sorts of circumstances. But, on the whole, I think things get out of hand when you don't say things to each other. Perseverance [gaman]? No, usually there's conflict when there's no real communication. You create the rift, and then there is conflict. I think you have to feel free to talk about 12 A form of Japanese poetry.

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The Gift of Generations things. I scolded my son, yes, when he was only a kid. But now he's finished school and he's his own person. He works hard in his own way. We talk very openly and we drink together and so on... . How could we have conflict? Anxiety of old age? Anxiety? Hum - 1 don't know if I'd really understand what that means until I'm ill or something. Money? That I know I don't have. But do you need it? When you're healthy? Hum - come to think of it, I guess you do need money when you're ill in old age. I was never interested in money, but. .. yes, imagine - cancer - operation - oh, hospital fee - gee, that would be expensive. But I don't think about it really. Do you think there's a point in worrying? You die if you work hard, and you die if you don't work hard, too. That's the way it is, so, what do you want to do? You only end up the way you end up, anyway. What's important is to feel fulfilled. The future is made up of today and tomorrow. So, fulfill yourself today and tomorrow.... That way you're fulfilled in the future, too - every day until you die. Wouldn't life be boring if you didn't think that way? Yukio represents a new kind among the Japanese aged - in what he thinks, what he wants out of his old age, and in his economic security. His living arrangement, on the other hand, is entirely traditional. His three-generation household, however, is not structured in a traditional way. His combined sense of security and freedom balances here with no regard to notions of entitlement and obligation. His security seems grounded in the affinity of a close-knit family, not in feelings of obligation. His sense of freedom, on the other hand, derives from his individualistic pursuit of art outside of the family, and his secure, well-earned pension. Yukio has a house, decent pension, and good health. The give-and-take between generations is open to negotiation in a more egalitarian manner than what we have seen in other households. Two days after the last interview, Yukio's son was due to leave for Europe for a year on company assignment. The son's wife and daughter were to remain in the Tsuda household because a year 100

The Japanese Viewpoint abroad was too short, reaffirming their commitment to stay in this household in future years. For the younger generation of Tsudas, too, the support system is flexible and negotiable. This is a household that has come to live together out of choice rather than of physical or financial necessity. The more flexible informal social security system of Fumihiko and Yukio in contrast with Toshio's anxiety-ridden support arrangement shows us the increasing relevance of personal chemistry in attaining old-age security. Indeed, the pattern of filial support is composed of varied parent-child relations as we can see in the case studies. The norms of intergenerational reciprocity and trajectories of inevitable need remain at the core of the private contract, however, and lead us to derive some generalizations.

THE PROTECTIVE APPROACH

The Japanese structure of security for the elderly can be described as being essentially protective in nature. In this type of security structure, care can be provided for the elderly even where need is still only a potential. The demonstration of actual hardship is of course a consideration, but the genuine sense of security derives from an anticipation that help will be forthcoming from the elderly person's immediate environment as matters turn for the worse. Despite the heterogeneity of need, the case studies of Japanese elderly illustrate how they seek protection for future vulnerability in the private contract. In the cyclic perspective of life, the inevitable deterioration of health is a key assumption. The sense of security, then, is incomplete unless the system can successfully cope with the expectation of future needs. A life cycle approach to the problem of aging is shared among the different generations in the households that we examined. The sense of continuity characteristic of the elderly in Japan derives from the strength of this shared approach. How an aging parent will be looked after can be a question raised even at earlier milestones of life, such as marriage or first childbirth. Norms of filial obligation derived from Confucian ethics have been the backbone of this order of 101

The Gift of Generations care, where each aging parent was to be looked after by the child, especially the eldest son and his yome. But today, this serial order of care offers those of the younger provider generation a litmus test: Their action signals to the next generation what they would like done for them in their turn. In this sense, one starts paying for one's own old age at an early age, particularly in the three-generation household in Japan. Values are not reproduced over time merely by rules and regulations; prescriptions of care for the elderly must therefore also be reinforced in the institutional structures of reciprocity, and the social assignment of obligations. Historically, filial care in Japan has been structured by rewards of inheritance rights to land, property, and occupation, which established an order of mutual interest. Today, however, this sense of mutuality is not always taken for granted. As Yasumasa talked his daughters into a commitment to care by invoking past parental care, demonstration of past contributions becomes a key element to legitimating the private contract in contemporary life. Where reciprocity norms can no longer be maintained structurally, problems of dependency can also become more visible. We found strain and tension in the households where older members felt that their accumulated credit from the past was not recognized. For some, affinity between the giver and the receiver reinforced reciprocity norms. Others adjusted to change by looking for alternative forms of arrangement. It is important to observe, however, that instrumental help outside the household remains largely inaccessible; thus protection must be sought inside the household in Japan.

102

The American Viewpoint

A

T one of the intersections in a quiet residential district of West Haven, there was an elderly woman carrying out a difficult task: She was walking. She was walking with an aluminum walker covering three sides of the body; with both hands firmly holding onto the top bars, she progressed perhaps 10 inches or so with every step, repeating this motion extremely slowly and painstakingly. When she reached the intersection, her steps became even more intermittent: She had to watch that no cars were approaching. In her extraordinary slowness, she could not cross the intersection in time if a car approached even from the furthest end of the street. A spontaneous response on the part of an observer who encounters a handicapped person in a less than safe situation like this is to offer help. But if help had been offered this woman, she would most likely have declined it. Her painstaking task was carried out with selfreliance, self-respect, and dignity. Her stern concentration on the task was of the kind that prohibits casual interference from outsiders. Her face wore an expression of strength and determination. It is not uncommon to encounter frail elderly persons walking publicly with aids in the streets of West Haven. For all of America's ethnic variety, this independence and resilience is a common characteristic of the American way of growing old, which many crossnational observers also note.1 This point is illustrated further in the following case studies of the American elderly in West Haven. 1 Donald O. Cowgill, Aging around the World, 47-50; Jennie Keith, Christine Fry, and Charlotte Ikels, "Community as Context for Successful Aging," 260; G. Clare Wenger, "The Major English-Speaking Countries," 121; Andrei Simic, "Aging, Worldview, and Intergenerational Relations in America and Yugoslavia," 89.

103

The Gift of Generations The cases suggest that the American expectation of independence is deeply rooted in beliefs about self-sufficiency, need, and crisis intervention. In contrast to the Japanese, older Americans approach need more as a contingency than as an inevitable outcome of aging. In this approach, physical need in particular is an unpredictable exigency that the future may, or may not, bring about - something less probable than financial need. As a result, the American private contract assumes a high degree of flexibility that is suited to deal with crises as they arise. Compared with the Japanese protective support, this approach demands greater resilience and independence from the elderly individual. The history of immigration, frequent job changes, and family transitions all contribute to the embracement of uncertainty. The American preference for free choice also creates a greater willingness to leave matters undecided. Consequently, the wiser strategy to deal with the unpredictable future is to build resistance to adversity. This approach, embedded as it is in the cultural history of the United States, has important consequences for the private contract; planning as the Japanese do to forestall adversity will not do. The elderly themselves perceive their support resources as diverse, open, and negotiable. The diffused network of the elderly outside the household described in Chapter 4 and in this chapter shows that the American elderly have more extensive support resources than their Japanese counterparts. Such an arrangement reduces their dependence on one resource at a given time. In the long run, however, this triangulated network can run into a problem, because the longterm availability of the primary member - the spouse - is limited. When reciprocal obligations are voluntary, they are also changeable and relatively unstable. As the following case studies show, the American elderly face different choices to supplement or "replace" the spouse when the turning point arrives. These individuals are chosen for their diversity - in age, gender, living arrangement, and ethnicity - to offer an examination of the wide range of circumstances found in the community.

104

The American Viewpoint VOICES FROM WEST HAVEN

Helen Slomkowski (65), Homemaker Helen has been widowed for 7 years; her husband was a presser at a large local garment manufacturer. She is the youngest of seven siblings, born and brought up on the same site where she lives today. She now lives alone in a relatively large house of five rooms, but next door is an assortment of relatives and family members. Her household is lively. On each of three separate and random calls by interviewers, Helen was in the midst of groups of visitors - her children, relatives, or friends. The ease and spontaneity characterizing these interactions showed the close nature of the relationship between Helen and her family. All of her four daughters are married and work full- or parttime in blue-collar or clerical jobs. They move in and out of Helen's house more than once a week for meals, chores, and general maintenance such as plumbing, carpentry, electrical wiring, and car repair (yes, they are women!). They have keys to this house and enter freely, and Helen has her daughters' house keys. In her fifties, Helen worked for 6 years in the meat-packer in New Haven. Otherwise, she has been a homemaker, raising children and managing a household that, in essence, has included more than her nuclear family unit. Helen has had a long history of medical problems heart attack, cancer of the uterus, arthritis, high blood pressure, and backache. But her physical functioning, she reported, was only somewhat diminished for walking long distances, stooping, or handling small objects. At the time of the interview, her annual income was $8,500 and she also received assistance for her heating bills (Low Cost Fuel Assistance Program) from the city. She is a second-generation American of Polish descent. This is the Bartkowski's. My maiden name was Bartkowski. And it was the Bartkowski homestead here - an old farmhouse. . . . When my father came from Europe, and, well, when he got a few pennies together, he bought this farm. And

105

The Gift of Generations that's where the big white house stands. . . . When [my father] met my mother, he had this place already, well, they just had a little shack.. . . And I understand his older brother gradually brought the whole family over. One [of my daughters] lives right in my backyard. . . . I had a brother that lived over there [in the other house] and my sister-in-law still lives there. Right now I have a brother and his wife, Ann, living next door to me. And over here, that's my husband's brother. At one time one of my brothers lived over there, and they moved to East Haven. Well, over there my uncle decided that he would make the papers out and give this to me.. . . But we also had an agreement that we would pay him eleven dollars - isn't that ridiculous? But we weren't making much money either - we were to pay this [sum] for the rest of our lives. And this way he would be sure that he had an income. [My uncle] was never sick, but, oh, I always used to make stuff for him - cakes, breads, cookies, pies, and stuff like that. He loved potato pancakes - I'd always make a batch of them and bring them over to him. . . . I used to go over there and clean his house for him every Saturday. Then my mother did the washing and ironing for him. It was nice, it was close knit.. .. You see, the reason why we can have it and hold it is, if there is an argument, we don't stay mad. I mean, that's it - cut and dried. That's the end of it. And we really do get along. There is genuine affection. And yet we don't paw over each other, and we do not stick our noses in each others' business. Oh, I get to see [my daughters] often. One lives in Guilford about thirty to forty minutes away. And one lives in North Haven. One lives in Hamden, and another in my backyard. All the work that's been done around here has been done by my girls! The painting, the carpentry, plumbing! They [also] took a window out of the bedroom - for an air conditioner. It was a Christmas gift. The girls still stayed at home - they all lived here [until they got married].. .. [My youngest daughter] got married five 106

The American Viewpoint years ago. The lease was up - she called me up and said, "Ma, can we move in with you? Can we - so we can save some money?" So she moved in here - my husband had passed away - so she was here! They weren't here very long and, of course, they were saving their money. Then, they were talking about [the property next door]. . . . I told them "if you want it, I'll help you out. If it's what you want, now is the time to get it before [prices] go up any higher." They bought it, and they were only here a year. . . . They paid me. It didn't take them long. Within a year they paid me. [My son-in-law is] a machinist - he has an electric repair shop. It's his own business. She works for the utility company and they really earn good money there. It was a pleasure having them live here. I was afraid when they wanted to come and live here. You know, when they wanted to come and live with me I was afraid of it. I really was. .. . [When] she called me up on the phone and said, "I've got a proposition for you," well, I'm telling you I was such a wreck! I was such a wreck that night and the next day. Well, I had gotten used to being by myself and I liked it. And I thought, gee, couples should be by themselves.... I like to see them on their own. I'd rather see them on their own, because I think couples should be by themselves. But I truly enjoyed having them here - it was a pleasure. Rich [son-in-law] would come home, smile on his face, "Hi, Mom!" He's a real good-natured fellow. "Hello, Mom!" - he would always be happy. I would do the cooking, and if I didn't feel up to it, they would do it. I mean, it was almost like there was no question of it. I've always said that as long as I had to have one sex, either girls or boys, I'm glad it was all girls rather than all boys. I truly am.. . . Friends would say, "My God, you get more work out of your girls than I get out of my boys!" You can't expect the kids over at the drop of the pin. And I think girls drop the pin faster and do it than the boy will. The boy has got to do 107

The Gift of Generations things for his wife - to me I think the wife comes first, and then the mother - as important as the mother is. I sit down and crochet, I read, and in the evening I put the TV on. A long time after my husband died . . . if I wanted some company, I'd whip up some supper and have my brother and sister-in-law over, but as time went on it got less and less.. . . When my husband died, I would have gone out of my mind if I didn't crochet. My husband had cancer. He was very sick and we had a lot of medical bills .. . and so I went to work. We paid up. . . . He was hospitalized, yes. When they operated on him, they didn't think he was coming through it - he was so bad. . . . It was the year [one of my daughters] got married. He walked her down the aisle, and I'm telling you, he was really thin, oh, so thin. . . . [My husband and I] used to go out to Wallingford - the open theater there. We used to go out there, go out to eat and entertain. . . . No, I don't miss it. Because I go with the ladies. I don't go too often anyway.... You've got to do something a little more exciting than some crocheting! With friends, we talk mostly about our kids, clothes, about different places, and do you know a good place to e a t . . . . They have a group here [at the senior center] that do linedancing. They're fantastic! I went to the Christmas dinner. We go to a few of those things. They have a lot of stuff that goes on down there you know... . But we don't have much time to go down there - we've got our own circle. Oh, there were two couples we used to play cards with Saturday nights.. . . We'd talk and laugh and joke and really have a nice evening together. I tell you, when my husband died, that was the end of those couples. It is. I never thought it would happen and it was. Elderly housing - 1 don't think I could live that way, living like this all my life. I think I'd get claustrophobia. . . . I think [nursing homes are] for people who need them. I don't see myself there. I hope I never have to, but I don't think of myself as being above it. 108

The American Viewpoint Helen's life revolves around the Bartkowski homestead. Her family and kin are here, and they also act as her neighbors, friends, confidantes, and caretakers. This type of living arrangement is not typical in West Haven, but Helen's problems as an elderly widow living alone in ill health are. Helen has undergone a major life transition in recent years - from a wife to a widow. The transition involved not only a change in living arrangement, but also her support system. She has moved from being part of a husband-wife team in a "couple culture" to being on her own with a new group, a new support network. She has lost her husband, but in many ways others have taken his place: married daughters, relatives, and peers. In Helen's case, her informal network was also readily available when she became ill and widowed, in the immediate vicinity of her homestead. Helen's position at the receiving end of informal care, however, is not a straightforward case of "entitlement" as in Japan. Her security derives from the affinity in the relationships, not structural obligations. Furthermore, she is self-sufficient except for specific needs that require support of her daughters, relatives, and friends. Maintenance of the house is one such problem; bureaucratic matters such as applying for public fuel assistance is another. Helen's economic situation also illustrates the mixture of independence and dependence in her life. Helen remains financially independent of her children and relatives through her social security benefits and home ownership. Although Helen's income was low enough to qualify her for fuel assistance, it was her income and she could count on it. The parent and children are financially interdependent in special circumstances - Helen's daughter moved in with her to save for a down payment on her home - but such interdependencies are also resolved at the earliest opportunity. As much as Helen relies emotionally on her children and as much as they in turn invite her and call her frequently, Helen's main companions are her peer friends (two of them cousins, all of them widows). It is with them that she regularly spends the day. The breadth of the network is such that Helen refuses to single out one person as the confidante. Helen's support network of children, 109

The Gift of Generations relatives, and friends is far more diffuse than any we have seen in Odawara. The reciprocity norms of the informal network are also more flexible and are not taken for granted. Where mutual obligations are diffused, the responsibility for well-being rests clearly with the individual. Helen's sense of security must be understood in this context of economic independence and diffused obligations with children, relatives, and friends. Security is only complete if both tiers of support are available for different types of need. Theresa Dunn (84), Former Factory Worker Theresa was married for 50 years to a barber with whom she moved to West Haven during the Depression. In West Haven she worked at a large gun factory while raising five children - three sons and two daughters. Soon after her husband died, Theresa moved into a public housing unit for the elderly along the shoreline of West Haven. All her children live in West Haven and call her at least once a week. Theresa has high blood pressure and started her bout with arthritis two years ago. She reports relatively few physical disabilities, but her daily activities are restricted to preparing meals, reading the paper, and watching television. She goes out of the housing complex only once a week, to the hairdresser. She reports that she has no close friends or confidantes; apart from her immediate family, she has little contact with the outside world. Her annual income from Social Security was $3,500 at the time of the interview, and she also receives financial help from her children. Theresa is a second-generation American of Irish descent. I wasn't born in Connecticut. I was born in New York State. But I came to West Haven after the war, because my husband was in the war.. .. We had the Depression, and he had a job over here so we came here. We settled here. So that's the way it was. It's been about fifty-one years that I've lived in Connecticut.... I've been here [in the elderly public housing] nine years. See, I became a widow. Then my boys were home. . . . So that's the way it was, you know - each picked up his own life. 110

The American Viewpoint This [building] was being built and my income was that I could come here. Because I was alone then, see, I was. [My sons] were married and they had their responsibilities, so and this for me is just perfect. Yes, it is. It's perfect because of my income and [medical attention]. I'm very grateful so far. It all depends, you know, there's a lot of things going on, you know, coming here - but so far it hasn't bothered me too much. I'm just living day to day, that's all. I don't make no more plans. I used to [participate in the social activities of the housing project]. But I find now - well I'm on my own, I take care of my own. I need to rest in the afternoon and, so - I'm very contented. Years ago I was very active, but as I've grown older, well, I'm eighty-four, so I can't be a big sport.... Health? There isn't any of us that escape anything, you know, we all have to have that little something. Don't you think so? I do. . . . I've got a cold - you can notice my voice. I had it kind of bad. Now I notice, as I'm getting older - it hits me more. But not severe. . .. Look at the people in walkers, with canes. . . . I try to do what I can. That's all... . I have a late breakfast, and I eat around one o'clock. I do my own cooking. So I think I have enough to keep me busy. And then I like to read, you know. And I do watch television a little bit. I've become very tired of some of it. Because it's not for my age, you know. I watch what's best for me - news and things. No, I don't go downstairs [to dining hall] to eat. The reason I don't is because they serve early. I eat late in the morning. So I like what I'm doing. Not everybody goes down. It depends on how you plan your meals. I think we're fortunate to have things like that. So we can see what's going on. And it's nice to see the relationship. Because, life is short. I needed something like this. I wanted a place where I met people more, and where I didn't have so much cleaning to do. You know, you're living in a place - you've got to take care of i t . . . . Most of the people living here . .. they've had some years behind them. I don't know them enough to know how 111

The Gift of Generations old they are. I meet people every day. When I go down to get my paper, check my mail. And that's enough for me. Close friends here? No, I wouldn't say [so]. The only one that I was very close with was a woman that got sick. And that was it. So now, I have a couple of neighbors that drop in now and again but they are coming and going, s o . . . . We're just nice to each other. Let's say we're thoughtful of each other. So that's all I do. The only club that I belong to is the Senior Citizen and my church. So, I have enough, you know. I'm never, never lonely. No, I'm never lonely. I guess it's because I've had such a good full life that I'm glad to be quiet now. For Thanksgiving I was at my son's home. He lives in West Haven. Yes, he's married, has three children. See, I have three sons. And we get together at times, when there's something. So it makes a nice family together. I'm a great-grandmother.. . . My oldest one is my oldest's son - he's going into his third [year]. And the other one - he's just over his first year. I see them not too much. But I'll be seeing them I hope, you know, for Christmas. And you look forward to it. I don't stay overnight anywhere. I come home right here.... they make sure that I get home safely and everything. But I think, just keep in touch with your family, that's all you need. And don't wait too long to give a call now and then. My children are - fair, you know. But of course, they're busy too. Seeing them more often? No, not exactly. Because, see, I don't think I'm the type that's wanting someone around me. I think maybe I had a full life years ago - 1 don't need all that attention now. Except when I need them. I have two daughters, and they take me if I want to go somewhere which is very little, because they are both busy themselves. No, they don't work .. . but they're very good to me, they help me in some ways.... I have a sister up in Meriden. .. . She's younger than I am. We never lose contact. We always know how each other are. Because, we're the only two people. 112

The American Viewpoint I don't go downtown alone anymore. I never was a big one [for shopping] - when you don't have the income anymore. I have what I need. You know the prices.. . . Well, actually I get tired. . . . I used to love going to Malley's to buy things. . . . But that's all right. I think I'm very lucky. The only important thing is take care - that's all. Take care of it. . . . Doctors? Well, it all depends - I'd say twice a year. My daughter takes me. Well, her husband drives and takes me. So I don't have to worry about any of those things. In other words, I'm very fortunate - let's put it that way. I'm here nine years when they first completed it, and if the good Lord leaves me for nine more years - that would be great, wouldn't it? But I don't know.... No, I don't like [the idea of nursing homes]. Not too much.... Well of course some people have to g o . . . . Of course I don't like to say anything about them. For someone of Theresa's age, the informal network often narrows down from family and friends to just family. Peers (including spouse) become increasingly undependable as companions with the onset of illnesses, and are lost in the event of death. Givers and receivers, however, continue to forge informal support according to contingencies despite shrinking networks. Theresa's ambivalence in wanting to see and go out with her children, and in wanting to respect their independence by not burdening them, is also common among the elderly living alone in West Haven. As the desire for independence and the desire for support are at odds, however, Theresa resigns herself to the status quo, without asking for more help. Theresa's sense of security, however, is essentially intact. Her daily maintenance is guaranteed by some family assistance and the city's housing program. Her room is filled wall-to-wall with pictures of her children and grandchildren - a proxy presence. She also has daily contact with people in the building and can regulate it according to how she feels on that day. What Theresa has in her room may seem little to some observers; but her relative sense of well-being is warranted because, strictly speaking, her needs are being met. 113

The Gift of Generations Theresa's wish to remain in the housing project for another 9 years did not come true. Seven months after the interview, she broke her hip and was hospitalized at St. Raphael's Hospital in New Haven. Soon discharged, she entered a nursing home in West Haven 10 minutes away from the housing project. Her children gave up her apartment at the housing project, and her belongings were scattered among them. Whatever she needed at the nursing home was brought over to her by her children on their visits. According to one of her daughters and the social worker at the nursing home, Theresa has regained her cognitive function, which became unstable immediately after she went to the nursing home. Her records show repeated hospitalizations over the past 2 year: anemia, congestive heart failure, and cancer of the colon. She did not like the idea of going to a nursing home, but it is now unlikely that Theresa will return to living on her own. Stella Richards (72), Former Seamstress and House Guardian Stella was born and raised in Washington, D.C., in a large African American family of 10 siblings and four cousins. She moved to Connecticut when she married, and lived in Fairfield, Stratford, and Bridgeport as a self-employed seamstress. Stella separated from her husband, who owned his delivery business, when she was 43 years old. The couple had an adopted daughter (Ellen) who then went off to school. After the separation, Stella worked as a live-in house guardian for 20 years, raising a white child (Chris) whom she also calls her "adopted daughter." Since her move to West Haven 8 years ago, she has been very active in senior citizens' affairs, both as a volunteer and as a paid parttime aide at a local community center. She puts in 4 hours every day at the community center and is active as a volunteer at her Protestant church and the Red Cross. She is also a certified volunteer inspector of one of the West Haven convalescent homes. She goes to the local state college twice a week to learn about social work. In her living room she displays an "Outstanding Senior Citizen Award" from former Connecticut Governor Grasso, commending her for her volunteer work. She lives in a two-room apartment in an (age-integrated) housing project run by the West Haven Housing Authority, and she does 114

The American Viewpoint not wish to disclose her income. Stella has a severe case of arthritic pain and also high blood pressure. Her functional disability score was higher than the average West Havener in the sample. She reported that she could not handle large or heavy objects, stoop, or crouch. She does not go out of the house when it rains or snows, for fear of slipping and breaking her hip. When I was a girl, principles and values meant much more than money and power. But today, as I grow older, I can see that money and power have taken over . .. and principles and values are going down. .. . After the war, everybody made a tremendous amount of money. .. . They became very rich. When you become very rich . . . [you] don't care what kind of principles you have. . . . If people had more values, I think they would have been a little more loving and caring about their relatives . . . all they can build up is hate and distrust.. . . They don't believe in anything, and people become so bitter. . .. You've got to be yourself. I said, whatever you are, people must accept you on your own merits - not because [of] what they want you to be, or what they can get you to be, or what they can get out of you... . People will have to accept me for what I am - or they don't have to accept me at a l l . . . . I accept people I may not approve of what they do, I may not like their values, I may not like their moral standards - but, that's not my problem. When you move into a neighborhood - they [neighbors] come here, they welcome me - and you let them know you're here. But you're occupied to the extent that you do not have time for socializing, for coffee, or going in and out of their home. No, I never do that.. . . For me, if you get too familiar with them, then you begin to have a little problem. They take you for granted. They do things because you're so familiar. .. . Lending? No, now it's too dangerous. I don't actually do it. Never - you cannot tell people your problems. Because, they cannot keep it. They have close friends too. They're talking to their close friends. And when you hear it, it's not the 115

The Gift of Generations same. I guess I'm mostly a private person. And as I grow older, I grow more independent and I like quietness - peace. I wouldn't be working if I could.. .. There's many times I want to give up. But I won't because as long as I can go, I will. But sometimes, it's pretty strenuous on a person.. . . You can come down just as fast as you go up. And it depends on the day. It depends, for me, [on] what I eat and how well my food digests. Sometimes I get up in the morning, [and] I feel very sluggish. When I'm sluggish, I have no energy. And so I go to work and I come back home -just break down. I don't care . .. how most people look at you and say, oh gee, you don't look that old, and you've got a lot of energy and a lot of this and a lot of that. I think when you reach a certain age, a lot of us push ourselves. But it's not easy, not easy. And some people push themselves, because they don't want to admit their age. When you reach a certain age. . . . when you break down, it's sometimes irreparable. But you just have to. There's no alternative.. .. I'm not ever going to sit and rock myself away. I'm going to be active in something. I may not be able to hold a job five days a week [but] I'm certainly not going to rock myself to death. No, I wouldn't want to [live with adopted child Chris]. She'd want me to When I get all sick? I don't think I'll be around that long. I may have to go to the hospital for a little while, but I don't think I'll be around. I don't think so. I don't have that kind of feeling. I think - my coming and going - 1 don't think I'd be in need. And secondly, my help is coming from no one but me. I usually could depend, if anything happened, on my sisters. But my sisters, all of them, are very old and not too happy themselves. And my adopted daughter Ellen, she has her own family, she lost her husband and [has] her own family to take care of. They don't have to ask me for nothing, and I don't have to ask them for nothing.... The only thing I can think of now - that's why I'm working - [is] trying not to put myself in the position that I have to call on 116

The American Viewpoint somebody because I can't pay my electric bill, or can't pay my telephone bill. If they come, I'd be glad. But I don't have that urge that I want them - not yet. I don't even care about their coming very often. They need to be with their own peers.. . . She used to come up quite often, and I said, Chris . . . you can't waste so much time fooling around with m e . . . . I said, I just want you to live independently. I think it's better for the children, because, you see, I was so devoted to my mother and it hurt me. . . . I think that if you are living apart, if anything should happen to each other, you can accept it better. If I had to have immediate attention, it would have to be some of my relatives that could get to me quickly. . . . I think I would call Chris, because she's right here [in Connecticut]. And then the next person, if I didn't get Chris - it'd be my sisters.. .. Friends? I suppose I could call Mary - she lives up on Second Avenue in West Haven - she would come up. She's around my age, I guess, and she's a nurse's aid. She does practical nursing. I could die sudden - and I said, but one thing I do know. Whatever happened to me, my daughter will be here before I leave. And that's one thing I know. And I don't worry about it anymore. I used to. I'd think about it. I said if you have faith . .. have a positive attitude. I simply can't sit down and think about the worst thing that could happen. You think about the best thing that could happen .. . and I want to think positive. I said, it's just not going to happen that way. Unlike Helen or Theresa, Stella represents a case of an elderly person whose needs are entirely unmet. Like Dorothy in Chapter 1, Stella endures an emotional isolation that expresses itself in her distrust of the world around her. Her depression and isolation are all the more striking when we consider her busy schedule and activities. Her sense of bitterness was not detectable at all in earlier meetings with her at formal gatherings. For Stella, the changing world represents a declining order - in morality, safety, quality of life, and in her own health. At the same time, there is a strong sense of vitality in her way of life, 117

The Gift of Generations in her positive attitude toward adversity. Her denial of current and future vulnerability is part and parcel of this defiant attitude; yet it does not alleviate her fear of growing old. Stella's divorce and biological childlessness are significant factors in developing this sense of self-reliance. In times of need, she has been able to turn to her family of origin in the past for support. This informal network of relatives, however, is shrinking in size and dependability. She is ambivalent in her desire at once to depend and not depend on her adopted children, and chooses to embrace her isolation. Joining forces with Ellen, who is also struggling without a husband, is a possibility, but their relationship is strained. Class and race stand in the way of forging a closer alliance with Chris, even though Chris has more resources to support Stella than Ellen does. The sadness of Stella's choice is that, in fact, there is no choice in the true sense. Stella is also ambivalent in her desire to continue her work. I suspect a financial need, given her residence in a public housing unit and the occupations she has held in the past. Yet, financial independence has become all the more important to her now that the sibling support network is dwindling. In a society where the conjugal partner gives primary support, its absence demands a penalty in financial security, especially for women and minorities in old age. We will now turn to case studies of men who have likewise adjusted to widowhood and retirement. The theme of independence is also salient for them, but it is nuanced somewhat differently. Ernest McCarthy (79), Former Sales Clerk Ernest has spent his entire life in the Greater New Haven region. Born and raised in Woodbridge, he worked and lived in New Haven until moving to West Haven in 1944. Ernest and his wife moved into a tworoom apartment in the West Haven elderly public housing unit after being on the waiting list for 5 years. He has continued to live in the same apartment since his wife's death, 6 years ago. Ernest spent most of his working career as a salesman in a retail cigar store. Because this store went into bankruptcy and he was only compensated by a limited lump-sum payment, he found himself still in need of a stable income 118

The American Viewpoint after he reached retirement age. Moving into the low-rent public housing, he reports, finally allowed him to stop working at age 70. In the housing complex, he uses a wide range of social services to meet his daily needs. Ernest has a daughter who lives within several blocks, and two siblings in West Haven. He relies on these family members for financial, instrumental, and emotional support. His friends are those who live in the housing project. Ernest suffered a heart attack 5 years ago. He was mildly disabled as a result of this condition and arthritis, and he could not carry out heavy household chores. His income from social security at the time we met was $6,000. He is a second-generation American of Irish descent. I had no grandparents in this country. My mother and father came over from Ireland. So I never knew either [side] of my grandparents. [But] I had a lot of aunts and uncles. . . . My father died when he was about sixty, and I got married right after he died. My mother died when she was seventy, so I wasn't living home [anymore] - I was living with my wife. My mother lived with my two sisters and my brother. Retirement? I like it. Well, I like it because I definitely couldn't, I just couldn't work anymore. After all, I'm going on eighty. I worked for over fifty years and it was time. . . . I retired at sixty-five, then worked part-time as a guard up in the mall. [I went to part-time work] because I needed the money. Sure, I needed the money so I was glad to get it, in fact. . . . And then this place [elderly public housing] opened up nine years ago. I retired ever since I came in here. . . . I had to get out because you're only permitted to make so much money a year on the social security. . . . I just couldn't see that. I worked in a cigar store for thirty years before that. And before that I worked in a shop - 1 learned the toolmaking business. [But] I got out around '22 -jobs were scarce. This [cigar store] job opened up in 1924 and I stayed there for thirty years till '54 when the company went bankrupt - and then I was out 119

The Gift of Generations of that. Then I worked in Pratt & Whitney's as a guard for twelve and a half years. And I retired from there. [At the cigar store] I was in sales.... When I went in there in 1924, you very seldom saw women [customers]. You see, years ago when I first went in, the average men smoked cigars. Cigars, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco - cigarettes were minor items.... But gradually the cigarette sales came up, the cigar sales went down.... There was no money in cigarettes. The margin of profit was too small. We were selling cigarettes for, at that time, twenty cents a pack. And it just couldn't carry the load. So the company eventually went into bankruptcy. So that's it. I worked right in the center of the city, we had three stores met everybody. In those days, the average men worked in factories - had to be at work at seven o'clock in the morning. So they had to get off the trolley cars - that was before they had automobiles - they'd run in our store and buy a paper and tobacco. You got to meet an awful lot of people. And I really enjoyed it. . . . But as you get older, you know, you don't get a kick out of them anymore. There was no such thing as a five-day week or forty-hour week then. You had to work Saturdays, Sundays, too. Particularly when I got transferred from one store to another... there were only two men working there. And you had to work every day - for two years without a day off. So that wasn't so good. But when you're young you don't mind that.... [The young people today] don't know how well off they are, compared with years ago. Years ago, it was terrible. In the factories they worked at least sixty hours a week. Very few had such a thing as a pension, vacations.... No, I very seldom see any of the old fellows. Well, I lived in New Haven before I moved to West Haven - 1 very rarely run into any of them. Most of them aren't even around any more. Most of them have died. Sure, that's what it is. [I've been living here] nine years - ever since the place opened.... Oh, it's much cheaper. Oh yes, definitely. I had retired, and of course I wasn't making the money, and I was very glad to have the opportunity to come down here. So I 120

The American Viewpoint moved.. .. My wife lived here [with me] for about three years until she died. . . . I applied for public housing before this place was even built - before it was even thought of. I get up around half past eight. I very rarely stay in the house. Well, at least I go down to the community room to play cards. We play cards, our principal activity . . . with four or five other men. . . . Once in a while we'll have some [events] down in the community room. I generally attend.. . . I never stay inside here all day. I couldn't do that. . . . And we have a noontime lunch down there - and I go down there . . . I eat there noontime, five days a week. Saturdays and Sundays, you don't have it. Holidays you don't either.... I eat here [in my apartment] in the evenings and in the morning.. . . My cooking? No, I'm terrible. I never did learn .. . bacon and eggs. No, in the morning I have cereal. Sometimes I make toast, a muffin or something. It all depends - usually I don't feel like eating.. . . When my wife was here, I ate my three meals here. . . . On Saturdays and Sundays - well, sometimes I go down to my daughter's house, and sometimes I eat there. Once in a while, with a couple of friends I have here, we go around various parts of the state to a restaurant, you know. I have a daughter and a son-in-law and three grandchildren. They're in West Haven. One of my grandchildren is married and has a child. In other words, I'm a great-grandfather. For Christmas, I'm going to be at my daughter's house. . . . I might stay over but I doubt it. . . . No, I haven't a car. My son-in-law comes after me. I always like to go down to my daughter's house to see my grandchildren.... I see them - oh, nearly every week. Possibly every week. It all depends on the season. [In the] summertime, they got a boat and you don't see them... . The closest person is my daughter.... In a crisis, I would turn to my daughter. Although I think I could also count on either one of my sisters or my brother. In fact, I know I could because I've had it offered to me, you know. Thank God I didn't need it. But it was nice to know it was there if I did, you know what I mean. 121

The Gift of Generations [My wife] died of cancer. She was laid up for about a year and a half before she died. She was here - she was in and out of the hospital, too. She was going up to [the hospital] nearly every day - to get radiation and all that stuff It was very rough That's a tough way to die. My mother and father both died of cancer.... I'm definitely afraid of it. Oh - that's something one thing I am afraid of. . . . You see so much of it, you know. At times it's depressing. It is depressing. Because you know somebody for a long time, you like him, and something happens to him. It's bound to affect you, you know what I mean. So . . . A lot of [residents] have died in the nine years. They're moving, possibly on an average of one a month or more than that - there's been quite a turnover since I moved here.. .. You see many of them die too, you know. If they're too bad, they can't stay here - they got to go to a nursing home. You got to be able to take care of yourself, you know.... Oh, people end up in the nursing home, oh surely. Go to live with children? - no, that's rare. Years ago that's the way it used to be. Before you had those housing projects and social security. You had no choice. Either the poorhouse or go live with your daughter. Nowadays, as far as I can see, very few people live with their children. They'd rather be in a place like this than go to a nursing home or live with their children. . . . You talk to a lot of them who could go to live with their families, but they want to be independent - as long as they can take care of themselves. Because they've been that way all their lives - they don't want to be dependent on anybody. Nursing homes - no, I don't want any part of them. No. It's not the same as being your own boss. In fact, I don't want to go live with my daughter - 1 want to be by myself. I want to do what I want to do, and that's it. You know, so you're boss and nobody bothers you and you don't bother anybody else, so . . . I've never heard from anyone yet a good word for a nursing home. I was just talking about that with a fellow who . .. just got out of one. I was asking him how it was. Oh, ho - what he 122

The American Viewpoint said about nursing homes - they give you spaghetti to eat every day. He didn't like it at all. And I was talking to another woman . . . and she says that if you want to have anything done you got to tip them. She's in a wheelchair - there's nobody to do anything for you unless you pay. . . . You're restricted, you know. I don't want to have somebody to give me a pass to go out. . . . As long as I'm able to get around, I'll never go to a nursing home. Services for the elderly? Oh, it's very good. . . . I use transportation services sometimes if I'm going to the doctor. You call up a day ahead of time, and they'll take you to the doctor. They have a bookmobile that comes around every Monday afternoon. They have all the books . . . in large print. It's very convenient. . . . All the comforts of home. I could always read up until the past six months - [but] my eyes are going bad. So I'm thankful I have the large print. At least I can read.. .. Most books there I read forty or fifty years ago already. But I enjoyed it then, I enjoy it this time.. .. You know, I was thinking of an answer to one of the questions that I put to the other [survey interviewer, who had visited earlier]. Did I consider myself a "success" or a "failure"? And without thinking - 1 didn't give it any thought - 1 said a "failure." But I thought of it afterwards - what is a definition of a "failure"? How would you define it? And I got to think of it. Now, just because a person hasn't a lot of money that doesn't mean he's a failure. Not that I'm a "success" by any means. But I'm no "failure" either. You know, I'm an intermediate - 1 don't know what word to use - you know, an average person. Because, I said, if I'm a "failure," ninety-five percent of the people in this country are "failures." After all, I never did accumulate a lot of money. And I never owned a lot of worldly goods or property or anything like that. But I tried to live a decent life. And I brought up a family. And I said, the world isn't any worse off because I've lived in it. And then I said, maybe I shouldn't have put down "failure." 123

The Gift of Generations Ernest represents a male counterpart to Theresa Dunn. They live in the same public housing unit in West Haven, and their life situations are similar. Theresa and Ernest are both widowed, and both have low incomes and health problems; in this they are like many others in the housing unit. Ernest, however, uses the resources available in the housing project to their fullest extent, from daily meals and health care to entertainment and peer companionship. Since he has no significant pension or savings to supplement his social security income, the social services are a welcome contribution to his financial security. Public housing residents are not immune from a sense of stigma, from what is tantamount to a declaration of poverty; yet the economic self-sufficiency made possible by the subsidized housing improves their sense of security. Financial and physical independence from his only daughter seems to be an important element of this sense of security, because Ernest sees filial support as dependence, not reciprocity. At the same time, it is evident that Ernest's daughter and relatives contribute significantly to his emotional well-being, as he takes stock of his past and confronts his own mortality. Ernest's new network of friends in the housing project has largely replaced old friends, who were lost through his job transitions, the move to West Haven, and their deaths. These new friends now make up for the companionship his wife no longer provides, and that which his daughter is not always able to give. Yet the most important annual festivities are always shared with his daughter's family, and for those occasions, her nuclear family becomes an extended family for him. The combination of formal support and informal support seems to balance evenly in Ernest McCarthy's case. As a personal preference, Ernest wants neither to live with his daughter nor to go to a nursing home, even if his health deteriorates. In the event of ill health, a similar combination of care resources and nursing home facilities are likely to be available for him. Recognizing this reality is not something he takes to easily. Ernest feels he has now earned his reprieve; with social security, subsidized housing, and free leisure after a lifetime of hard work, he would prefer to postpone

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The American Viewpoint thinking about what lies ahead. Reflecting on future difficulties does not change the reality in any case.

Leonard Marcucci (70), Former Factory Worker Leonard has been living in a three-generation household for the last 10 years. He lives with his daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter in a six-room family house in the residential area of West Haven adjacent to New Haven. He has been a widower for 18 years, and his only daughter remained in the Marcucci household after her marriage. Leonard worked in a newspaper factory before retirement, and he was very active in its union for many years. Since retirement, he has shifted his attention to senior citizen advocacy in New Haven and West Haven. He holds prominent positions in several city committees that deal with policy making for the elderly. He also helps the elderly as a volunteer and offers his time for the community center and his church. Leonard had no physical ailment that hindered him in these activities. He keeps up with a handicraft hobby that he has had since his youth. Leonard was born and brought up in the New Haven metropolitan area and has lived in West Haven for 29 years. He is a second-generation American of Italian descent. My grandparents - 1 never saw them. They were born in Europe. But I was with my uncles - living together. My father had five brothers and they were all living [with us]. My mother was taking care of them. She was the only woman in the household - six men and three children. You see, they came from the other side - and naturally the first place they went was to their family. That was my father. He was the oldest brother - so they stayed with him. He had five rooms, I remember. Four of them were bedrooms. The kitchen was the recreation room, the dining room, everything. . .. One at a time, they met a woman, they got married.. . . that's how we separated. But still, when we were older, we had friends and the friends used to come in the 125

The Gift of Generations house. That house was always rolling. My mother was a wonderful woman.. . . We never had the door closed. We used to help one another - that's how we were brought up. I worked in a newspaper factory as a printer, yes. . . . As a matter of fact, I was the union president for twenty years . . . very busy. You've got to go on a picket line, and meetings, go visiting the shops. . . . So, I was always busy... . I joined [the Senior Council] right after retirement. .. . [As union president] I was involved with people. I said, well, when I retire, what am I going to do? I still want to be involved with people.... So they asked me to join the council. [This was] about five years ago. . . . So, I was always busy. I didn't realize it, you know - now I'm getting a little older, you know - it seems to be catching up with me. . . . But I still have a lot of things to do for these girls.. . . It's all voluntary - no paying job. When you're a volunteer, you're free. You haven't got no boss over you. If it's a paid job, you've got a boss over you. Elderly people living alone - 1 feel very passionate about them. Are they prepared for it? No, it's not true - it's not true.... I drive for the church with my own car to pick up these people at their homes or at elderly housing, convalescent homes. We take them to church there and they say a mass, then we have a movie. Those people, if they don't want to come out, they wouldn't. But they come out. And they enjoy the few hours there. That's what the next project is going to be here. Seniors keep them busy. They always want to do something. That's how it is. When you visit these people you get to see them they want to be involved. But you've got to get somebody to get them out, in a nice way - convincingly. Gives you a nice feeling too, that you're doing something. I have a philosophy: kindness, humanity, and humility. I always stick to that. Every time that there's something to do for the seniors, I do it. And I won't hesitate in doing it. Even if it takes me out of my way. 126

The American Viewpoint I also like to be involved with the children. That's why I make these [crafts] here. I had another class with one of the schools here in the neighborhood. I started them off with the clowns . . . and they did wonderful. I showed them how to cut it, hold the parts together.. .. Another woman now wants me to go show it to her club in East Haven.... On Monday night I'm going there. My grandchild - she drew a picture. She went to the contest and won third prize in her class . . . so, she's following in my footsteps! Just like with my uncles, once they got married, having their own families - we see them just on holidays. That's how it happens with friends. Still trying to retain those old friends - but then you have to make new friends too. That's what's happening now. I have my old friends at the union, and I start going to the seniors - making these other new friends. And so, I still see some of the old in the industry but I don't see them as often as I did. Now I'm involved with the senior citizens; I see these people more often. I keep going that way. I think I have [many contacts]. I think I have too many sometimes, you know - getting a little tired of going, going, and going. Well, but as long as my health passes, I'm going to continue. You've got to keep moving. You want to be active and retain your youth. Keep moving, you'll still move. I move fast. That's my exercise. My daughter - Oh, they've been living with me. My wife passed away seventeen years ago, and I never remarried. So my daughter - she got married and she's a social worker. She married a graphic designer. They've got a little child. But they live with me. She does the house. I help her out a little bit, wherever I can. After all, the house is going to be hers anyhow. We're pretty good, father and daughter. We've been close. I eat lunch at home when my daughter's home. Of course, if she's out or her husband's o u t . . . I eat out. I'm on my own. When she's home and I'm home, she prepares a little sandwich in the afternoon.... I eat home all the time. 127

The Gift of Generations Things would have been different if I had had a son. I think everybody should have a daughter.... We have no problems. Naturally we have, you know, some other thoughts, you know - maybe you shouldn't do this, maybe you shouldn't do that. But that's in ordinary life, your life. We have a discussion - not argue. My mother trained us to do housework. "Listen boys, you got to learn." So she taught us how to wash the floors and sink, or help her hang the clothes out on the line, help my father make the money - everything pertaining to the family. . . . It came in handy when my wife was sick several times - took care of the kid, sure. So now, my daughter says, "You did enough, I'll take care of it now." I said, "Good!" Oh yes, I help her financially. The house is all paid up. Now, the taxes I still pay . . . as a senior citizen you get a discount on the assessment. Repairs and things like that maintenance of the house. It cost me fifteen hundred dollars just to paint the house. So those are expenses I pay. Then I give her an allowance every month - she doesn't need it, but still I hand it to her. I carry the insurance - for the grandchild, her, myself- it comes out of my income. I'm real frugal, you know, I want to see that money is spent for the right thing. .. . I'm old, you see - a little tight in some places. When I have a problem? Well, I don't know. I don't go to people when I have problems. I never complain. Sure, everybody has worries but sympathy - 1 don't look for that. I don't look for sympathy. I give sympathy to other people but I don't want it for myself.... that's true - 1 like to keep it for myself. Live alone? No. I want to be with people. With my grandchild running around - she's always after me, you know - so that's a companion there. . .. Alone in a house like I am in alone - it's not healthy. . . . but [I am] alone, when I'm doing my [handicraft] project. . .. [If my daughter had to move away], then I'd get married.. . . That's why I've been free so long. You know eighteen years - because I had a family and the family was a 128

The American Viewpoint unit. So that's why it never entered into my mind to get married. I think that's what kept me back from getting married again. That's my personal feeling. Nursing homes - well, if it's a need, it's all right. It's hard to take care. I can see the problem with the family too you know.. . . Oh, myself? No, I wouldn't go there. Leonard reminds us of some Odawarans we have already met. His control over his household and work (as community volunteer) is similar to that of Yasumasa's of the Nakagawa rice store, in both structure and in sentiment. The sense of continuity from the past and hope toward the future is strikingly similar in the two men. Leonard also reminds us of Teru in hinting that remaining a widower was an act of self-sacrifice. Both he and Teru claim that they have not remarried out of a desire to keep the family together. Leonard's sense of security with a supportive daughter is similar to Yukio's with his son; their private contracts are based on affinity, choice, and the anticipation shared between generations that this arrangement will continue into the long-term future. Indeed, Leonard reminds us of Odawarans because of his living arrangement in a three-generation household and his sense of entitlement to family care. Such households are rare in West Haven; and had Leonard's wife continued to live, his daughter might have chosen to live outside her parental home. The readiness with which Leonard takes to coresidence and that with which his daughter takes to filial care of a widowed father may partly derive from their Italian background, which tends to emphasize strong family cohesion, as Colleen Leahy Johnson suggests.2 Yet the three-generation household works for the Marcuccis and not for some others of the same ethnic background in West Haven - like Irene in Chapter 1 - because sharing this large house also makes economic sense as Leonard remains the financial provider.3 2 Colleen Leahy Johnson, "Interdependence and Aging in Italian Families," 102. 3 Leonard's and Irene's accounts of their ties with the younger generation refer to the relationship between second- and third-generation Italian Americans, and differ from the ties between first and second generations that Johnson describes in her study. It is likely, therefore, that assimilation is more significant among the Italian Americans

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The Gift of Generations The Marcucci household remains a variation to the norm of conjugal and single households in West Haven, and it speaks to the greater variety of informal care found in this community. Leonard's need for his family can be detected in his resistance to living on his own. Reciprocity norms between Leonard and his daughter are also clearly intact. Unlike many Japanese in a similar situation, however, Leonard is concerned with self-renewal of an active kind in his second career both as an advocate and volunteer for the elderly. "Keeping busy" is an important way of maintaining emotional independence and selfsufficiency for Leonard and many other West Haven elderly in the study; and it also seems to keep future worries at bay. In the following case studies of younger elderly West Haveners, there is currently no financial or physical need. The interviewees share a similar anticipation of impending changes in their lives. Economic independence through social security and pensions is assured, but the sense of ambiguity about anticipating the future remains. They have seen their own parents go to nursing homes, and they are witnessing the beginning of the end of their couple culture - neither of which are relevant in the Japanese cases. The spirit of mutual help in their parent-child relations is evident, yet they do not wish to become dependent on such help. They both express the fear of losing the spouse, the transition to widowhood. William Roberts (65), Former Post Office Employee William retired from his job as a post office clerk a year ago. After briefly working in the amusement park business early in his career, he joined the post office and remained there for all of his working life. As a retiree, he now spends much of his time at home with his family. He lives with his wife and four unmarried children - two daughters and two sons - in a six-room house. His oldest daughter is married and in West Haven than among Johnson's respondents, who maintained their distinct ethnic characteristics. For the assimilationist position, see Herbert M. Gans, "Symbolic Ethnicity: The Future of Ethnic Groups and Cultures in America"; Richard D. Alba, Italian Americans: Into the Twilight of Ethnicity.

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The American Viewpoint lives a block away in this lower-middle-class residential neighborhood, near the center of West Haven City. A grandchild from his oldest daughter comes to stay with William and his wife for much of the day, while the mother goes out to full-time work. The partial presence of the third generation notwithstanding, William's house is essentially a two-generation household focused around the rearing of the youngest son, aged 13. All the other children living with him have full-time jobs. William is a "novice" elderly both in age and health condition; he has no illnesses at all. He prefers not to disclose the exact amount of his income, which is essentially a government employee pension. Born and raised in Connecticut, William is a secondgeneration American of Irish descent. I was in the post office in New Haven. I used to be in the amusement park [business] and then went into the post office . . . and just retired from there about a year ago. Retirement? Good! I don't miss it. Oh, yes, I miss the people there, but they're all gone, too. It came more or less on the spur of the moment. I really didn't plan for it. I was gonna soon, b u t . . . I could have stayed. But I was sixty-five and things were getting a little tough. They rely too much on the old help, and you know, they just keep pushing, you know, on the older one - everything. The next thing you know, you got two or three jobs. The other one has nothing to do. It's time to go, you know, when they give you too much. There's no sense getting sick over it. We usually have all our friends over here for New Year's. Have a party, you know. All my friends that I worked with - a few of those. My wife's friends - they all come over and we usually have the same gang.... They're couples, so there's maybe sixteen of us. The children are out doing their own thing, you know. [My own parents] had a place to themselves, and looked after themselves... . my mother died first. Then my father about twenty years later. He was alone all that time, you know. He wouldn't come in with any of u s . . . . He fell, he 131

The Gift of Generations got hurt - and we told him to come - but he wanted to stay up in his own neighborhood. So, that's what he did. It was his own house. We used to go up to see him, and bring him down Sundays and take him back home. . .. Then he entered a nursing home. Most of the nursing homes are depressing. I mean, especially if they don't have any visitors coming to see them. Don't like them. No way. Most children don't want to see what's happening to their parents. It's tough to get old when you're alone. What can you do about it? - you know - it's tough. Services? I don't think they do enough for the old people anyway. I never did think it. This country is a rich country. The richest country in the world - and I mean they have a poor setup for the old people. That's my way of thinking. Most of them now, I mean they did a lot for the country - the ones that are here now. Some get it, some don't. There's a lack of communication somewhere. There's five children. They're all living at home - all but one. They all stayed. They even went to school around here. They didn't bother to go [out of town]. They'll probably get married, then they'll go - and that's it. But I mean I think they'll stay around. I don't think any of them will fly away or anything. Well, maybe - you never know - it depends. You don't mind as long as you can see them, you know. I mean, leaving is one thing, but going away - that's when it's tough. I don't think I would [live with married children], I mean, they have their own life - sometimes you don't fit in with them. They're going to have a party or something - you don't want to be in the way there - what are you going to do? You want to go to bed early - can't do it. There's a lot of things to consider. I mean, say you went [to live] with my daughter, you don't know how her husband is going to like it. I don't think it's going to work. There's a lot of people that are alone . .. and that makes a big difference. This way here, you still have the same house, the kids, wife, and everything. So, it's good. But when the thing comes later, well, we don't know. Of course it's gonna change, right? 132

The American Viewpoint It's tough to get old. And if your wife goes, it's going to change a whole life. [Widowed people] feel out of place. They stop going places. And that increases their depression. Senior centers - you don't find couples going to their functions. They're mostly widows and widowers. I never think of death. If it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen, right? There's no sense in getting worried and shoving yourself a little faster... . In a real crisis, I don't know who you would go to. Who would you go [to]? I wouldn't know where to go for that. I guess you'd go to your family first, you know.. .. But you don't want to burden anyone.... If they couldn't help you - 1 don't know. William's future plan is tenuous at best. His anticipation of change is based on the possible loss of his wife; his sense of security derives from her, which again attests to the importance of couples among the American elderly. Even though he is a recent retiree and is still concerned with his own nuclear family, his experience with his father's widowhood, illness, and subsequent institutionalization has given a glimpse of his own future, which he can only describe as "tough." Worrying about death, he believes, will only hasten its arrival and, by the same token, thinking about aging will only make the process less enjoyable. The model of independence in old age that William saw in his own father has socialized him to expect it for himself and also to idealize it. This idealization may not be realistic, yet William has no contingency plan beyond a vague expectation for his married daughter's support. The biggest contingency will be his wife's passing (if it should occur before his own), and its effect on his diffuse network of friends. The rule is, couples take care of couples, and singles take care of singles. This inherent instability of William's support network compared with that of Odawarans is also evident when he discusses how his unmarried children could "stay away" in the future. The norm of noninterference4 and the importance of options for the young take priority 4 Andrew J. Cherlin and Frank R. Furstenberg, Jr., The New American Grandparent: A Place in the Family, A Life Apart, 57.

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The Gift of Generations over filial responsibility. In William's view, the state, not children, has the responsibility to support him, because his generation has contributed much to the nation's growth through hard work; but it does not meet its obligations satisfactorily. His sense of resentment about aging and retirement is projected more readily to this abstract entity from which he also derives a sense of entitlement.

Ben (66) and Judith Bloomfield (66), Opticians The Bloomfields have been living in a four-room apartment in a quiet residential area of middle-class West Haven for 6 years. Ben is a calm, educated man who works full-time as an optician in Milford. His wife Judith also works part-time at the same optical store. The Bloomfields owned and operated their own optical store for many years; and recently they folded the business to become employees of this Milford store. In working life and in private life, they have a very close relationship. They have two sons, both in Connecticut, who keep in touch with them weekly or monthly. More frequently, Ben and Judith see their friends, relatives, and neighbors who are their companions for social activities. Their health problems restrict these activities in a limited way. Ben has a hernia condition that gives him some difficulty in stooping, extending his arms, and climbing stairs. Judith has a heart condition that precludes strenuous activity. When we met, the Bloomfields were in the highest income category of the questionnaire (over $15,000). They are both second-generation Jewish Americans whose parents came from Russia. Ben was born in New York, Judith in New Jersey. Ben: Retirement? Not really - I'm not inclined to retire at all. I'm physically well and able to continue full-time work, and I don't find it too demanding. I feel that retiring would be like letting go. And I fear letting go. I want to keep active as long as I possibly c a n . . . . No, not really for financial reasons - the social security provides somewhat of a blanket and it could be used to maintain oneself. I find it interesting dealing with the public in my work, so I have no inclination to just cut off work, and just take it easy. 134

The American Viewpoint Judith: On his late shifts, I work, too, at the store. So Wednesdays and Fridays I go in. Three years ago . . . his boss needed some part-time help, so he [hired me]. I'm home anyway those nights - alone. We had our own store for many years. After the kids grew up, I worked very close to him in the old store. . . . Well, it worked for us. I did the bookkeeping and I was in the front. .. and he took care of the optical business. So, we kind of never interfered with each other, and we worked very well together. .. . Mostly when he's not working, we're together. Because we want to be - like a package deal. Our marriage? It'll be thirtyfive years. It's been a great life - 1 just hope it continues. And when we go, I'd like to go together... . Ideally, I would say that in a few years from now - maybe five years - 1 would hope that he would go on social security and work part-time to supplement, so that he would have more leisure. I'd like him to have some leisure time with me before we part from each other. .. . Despite what he says, I think he needs more leisure. Ben: We were several times down in Florida where my sister lived in a community that was for the elderly. And we found it a very undesirable way of living. Judith: Hated it. Ben: We didn't like it. Judith: I never wanted to segregate myself according to age. I don't want to live in a senior citizen's apartment. I want to live where there are young people, too. Ben: We have a social life here - with family and friends.. .. [We see them] on an average of once a week. They are cousins or near relatives.... Most of them are lifelong friends. Judith: We go out. We usually have cocktails at home, and then go out to dinner - and have fun. You know, it's strictly social. Nothing else involved except that we can cry with each other, which is very important. We've had a 135

The Gift of Generations lot of tragedies in the last five years. My family particularly. . .. These two couples are really . .. very supportive. And there we have a free and easy relationship. It's a good relationship. . . . We have social activities with our neighbors.... I play mahjongg with the girls and he plays pinochle. .. . When my brother died a month ago, they all came up - very, very supportive. Ben: We find it easy to make friends - and we usually do. The ones we are friendly with are approximately our age. Judith: Nursing homes? - 1 hope I die before I have to go into one of them. That's how I feel about them. Don't like even the best of them - believe me. Ben: The mere fact of your old age takes away from the dignity of being in a home of that kind. Your independence is gone. You're dependent upon other people - to take care of you, to keep you going, to do for you the things that you've done all your life. You lose your spirit of independence.. .. Judith's mother who is now ninety-two is [in] the Jewish Home for the Aged. Judith: She had lived with my sister - but after my sister died, she came to live with us in the last five years. My sister was single, and my mother and my sister lived together. . . . She lived by herself for a while but she broke her h i p . . . . After that, neither one of us could see her in a nursing home. We just didn't want it for her. So we brought her here. She lived here with us. And it was a good relationship - it worked out well - 1 had help for her when we had to go away. I had somebody in - well, a visiting nurse or somebody who sat with her on Sunday so we could go out and not leave her alone. We were doing everything for her benefit - without it taking away a lot from us. Well, it did. We were tied down many times. But we didn't care. We were comfortable with my mother being here. She was great. But then, I got very sick. And I had to go for open heart surgery. And there is no way. . .. Ben: We had no choice. . . . 136

The American Viewpoint Judith: No choice, I had no choice. So we put her in the home. There's been a great deterioration. I don't say that she wouldn't have deteriorated if she lived here. . . . I tell you something - that realistically speaking, I really feel that my mother eventually would have gone to the home. Because, realistically, there was no way - even if I had been well. Certain things would happen that I couldn't take care of anymore, really and truly. When you take care of your child and change his diapers, it's one thing. You're young and you've committed yourself to the helpless little baby that has to be changed and eventually, that child is going to stop [needing] diapers, right? When you're in your sixties and you have to take complete physical care of a grown person, it's a completely different matter. And this is where the rub lies. And this is why children who give their parents into homes should not be criticized unless the whole story is told. I did feel guilty at first - we both did. But I feel no guilt now, because my mother is where she really should be. She gets the proper care there. I couldn't give her the care that she gets there. The home is one of the best. .. . She's now run out of funds. She's going to have to go on Title 19 [Medicaid], because in the three years she's been at the home we went through eighty thousand dollars. So . . . it wiped out the entire estate my sister left. She left a very sizable estate. And it wiped out the whole thing. In three years - eighty thousand! She has no more money. She'll go on Title 19 - we're in the process now. Nine-tenths of the people there are on Title 19. There are very few private patients. The care that she will get it will make no difference.... Ben's father was independent up to the time he died. Ben: He maintained his own apartment. Judith: And my mother would have too, if she hadn't broken her hip. Because they were that type of people.... It takes a very strong marriage, I think, to have somebody - even somebody you love as much as you do your mother. Ben: Because it's an intrusion on your privacy. 137

The Gift of Generations Judith: We're involved with our children's lives, but not to the extent where they swamp our lives. Oh, we don't like that. We have a terrific relationship with both our sons and their children and wives - and we want to keep it that way. I mean, I'm not their friend. I mean, I'm their friend, but not their companion. We're not their age. They have to go their own way and we have to go our way. I was taught this by my own mother. Ben: We see them frequently, but we don't interfere in their lives. They have their own lives. They have their own children to bring up, and they have to do it in their own way, and this is up to them - not to us.. . . We enjoy being on the periphery of their affairs. Judith: Sometimes I don't see them for weeks, but they are busy - we're busy. It isn't a flaw in the relationship. It's a nice, easy relationship. We have reached a point where our sons are not children. They're equal to us, in an adult way. .. . We can talk in an adult fashion. Ben: Live with them? - no. Judith: No way. Now [they] have said, "You'll always have a place with us." But I would rather not - 1 don't say that I never would. Ben: It's not a question of dislike or disliking their family or style of living or anything else. It's just a matter of independence for ourselves. We would never want to feel that we're dependent on our children. Judith: My greatest desire, if I should be the one to be left alone - is that I would be independent enough. At that point, maybe [I will live in] one of those senior citizens' apartments like Tower One. Not a nursing home - although if I'm sick, I would have to - and maintain my independence in my own one room, but my own. Where I can visit my children, where my children love me, [where] I know it, [where] I'm secure in their love for me and mine for them. But I don't want to live with them.

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The American Viewpoint Ben: [In a major crisis] we'd turn to our children. There's no doubt about that. But they're not able to help us in a financial situation, if we needed a lot of money. Judith: We would probably have to turn to federal or state funds to help us. . . . Well, his sister had to go through dialysis and that had to go on state because there was no way that she could pay for it. So it can happen. We have seen it happen. There is a possibility that a catastrophe could happen to one or the other of us. Ben: The family relationship is strong. . . . We belong to a family circle that has been in existence now about thirty years. Up until very recently it grew and grew, and at this point it is deteriorating because the older members are dying out. The younger members, unfortunately, don't have much family consciousness. . . . They don't feel as close. West Haveners' reliance on a combination of both formal and informal support is evident not only for the working class, but also for the middle class, as we see in Ben and Judith's case. This is particularly true of Title 19 (Medicaid), which provides long-term care in nursing homes as a final resort. Judith's mother and sister have both turned to this safety net; Ben and Judith will also resort to it themselves, should the need arise. None look forward to the prospect of going to a nursing home, as all West Haveners amply testify. To anticipate it implies an acceptance of dependence and helplessness; yet the reality is inescapable when one has taken part in the institutionalization of one's own parent. The anger, resignation, and rationalization that Ben and Judith show about Judith's mother's predicament express in part an attempt to come to terms with the possibility that the same fate may also be in store for themselves. That possibility remains, in their view, a random chance, as it was also for Judith's mother; and it is far from the ideal of independent living that Ben's father enjoyed. Their sense of guilt about Judith's mother is based more on the unpleasantness of the nursing home than on underfulfillment of filial

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The Gift of Generations responsibility. As Ben and Judith's case demonstrates, the primary tie of dependence among older Americans is the conjugal tie: Mutual interests and reciprocal help exist first and foremost in this relationship. The prospect of widowhood in old age is distressful because it means losing the most important source of emotional, instrumental, and financial support at a time when one can least afford it. In widowhood, the diffuse network of relatives and friends steps in to provide support, but it never quite replaces the spouse, because the bond of affinity, the romantic love, cannot be replaced. The strength and vulnerability inherent in Ben and Judith's marriage is something we rarely observe among our Odawara respondents. As Ben and Judith attest, reciprocal ties with children are open to negotiation especially when the children are sons, not daughters. Ben and Judith are not part of their sons' nuclear units; they also have limited responsibility toward their sons' welfare. The principle of noninterference is paramount particularly at this stage: The young have their own lives to live and their own goals to pursue, whether or not their life-styles and values are agreeable to the parents. Their marriages and nuclear families come first, as they did for Ben and Judith in their turn. The respect for a serial order and the sense of "turn" in filial relations is focused on the independence of the child, not the dependence of the parent, in the United States. THE CONTINGENCY APPROACH

Americans take a contingency approach to care in later life. This approach presupposes self-sufficiency until that "critical" point when individuals in need reach out for help. The timing varies from one person to another: For some it is precipitated by widowhood, and for others by the onset of illness. Help is customized according to individual need, and therefore there is some variation in the balance of formal and informal resources that individuals receive. However, there is a general pattern to the American approach to these contingencies: The elderly tend to rely on their wide social network for emotional and some physical needs, and count on their social security and pension benefits for long-term financial security. This 140

The American Viewpoint pattern represents a helping arrangement that I have called diffused security. The contingency approach succeeds when help can be secured from a wide support network of family, peers, and community services. Spouses provide the most important ties of mutual obligation and dependency. Family support, especially from daughters, contributes considerably to physical and emotional well-being. Peer companionships also offer an important sense of closeness and comfort among persons who share special experiences; and a generalized, voluntary reciprocity also exists in the informal network of relatives and friends. Because friendship networks are based more on affinity and compatibility than a direct sense of duty, they usually preclude long-term physical assistance. Many peers in old age are also themselves no longer in a position to help others. The American peer network is large, but it is not designed to be a full-scale informal social security system. This American informal social security system - with its assignments of entitlement and obligation - is established in the conjugal relationship in the same way it is established in the filial relationship in Japan. The unit of self-sufficiency is the married couple, until such time that either one of the pair becomes unavailable. The contingency approach to support often begins to take shape after this time, around the elderly person who must establish self-sufficiency as an individual. Children are important to the support network, but they are by no means the only resources. There is a division of labor among those in the diffused, triangulated network. A concern for the independence and resilience of the individual is characteristic of this approach, despite the heterogeneity of American society. This cultural ideal, the most salient feature of the American private contract, stands out in contrast to that of other societies, and is noted also by American cross-national observers.5 This ideal is modeled partly on the vitality the first generation of immigrants demonstrated to the second, and partly on the cultural prescription for 5 Donald O. Cowgill, Aging around the World, 47-50; Jennie Keith et al., "Community as Context for Successful Aging," 260.

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The Gift of Generations pursuing life to its fullest potential. The romanticization of independence, however, can be as costly as the romanticization of filial piety in Japan. Self-sufficiency is by no means easy at a time when the conjugal unit dissolves and the peer network dwindles. The cultural ideals of independence and self-reliance can result in a failure to resolve the ambivalence between independence and dependence, as some case studies have also shown. As dynamic as the spirit of self-reliance and self-renewal is, it is a perception that befits the young and healthy. For many Americans, the social security system remains a backbone to old-age security in the financial sense. They count on it and depend on it with a sense of entitlement because of the contributions they have made throughout their working lives. In both Japan and the United States, the primary sense of security in old age derives from that (formal or informal) support system which entails the greater sense of entitlement. This sense of entitlement creates the perception of dependability of support, which is most essential to security in old age. As people enter old age - even when they are still healthy and/or wealthy - they attempt to evaluate the kinds of potential resources that are accessible to them. In the private contract, dependability of care can be tested in the smaller confines of personal relationships; in the public contract, dependability also becomes a matter of trust in more abstract entities - state and community institutions. From the comparative standpoint, the case studies show that the cultural assumptions that define reciprocity, dependency, entitlement, and obligation are fundamentally different in Japanese and American societies. We will now turn to an analysis of these cultural assumptions that shape the notions of what helping arrangements ought to do. The social assignments that constitute the foundations of the social contract in the two societies will be explored further in Chapter 8, after we examine the assumptions that shape their meaning.

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7

Cultural Assumptions and Values

T

O explain the cross-national differences and similarities outlined in the previous chapters, we will now focus systematically on the cultural and structural conditions that shape the social contracts. Here and in Chapter 8,1 synthesize the comparative findings in a conceptual scheme, to identify the regularity of variation in the values and interests that shape these social contracts. In the previous chapters, the main purpose of the comparative analysis has been to illustrate the distinct features of the two cases. The comparative analysis now shifts to Tilly's variation-finding comparison1 to specify the systematic variation in the cultural assumptions of deservedness and fairness (Chapter 7), and in the structural relationship of the social contract (Chapter 8). The classifications of cultural assumptions and assignments of symbolic resources that I develop in these two chapters are typologies distilled from the comparative empirical analysis that characterize the essence of the helping arrangements. The conceptual scheme classifies the typical characteristics of the two cases, and specifies the principle of variation between them, to account for the differences and similarities of the social contract. First, in this chapter, I will explore the cultural assumptions underlying the protective and contingency approaches to identify the systematic variation in them, and explain how they inform the social organization of help. These assumptions are grounded in the subjective realities in which people construct the meaning of their behavior, a vision of the world that they take for granted in everyday life;2 they

1 Charles Tilly, Big Structures, Large Processes, Huge Comparisons, chap. 7. 2 Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, The Social Construction of Reality, 14.

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The Gift of Generations represent the subjective interpretations of life and human relationships, and the universal experiences of compassion, vulnerability, and sacrifice. Just as actuaries make demographic assumptions to calculate risk insurance, support givers and receivers must also make assumptions to decide what actions they must take as insurers and beneficiaries of old-age insurance; the risk depends on the assumptions about how life runs its course, how social relationships are forged, and what helping arrangements ought to achieve. These perceptions are also neither impressionistic nor random, but are structured by an internal logic that individuals share in a given culture; they constitute part of Bourdieu's habitus, the system of generative schemes that makes our thoughts and actions possible.3 The cultural assumptions that are especially relevant to understanding the different approaches to the social contract in the two societies can be classified in six categories: need, security, equity, primary bonds, self-sufficiency, and resource affluence. I argue that the protective and contingency approaches are based on these different assumptions, which underlie the meaning of giving, receiving, and deserving help. Table 7.1 shows these six assumptions that together define the value of helping arrangements, and specifies their comparative variation. The first assumption refers to the expectation of need in old age that is based on different life course trajectories. These trajectories are key to understanding the different patterns of recognizing vulnerability in the two societies. The second assumption' refers to the different qualities of security that societies seek, based on what is assumed to be needed in old age. The third assumption refers to the expectation of intergenerational equity, which expresses the sense of fairness that generations share as they take turns to depend on and be independent of one another. These different perceptions of fairness, as we will see, relate closely to assumptions of need trajectories. The fourth assumption refers to the primary bonds of affection that are salient in different societies. The fifth assumption refers to the definition of self-sufficiency and its implications for self-reliance. Finally, 3 Pierre Bourdieu, The Logic of Practice, chap. 3; and Outline of a Theory of Practice, chap. 2.

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Cultural Assumptions and Values Table 7.1. Cultural assumptions of helping relationships Assumptions

West Haven

Westside Odawara

Need/dependence in old age Security in old age

Might be inevitable

Will be inevitable

Diffused intervention promotes autonomy

Intergenerational equity

Younger generation takes its turn to claim independence Primacy of conjugal tie Individual or couple oriented Abundant and negotiable

Structured protection promotes certainty Older generation takes its turn to claim dependence Primacy of filial tie Family oriented

Primary bond of affection Unit of self-sufficiency Social resource affluence

Scarce and limited

the assumption of social affluence points to the expectations of alternative resources. As typologies, these categories of assumptions draw out the typical features of practical knowledge that inform the making of the helping arrangements; hence they accentuate the essential ideas, and classify them into analytical constructs, for explanatory purposes.4 I will discuss each category of this classification in turn. TRAJECTORIES OF NEED

Sakuma Fumihiko, the retired vegetable oil factory worker who dances to the tune of popular Japanese music, makes concrete plans to move to his son's house when he becomes frail. He has even designated his yome as the primary caregiver for this eventuality. Ernest McCarthy, the retired cigar store salesman who lives in comparative comfort in the elderly housing unit, insists on living by himself, and will have no part in living in a nursing home or with his daughter in 4 Hence, typologies are not average types or representations of consensus, but are abstractions of reality. See Max Weber, The Methodology of the Social Sciences, 90.

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The Gift of Generations the future. The difference in the choices of these two men lies not only in their personal preferences and options: The Japanese anticipates his frailty in the future as a foregone conclusion, whereas the American does not see it as an inevitability. Fumihiko eventually expects to be in need; Ernest denies that this must eventually happen. These two expectations - based on distinct need trajectories - have clearly different implications for preparing for later life: The former calls for prudent planning, the latter for resilience. Although much research has advanced our understanding of life course transitions, Gunhild Hagestad has pointed out that comparable work on life course trajectories - the "prospective view of life" based on cultural life scripts - has been limited.5 Perhaps the best-known example, in the context of comparing Japanese and American societies, has been Ruth Benedict's arc of freedom describing the different levels of social constraints experienced through the life cycle.6 But the effort to etch the trajectories of need in later life from cultural life scripts has been limited, although it is essential in understanding the fundamental expectations about what a support system ought to do. The trajectory affects our level of preparedness for that need - our sense of urgency about what should be done, and who should do something about it. Whether we see frailty as more, or less, inevitable frames our blueprint for obtaining future help. If we think frailty will happen, then the utmost preparation for it will not only be prudent but necessary; on the other hand, if frailty is something that might be likely as a matter of probability, then plans for support require contingency measures, just in case. The logical choice of action regarding future care, therefore, depends on the forecast about the future and the calculation of risk for that future. The trajectory of need also plays a role in assigning the responsibility (and blame) for the problem. If dire frailty must eventually happen to everyone, then an individual is absolved from the blame of 5 Gunhild Hagestad, "Social Perspectives on the Life Course." 6 Ruth Benedict, The Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patterns of Japanese Culture, 253-255. See also the comparative analysis of age appropriateness and constraints in Chicago and Hanshin by Gunhild Hagestad and Bernice Neugarten in "Age and the Life Course."

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Cultural Assumptions and Values being frail: No one can be responsible for preventing it. But when dire frailty is one of a number of possibilities occurring in later life, it is very much up to the individual to stay physically fit: Each individual is responsible, after all, for preventing the worst possibility from occurring as best as she or he can. These trajectories, therefore, lead to different notions about when people are responsible and obliged to give help. In the will need scenario, individuals are not necessarily expected to help themselves; caregivers must, therefore, be involved in planning support from an early stage. In the might need scenario, caregivers intervene only when individuals show that there are needs to be met. Fumihiko's son has already built an extra bedroom that Fumihiko will use in the future; Ernest's daughter is not responsible for making such advanced plans. The individual's responsibility for self-reliance is more limited in the will need scenario than in the might need scenario. In the protective approach - arising from the will need trajectory - autonomy in later life is not an option. Protective measures to forestall the impending crisis are therefore the key features to this approach. Japanese men and women take this approach to minimize the impact of future calamity, crisis, and need that are part of their later life's scenario. Self-reliance, in this context, is an attribute to a person who plans prudently for the future. The contingency approach - based on the might need scenario emphasizes individual resilience and control over future calamity, and incorporates social support measures that maximize them. This approach facilitates independence and flexibility, and customizes helping arrangements according to individual circumstances. In this context, autonomy, not planning, facilitates self-reliance, because individuals are responsible for managing their own uncertain futures. These different expectations of frailty originate in distinct assumptions about the nature of growing old. Perception and recognition of need in old age vary in Japan and the United States, because the two societies embrace these different collective life scripts. Childhood, adulthood, and old age signal different needs because expectations and priorities associated with each of these life stages are different; 147

The Gift of Generations and cultural repositories define these specific relationships between age and need. Both will need and might need scripts see childhood associated with high need and adulthood with low need, but follow different scenarios thereafter. In the will need script, a life course comes to a full circle in old age when need increases again to the level of childhood. In the might need script, increasing need in later life may or may not exceed beyond the threshold where self-sufficiency is diminished (Figure 7.1). Fumihiko's and Ernest's plans are based on such trajectories of need in later life, represented in these two different scripts of the life cycle. The threshold of self-sufficiency is more explicitly recognized in the will need scenario, which readily defines it by the universal marker, age. This threshold defines the point beyond which individuals will not be expected to exercise self-reliance and control, and therefore become eligible for support. The different criteria of obtaining help discussed earlier in Chapter 4 make sense in this context: The expectation of selfsufficiency is different in the two life scripts. When the universal marker is available, as it is in the will need script, the caregiver recognizes need without seeing the receiver explicitly demonstrate it; the marker suffices to evoke protective support. By contrast, the receiver's demonstration of need is the signal to crossing the threshold of self-sufficiency in the might need script; this demonstration of need then leads to contingency support. This threshold therefore defines the eligibility for informal social security systems, just as formal social security systems also set their formal eligibility criteria. If old age is equated with need in the will need scenario, then it follows that Japanese social service agencies would find targeting "special needs" like living alone or childlessness to be a legitimate practice. Since the American might need scenario assumes a larger variation of need among the elderly, however, such criteria for targeting services make less sense. Policy direction is therefore influenced as much by these trajectories of need in the collective life script as it is by economic and political considerations. The two life scripts represent crude scenarios, which, in reality, involve different probabilities, and both scenarios are made plausible only when confirmed by personal and collective experiences. Ben's father died as a self-sufficient man, but both Judith's mother and Fuku's 148

Might-Need Script

Will-Need Script high self-sufficiency

threshold childhood \ low self-sufficiency

birth

old age / death

childhood / birth

Figure 7.1 Expectations of need in old age

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old age death

The Gift of Generations father-in-law have required much caregiving in later life. People can therefore modify the basic script in a way that is meaningful to their own subjective experiences. In this sense, the basic scripts are prototypes that conform to the general experience known to the collective, subject to individual revisions; and individual revisions vary, because people have different capabilities to translate ideas into action.7 In fact, both scenarios may be rather accurate, when we consider the different demographic histories of the recent past. Shorter life expectancies and limited medical technology are still fresh in the collective memory of Japanese society. Biographies of immediate kin, such as those of Fuku's father, her father-in-law, and her husband, who were all bedridden for long periods of time, serve as reminders that the same will happen to her. On the other hand, biographies of Ben's independent father and Judith's frail mother signal that either fate is possible for Ben and Judith.8 Wataru Koyano also confirms this distinct pessimism that the Japanese project on old age-compared with Americans and Europeans - and attributes it to the existence of strong negative stereotypes about the elderly.9 Facts and myths interspersed in collective memory are also important in reinforcing caregiving values between generations. The expectation that succeeding generations face the same predicaments creates the basis for reciprocal helping arrangements that extend over generations: The young person is more likely to pay the price of old age willingly at an early age, if he or she also expects need is inevitable and wants to guarantee his or her future support. The Golden Rule in support can thus be articulated: Do unto your parents what you would like your own children to do unto you. The Japanese demand protection on reaching old age with a sense of legitimacy that is less easily recognized in the United States. De7 See Ann Swidler, "Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies." 8 James Schulz and colleagues cite evidence for this scenario in an American survey: Those who "need help of another person" comprised 7% of persons aged 65-74, 16% of persons aged 75-84, and 39% of persons over age 84. See Economics of Population Aging: The "Graying" of Australia, Japan and the United States, 290. 9 Wataru Koyano, Katsuya Inoue, and Hiroshi Shibata, "Negative Misconceptions about Aging in Japanese Adults," 133; Koyano Wataru, "Gendai nihon no rojinkan," 665-666.

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Cultural Assumptions and Values pendency in later life is legitimate when it is recognized collectively to be inevitable, but it is less so when recognized as an individual's failure to maintain self-sufficiency. Dorothy and Theresa, both retired factory workers living in the elderly housing unit, talk about their sense of failure and inadequacy for not living up to the collective ideal of self-reliance. Dependency robs them of their sense of self-worth and represents defeat in their ideal of retaining autonomy. It is reasonable to conjecture, however, that the life scenarios of the two societies will grow closer in the future, as a larger number of Japanese elderly become more financially independent, and an increasing number of American elderly endure chronic illness prolonged by longer life expectancy.

CONDITIONS OF SECURITY

Just as societies adopt different ideas about how life typically runs its course, they also embrace different notions of security in everyday life. This security not only refers to physical safety, but also to safety in the generic sense, a feeling of being part of a social world that revolves around a familiar, predictable order. This sense of security derives from our fundamental trust that we understand our everyday world and can effectively anticipate its twists and turns. Giddens's notion of ontological security expresses this fundamental trust in the order of the world, which gives us the essential means to control our anxiety.10 This sense of security is integral to our expectation for support in old age, since it influences our vision of how we want our needs to be met. The assumption of security in old age refers to our expectation of probable help in relation to our expectation of probable need. This assumption of security is fundamental to the social construction of support and of preferences for different kinds of helping arrangements. Our choices are defined by this assumption of security; and as such, the protective and contingency models represent strategies that are 10 Anthony Giddens, The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory ofStructuration, 50.

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The Gift of Generations based on different expectations of security in the two societies. Japan's structured protection focused on care provided by children not only reveals an order of commitment to social obligations, but also a preference for the sense of certainty it promotes. This sense of certainty and predictability lies at the heart of the Japanese preference for protective, filial support. The American contingency approach, on the other hand, represents a preference for a sense of security characterized by autonomy. American security in old age is complete only when individuals can choose their support from multiple options, because choice gives them a degree of control. It does not follow, then, that the American elderly are more carefree than the Japanese, or that the Japanese children are more compassionate about their aging parents than the Americans: They are predisposed to entirely different preferences of security. Choice promotes security, not insecurity, in the United States because it fosters a sense of autonomy; by contrast, obligation promotes security in Japan, because it fosters the sense of predictability and certainty. For the Japanese, the open-endedness of the American practice does not create a sense of security, because it promotes uncertainty; by the same token, the predictability of the Japanese practice does not foster a sense of security for the Americans, because it offers no choices. In this sense, both societies adopt approaches that enhance security in old age; since the idea of security itself is different, however, the approaches are different. In Japan, the obligation structured into the support relationship increases the certainty that long-term care will be provided; it links the will need script to a will support script. By contrast, the contingency approach in the United States increases the chances that help will be of the kind that people prefer to give and receive, which links the might need script to a might support script. Thus, both societies pursue the kind of security that is consistent with their internalized trajectories of need. These approaches also entail different degrees of security, as we saw in the case studies. The Japanese expressed different degrees of contentment depending on whether their support was dependable and certain. Fuku, Yasumasa, Fumihiko, and Yukio are content with their 152

Cultural Assumptions and Values private contract because of their children's concrete willingness to carry out their obligation with dependable love. For Teru, Hiro, and Toshio, however, the private contract is unsatisfactory, because their children are unlikely to commit themselves to providing loving care. The American elderly are contented with their helping arrangements to the degree that they succeed in promoting autonomy, choice, and control. Irene, Helen, and Leonard, for instance, have developed support networks that facilitate their self-sufficiency; Stella and William, however, find themselves threatened by the prospect of not being able to exercise control over their support arrangements. For both Japanese and Americans, the sense of vulnerability derives from the threat to their respective ideals of security.

INTERGENERATIONAL EQUITY

The idea of reciprocity is closely linked to the notion of fairness. The reciprocal support practice is based on the notion that people take turns in giving, and that this arrangement is also equitable. The sense of fairness in reciprocal relationships is often based on assumptions of intergenerational equity that define the appropriateness of giving and deserving. It is "fair," for example, for Fuku and Teru to expect their children to look after them because their turn has come, just as it will come for the children; likewise, it is "fair" for Ben and Judith's younger sons to pursue their own independent lives, just as Ben and Judith did when it was their turn. Thus, we can identify two typologies of intergenerational equity in this comparative analysis: In Japan, the older generation takes its turn to claim dependence, and in the United States, the younger generation takes its turn to claim independence. The sense of turn in filial relations is focused on the parent in Japan and on the child in the United States. Whether the respect for a serial order is directed to the old in an age-graded society or to the young in a youth-oriented society, it is the underlying sense of the fairness of turns that makes the succession of give-and-take possible. The shared notions of equity create the glue of intergenerational support, which Martha Baum and Rainer Baum have called the trust in diachronic 153

The Gift of Generations solidarity and Vern Bengtson and colleagues have called normative solidarity.11 The sense of deservedness that many Odawaran elderly describe derives in part from this serial order of equity. Likewise, the sense of resentment that some Odawarans like Toshio feel derives from a betrayal of this expectation for equity. Because the serial order is focused on the child, not the parent, in the United States, the American elderly are at a greater disadvantage than the Japanese. Thomas Jefferson's ideal that "each generation is as independent of the one preceding, as that was of all which had gone before"12 specifies the rights of the young, not of the old. Whereas some, like Helen and Leonard, feel secure in their relationships with the younger members of the family, others, like Dorothy and Stella, feel aggravated by this disadvantage: They would like to depend on their children and grandchildren, but they do not feel entitled to do so. A system of intergenerational fairness that allows the old to claim dependence, by contrast, is more advantageous for the vulnerable in old age. The notion of turn in the United States is not as straightforward as it first seems, however. In a country where choices among alternative beliefs are particularly important, assumptions are likewise varied. Helen who lives down the street from her married daughter and Leonard who lives with his married daughter, also believe to some extent in their turn for entitlement to support - if in a less demanding way than their Japanese counterparts. Ben and Judith, on the other hand, believe more strongly in their children's turn to be free of support burdens, than in their own turn to depend on them. Upstream and downstream expectations of intergenerational equity are mixed, just as belief systems are pluralistic in American society as a whole. Nevertheless, as Andrew Achenbaum suggests, the basic assumption that the young are equal to the old in rights and responsibilities has historically been a significant feature of American society.13 The high 11 See Martha Baum and Rainer Baum, Growing Old: A Societal Perspective, 7-13; and Vern Bengtson, Neal Cutler, David Mangen, and Victor Marshall, "Generations, Cohorts and Relations between Age Groups." 12 Cited in W. Andrew Achenbaum, "Generations in Historical Context," 30. 13 W. Andrew Achenbaum, "Societal Perceptions of Aging." See also his Shades of Gray: Old Age, American Values, and Federal Policies Since 1920.

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Cultural Assumptions and Values regard for autonomy, choice, and control at any age creates a pluralistic ambivalence in the American notion of intergenerational equity.14 The prototypical assumptions of intergenerational equity in Japan and the United States therefore differ in substance. In Japan, intergenerational equity means taking turns in giving and receiving support according to differential abilities in different life stages. To Americans, intergenerational equity means taking turns to give to children, but they are less willing to give irrevocable meaning to age. As John Hewitt suggests, the multiple ideals of equal opportunity, youth orientation, and compassion for the weak are at odds,15 just as the desires for both independence and dependence in later life. Age is an equalizer in both societies, but the assumption about what it should equalize in intergenerational relationships is therefore different. These assumptions of intergenerational equity are also closely linked to the trajectories of need in old age. When need in old age is inevitable, an aging parent's claim to dependence has significant social validity; by contrast, when need in old age is not inevitable, an aging parent's claim to dependence cannot command the same validity. As American observers suggest, age-related abilities that nevertheless exist in reality must then be justified by legislative entitlement to formalize the age stratification.16 In spite of the relatively straightforward principle of serial order, Japanese intergenerational equity is also not carved in stone. As the case studies show, demonstrating past contributions to one's credit is also essential for some to claim dependency. PRIMARY BONDS OF AFFECTION

Partnerships of informal support usually consist of special bonds of affection that tie individuals together. A special trust is embedded in these 14 Alan Wolfe, Whose Keeper? Social Science and Moral Obligation, 85; Gunhild Hagestad, "The Aging Society as a Context for Family Life," 127. 15 John P. Hewitt, Dilemmas of the American Self, viii. 16 Matilda White Riley and John W. Riley, Jr., "Longevity and Social Structure: The Added Years"; Bernice L. Neugarten and Joan W. Moore, "The Changing AgeStatus System."

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The Gift of Generations bonds, connecting people with love and empathy. Bonds of affection are the strongest of support relations, because they are not only based on conditions of give-and-take, but also on a fundamental desire for connectedness. Because of this affinity, we perceive these bonds as the most dependable and desirable support relationships in everyday life. Intimacies, however, can also be fickle. After all, affairs of the heart are variable and chancy; people change, and so do their priorities. Despite our desire for permanent love and trust, bonds of affection do not always survive the inherent variability of human feelings. Social support therefore relies not only on these emotions, but also on social institutions like marriage and family that presume permanence, and command moral legitimacy. These institutions safeguard the longterm emotional commitments; they cement the emotional bonds with mutual interests and social responsibility. These bonds of affection have different cultural expressions in the two societies; they differ in the choice of relationships, degree of intimacy and sacrifice, and the display of affection. The comparative analysis points to two typologies of primary bonds: the filial and the conjugal. The Japanese tend to form their primary bonds with their children, and Americans do so with their husbands or wives.17 Both societies readily assume that those closest are also those most available to help, but the structure of the primary bonds differs: The Japanese bonds are intergenerational and are based on the primacy of blood ties, whereas the American ties are voluntary and chosen, and are based on the primacy of romantic love. The Japanese value the irrevocable quality of blood ties to forge nonnegotiable and lasting commitments. Masa's comment on the nature of filial obligation makes this point clear - "a son is a son": The absence of choice reinforces the bond, as many Japanese scholars have also noted.18 For Americans, by contrast, the voluntary quality of the 17 See also Sylvia Junko Yanagisako's account of these contrasts between first- and second-generation Japanese Americans in Transforming the Past: Tradition and Kinship among Japanese Americans. 18 See, for example, Takie Sugiyama Lebra, Japanese Patterns of Behavior, 60. Diana Lynn Bethel's account of the pseudo-kinship ties created among unrelated residents of a Japanese nursing home provides an interesting corroboration of this point; see "Life in Obasuteyama, or, Inside a Japanese Institution for the Elderly."

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Cultural Assumptions and Values primary tie is essential to forging commitments. This support relationship is a chosen one, and as such, it embodies negotiations and adaptations. Whether these primary relationships are forged across or within generations has important implications for the living arrangements of the elderly, and also for their choices of outside sources of help. Filial coresidence in Japan represents resources of an intergenerational range, focused on parent-child relations inside the household. Conjugal households in the United States also involve coresidence of people tied by primary bonds, and it is supplemented by triangulated networks of peer and intergenerational ties.

UNITS OF SELF-SUFFICIENCY

Whether conjoined by karma, kinship, or choice, people who live together share a common fate for survival in everyday life. Financially, they usually pool their resources and make joint investments - in housing, furniture, car, insurance, and the like. They also usually divide household tasks and responsibilities like cooking, cleaning, shopping, and paying bills - subject to gender role expectations. Because of this sense of shared fate, the household creates a special kind of connectedness among coresidents even if it is not always in harmony; as such, it is recognized as a socioeconomic collective, a social unit of sufficiency. The assumption of self-sufficiency refers to the recognition of boundaries that define the limits of primary support relationships. The unit of self-sufficiency usually points to the individual, the couple, or the family, depending on the expectations of interdependence that these social relationships carry. Different boundaries of self-sufficiency can be found in two typologies: Self-sufficiency in Japan refers to the independence of the family from the community, whereas in the United States, self-sufficiency refers to the independence of the individual or the couple from the family and the community. These different cultural assumptions of self-sufficiency have important implications for support practices in the two societies, as we also discussed in Chapter 3. Japan's proneness for the collectivization of responsibility and obligations at the cost of individual autonomy has been well documented 157

The Gift of Generations by many scholars. Thomas Rohlen, for example, has noted its salience in the Japanese workplace, school, and other institutions.19 Robert Smith has suggested that this preference for the collective derives from the fact that Japanese identity is defined in relation to others, not the autonomous self.20 Other evidence also suggests that this kind of identity formation is more prevalent in non-Western cultures than elsewhere.21 This regard for the collective entity - such as the family - as the social unit of self-sufficiency creates distinct boundaries of self-reliance. When Waka speaks about her ambivalence to nursing homes, she is concerned about the self-sufficiency of the family. West Haveners like Ernest and Stella, on the other hand, speak about their concern for selfsufficiency as individuals. The American concern for self-sufficiency, however, does not apply to the interdependence between husband and wife, much in the same way that the Japanese concern for selfsufficiency does not apply to parent-child relations. For Fuku, her grandson is included in her unit of self-sufficiency, yet for Ben and Judith, their sons are clearly excluded. Individual perceptions of independence and interdependence differ in the two societies, because the boundaries of self-sufficiency are not drawn in the same places. When the basic classification of "we" differs, the rules of allocation and reciprocity require different interpretations. As support resources vary according to units of self-sufficiency, so do the rules of support. Depending on whether the helping relationships are communal or noncommunal - inside or outside the unit of self-sufficiency - the particular arrangements of help also take on different meanings and carry different expectations in the two societies. VISIONS OF RESOURCE AFFLUENCE

Self-sufficiency in old age, whether as an individual, couple, or family, is also influenced by the anticipation of alternative social re19 Thomas P. Rohlen, Japan's High Schools and For Harmony and Strength: Japanese White-Collar Organization in Anthropological Perspective. 20 Robert Smith, Japanese Society: Tradition, Self and the Social Order, 49. 21 Alan Roland, In Search of Self in India and Japan: Toward a Cross-Cultural Psychology, 329-330; Hazel Rose Markus and Shinobu Kitayama, "Culture and the Self: Implications for Cognition, Emotion, and Motivation."

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Cultural Assumptions and Values sources that societies have to offer. Visions of resource affluence refer to subjective perceptions, not objective assessments, of alternative support resources that seem available outside the unit of selfsufficiency from the viewpoint of those seeking support. The socioeconomic, political, and demographic conditions that shape social security, health care programs, private insurance, labor markets, and dependency ratios offer the grounds for an objective assessment of resources available to the elderly,22 and various studies shed light on these particular conditions. Meredith Minkler and Carroll Estes, and John Myles, for example, point to the importance of class and power dynamics that determine resource allocation in the political economy.23 Margaret Weir, Ann Shola Orloff, and Theda Skocpol focus on the institutional-political processes that shape social policy and resource allocation.24 These studies represent provider perspectives on how material and human resources are allocated according to fiscal and labor policy, market incentives, taxation, and resulting power dynamics. To understand individual choices, however, we must also observe the availability of resources from the recipients' perspective. Perceptions and reactions to resource allocation are subjective; they are shaped by selective knowledge and beliefs obtained from personal experiences, acquaintances, and the media.25 Whether or not these perceptions accurately reflect the availability of resources, they are pivotal in shaping decisions and choices, because they define the vision of what is there to be utilized. People cannot use what they do not know exists; assumptions about alternatives therefore play an important role in the decisions they make about helping arrangements. 22 Akiko Hashimoto and Hal Kendig, "Aging in International Perspective," 10-12. 23 Meredith Minkler, "Introduction"; John Myles, "Conflict, Crisis and the Future of Old Age Security"; Carroll Estes, "Austerity and Aging: 1980 and Beyond." See also John Myles, "Comparative Public Policies for the Elderly: Frameworks and Resources for Analysis." 24 Margaret Weir, Ann Shola Orloff, and Theda Skocpol, "Introduction: Understanding American Social Policies." 25 In this connection, Juanita Kreps also maintains that the financial implications of the allocation process are poorly understood by the public. See "Intergenerational Transfers and the Bureaucracy," 30.

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The Gift of Generations Although Japan and the United States are the two wealthiest nations in the world, they differ in how they perceive the limitations in their socioeconomic environments. The two typologies of resource affluence that apply in this context are scarcity and abundance. Despite the current high income levels and stockpiles of economic capital, the Japanese are more conscious of their resource limitations, especially because of the permanent shortage of one natural resource - land. This shortage of fertile land - to harvest, mine, and build houses on - has a strong impact on the Japanese assumption of social affluence in everyday life, despite the abundance of cash itself. The perceived shortage of housing and space is a daily reminder of this limitation, and the shortage of mineral resources emphasized in every textbook and reference weighs heavily in business conduct and national foreign policy. The Japanese adhere to a sense of scarcity largely based upon this idea of shortage, both historically and at present. Because the experience of postwar affluence is relatively short and concentrated in the private sector anyway, their expectation of what the public sector can do for them is limited. Waka's comment about state provisions, "if only we had adequate nursing facilities . . . we would have our peace of mind," derives from a sense that these alternative resources are scarce and inaccessible. The American perception of affluence has been well known by contrast.26 As the country that originated as the land of opportunity and abundance, the United States has long been accustomed to its status as the world's richest nation until more recently. These great expectations are also great obstacles to recognizing its real limitations. The natural resources are seemingly abundant, thus the zerosum reality of resource allocation in the current political economy is made more difficult to acknowledge than in Japan. William's comment on state provisions represents this sense of betrayed expectations: "This country is a rich country, the richest country in the world - and I mean they have a poor setup for the old people." Na26 See David M. Potter, People of Plenty: Economic Abundance and the American Character, chap. 3; Seymour Sarason and Elizabeth Lorentz, The Challenge of the Resource Exchange Network.

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Cultural Assumptions and Values tional pride is invested in this sense of affluence despite its limitations, and leads to the perception that resources are negotiable and obtainable as long as one works hard and ingeniously. The assumptions of social affluence also mirror the different demands and expectations made for community resources in the two societies. These "soft" resources are not distributed according to the mechanisms of resource allocation akin to the public sector, but depend essentially on the pool of goodwill of friends, acquaintances, and strangers, as Robert Wuthnow describes.27 These expectations concerning the pool of generosity - or the kindness of friends, acquaintances, and strangers - also differ in the two societies. When Irene points to the generalized expectation to give and be given, she speaks of her moral, Christian obligation to contribute to this pool. The large peer networks of kin and friends in the United States are part of this pool that facilitates generalized mutual support. When Masa talks about her desire to stay active, by contrast, she points to her specific obligations to the little babies at the nursery, and Toshio also talks about his volunteer work at the local temple and the neighborhood association as specific status positions. Masa's and Toshio's contributions are not intended for a presumed general pool of goodwill as such, but are instead directed to specific people and organizations. Odawara's small number of voluntary organizations, described in Chapter 3, reflects the nature of Japanese goodwill, which is made up of specific social ties rather than an abstract entity like the community.28 The different size of support networks in the two communities also makes sense in light of the different expectations about the abundance of generosity. The foregoing classification of assumptions about the nature of life course, human relationships, and social environment goes some way toward explaining why the social contracts in the two societies differ as they do. It points to the systematic differences in the salient values 27 See Robert Wuthnow, Acts of Compassion: Caring for Others and Helping Ourselves. 28 See also Harumi Befu, "Gift-Giving in a Modernizing Japan," 167.

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The Gift of Generations that shape - and legitimate - the different arrangements. Although the cultural assumptions and expectations are mostly taken for granted in everyday life, they influence support relationships in two fundamental ways: They define the worth of different kinds of help offered in each society, and the interests of givers and receivers in the support relationship. In the next chapter, I will turn more specifically to these questions of worth and interests in the structural relationship of the social contract.

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The Social Regulation of Interests

T

HE support relationship is inherently unequal, because it evolves out of the interaction between givers and receivers. Support is asymmetrical at each moment in time, since every act of giving is essentially a one-sided endeavor, where help that emanates from one person is obtained by another. Every meal that Ernest's daughter prepares for him and every stipend that Teru's son gives to her are gifts that define the positions of the giver and the receiver respectively. The support relationship entails the seed of inequity between those who are in a position to give and those who are not, because it relies on the intrinsic distinction of the material and instrumental resources that they own. When these positions become fixed over time, the support relationship develops into one in which the giver and the receiver lose the critical sense of mutuality about the help that is given and received. Instead of taking turns with Ernest, his daughter always hosts the family dinners for him; likewise, Teru cannot reciprocate her son's financial help. Ernest and Teru have become regular receivers of support, with limited resources to return the favors and gifts they accept. When giving and receiving are regularized, the support relationship inevitably creates a pattern of inequity that is referred to also as dependency. Given individual differences in material and instrumental resources, some are bound to be in the stronger position to give, and others less so. The giver who controls the resources in demand often maintains the upper hand, and the receiver, whose need has prompted the giving in the first place, inevitably occupies the weaker, more dependent position.1 The act of giving therefore mirrors a hierarchy of 1 James Dowd, Stratification among the Aged, 19.

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The Gift of Generations difference between the giver and the receiver that is based on the distinction of what people own and are capable of giving. This relationship also creates a dynamic of power between the giver and the receiver, and leads us to question why and how the giver is induced to support the receiver in an unequal society. Although givers are capable of treating receivers with goodwill, this goodwill is not an enduring quality that ensures regular support over the long term.2 They are also prone to safeguard their own interests, which usually perpetuates, rather than diminishes, the social difference.3 As the demand for social support escalates with increasing longevity and incidence of chronic illnesses, the need to induce the givers to support the receivers over an extended period of time is essential for regularizing support. The support practice therefore requires an effective mechanism that regulates the interests of givers and receivers to mitigate the social difference. This chapter argues that the regulation of interests between givers and receivers is essential to routinize social support. For social support to become an enduring social contract, it must assign rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts to regulate the interests in the giver-receiver relationship. Typically, the assignment of rights and responsibilities establishes a sense of collective interest in the relationship. By the same token, the logic of credits and debts that establishes reciprocity results in the establishment of mutual interests in the support relationship. These assignments define the symbolic value of giving and deserving in the framework of interests, and establish the legitimacy of the helping practice. In this chapter, I turn to these assignments of symbolic resources - rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts - to explore the regulation of interests and power in the social contract. I will first discuss the assignment of credits and debts in reciprocal relationships, and then the designation of rights and responsibilities at the collective level. I will then turn to a classification of these assignments that illustrates the symbolic strategies of regulating interests. These strategies - empowerment 2 Richard Titmuss, The Gift Relationship: From Human Blood to Social Policy, 238-239; Robert Pinker, Social Theory and Social Policy, 162; Alvin Gouldner, "The Importance of Something for Nothing," 268. 3 Annette Weiner, Inalienable Possessions: The Paradox of Keeping- While-Giving, 43.

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The Social Regulation of Interests and disempowerment - point to the essence of deservedness, fairness, and symbolic equity in the social contract. CREDITS, DEBTS, AND MUTUAL INTERESTS

Social support is a helping arrangement that embraces the logic of credits and debts in the giver-receiver relationship referred to as reciprocity. Reciprocity creates a formula of mutual interest and gain, by linking two acts of help as gift and return gift in an ongoing chain of giving in social relationships. These gifts and countergifts are culturally defined as credits and debts, such as in the case where an adult child owes support to an aging parent who deserves it for having raised the child in the past. This formula of mutual interest reorganizes the unit of action from "give" to "give and take," by making a symbolic connection between different deeds. Reciprocity enhances our willingness to act at times against our own interest and habitualize this behavior in everyday life, by legitimating the notion of mutual interests, as Marcel Mauss observed. 4 This practice of assigning credits and debts is pervasive in everyday life, but differs from the notion of social exchange described in some well-known studies such as Homans's and Blau's.5 It differs from social exchange in that credits and debts of symbolic value are culturally assigned to givers and receivers, rather than strictly derived from material and instrumental transactions. More important, actors do not freely enter into support relationships to maximize their gain in the exchange process in the way that James Dowd suggests;6 they do so under the constraints of cultural definitions about what is fair and deserved in these relationships. For example, not all children share the same amount of debt to their parents in Japan; some are designated to carry the debt more than others - according to birth order and 4 Marcel Mauss, The Gift: Forms and Functions of Exchange in Archaic Societies, 71-72. 5 George Homans, Social Behavior: Its Elementary Forms; Peter Blau, Exchange and Power in Social Life. 6 James Dowd has developed a rigorous social exchange theory in the field of gerontology; see Stratification among the Aged; "Aging as Exchange: A Preface to Theory"; "Aging as Exchange: A Test of the Distributive Justice Proposition."

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The Gift of Generations gender - as in the case of eldest sons. As these cultural definitions determine the value of credit and debt, the standards of evaluating the gift differ from one culture to another.7 These observations shed light on the different practices of reciprocity in distinct cultural settings: The practices differ, because they involve distinct social constructions of gifts and return gifts as symbolic equivalents. Charlotte Ikels, for example, has observed cases of delayed reciprocity among never-married Irish Americans who receive support from kin in their old age, in return for the earlier caregiving they provided to their own parents.8 Takie Lebra, on the other hand, has pointed to the practice of lineal transference in Japan, where a serial order of reciprocal caregiving is handed down from one generation to the next.9 Akiyama, Antonucci, and Campbell have also focused on the distinction between symmetric and asymmetric rules of reciprocity in American and Japanese intergenerational relationships.10 Patterns of reciprocity in support are varied, because "objects" carry different symbolic values beyond their economic utility in different cultural contexts. The range of such gifts in the support relationship (e.g., money, love, meals) is virtually unlimited, as long as it becomes part of the cultural repertoire of credits and debts that defines the ground rules of reciprocity.11 Thus, different types of reciprocity have been observed - symmetrical or asymmetrical, heteromorphic or homomorphic, restricted or generalized12 - yet they all denote a formula of mutual gain in the relationship. 7 Harumi Befu, "Gift-Giving in a Modernizing Japan," 166. 8 Charlotte Ikels, "Delayed Reciprocity and the Support Networks of the Childless Elderly." 9 Takie Sugiyama Lebra, "An Alternative Approach to Reciprocity," 559-560, and Japanese Patterns of Behavior, 108. 10 Hiroko Akiyama, Toni Antonucci, and Ruth Campbell, "Exchange and Reciprocity among Two Generations of Japanese and American Women." 11 This formulation is therefore consistent with the notion of "unlimited" or "unpayable" debt, on, of adult children that Japan scholars have described. See, for example, Takie Sugiyama Lebra, Japanese Patterns of Behavior, 102-103. 12 Alvin Gouldner, "The Norm of Reciprocity: A Preliminary Statement"; Lebra, "An Alternative Approach to Reciprocity"; Berit Ingersoll-Dayton and Toni C. Antonucci, "Reciprocal and Nonreciprocal Social Support: Contrasting Sides of Intimate Relationships"; Claude Levi-Strauss, The Elementary Structures of Kinship; Peter Ekeh, Social Exchange Theory: The Two Traditions.

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The Social Regulation of Interests Patterns of reciprocity observed in Odawara and West Haven also capture the practice of mutual gain in its essence. Fuku receives a great deal of household help from the younger members of her family, but can offer housing and babysitting in return. Helen's uncle also accepted her meals and cleaning efforts, and returned the favor by giving her a house-for a symbolic token of $11. Fuku's and Helen's helping arrangements work, because the tacit contract of mutual giving creates a support system that offers gains for both givers and receivers. As in these two cases, the "equivalents" are not actual but symbolic; yet the notion of mutual interests in the interaction is fundamental in regulating the power dynamics in the long-term gift relationship. In the social contract these gifts and countergifts are rarely identical or equivalent in actual terms, but they are made equivalents in symbolic terms. What matters is not the actual content of the gifts themselves, but the social construction that the gifts are legitimate and equivalent. Those who have paid their dues by helping some family members are "entitled" to take aid, even if the type or duration of help involved does not equal what was "owed" by accurate measure. By culturally assigning these credits and debts to givers and receivers, the act of giving becomes a gift that is made an equivalent of something else that has transpired in the past.13 This practice of reciprocity also hinges on the notion that giving is earned and condoned equitably, and that this rule applies to everyone under the same conditions, even if it does not satisfy everyone to the same degree. The social contract is based on this notion of earned credit and repaid debt that are applied equally to the participants. When help is given, earned, and repaid in an ongoing chain of giving, the interaction reinforces the belief that support arrangements are mutual and therefore fair. The symbolic equity entailed in the practice of reciprocity allows givers and receivers to subscribe to the idea of giving without incurring "undue" sacrifices, because the gift is deserved. 13 Along these lines, Robert E. Goodin has hence argued that parent-child relations do not, strictly speaking, constitute "reciprocity"; see Protecting the Vulnerable: A Reanalysis of Our Social Responsibilities, 84.

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The Gift of Generations RIGHTS, RESPONSIBILITIES, AND COLLECTIVE INTERESTS

Social support becomes a social contract when it is legitimated in a collective order of giving that transcends the material and instrumental give-and-take of everyday life. If deserving help is a social construction, then this construct must be legitimated in the institutional order of society. Helping schemes for the elderly that yield delayed and indirect payoffs to successive generations must be reinforced by a shared understanding of the requisites that legitimate the social contract.14 Helping arrangements are precarious without the designation of rights and responsibilities that define the substance of this collective agreement. 15 The social designation of rights and responsibilities also regulates the collective interest of givers and receivers symbolically. The cumulative lifetime contributions to the social security system, for example, do not equal the total amount of benefits paid out to an average retiree, because the contributions are now easily recovered within a few years of retirement;16 yet, the symbolic equation that "you pay in what you get out" prevails in the popular perception.17 Similarly, the unilateral transfer of social services has also been construed as a system of exchange, based on the equation of taxes and services.18 As few social situations call for exact exchanges of identical gifts, as I have argued, the social contract must be based on such symbolisms and approximations of equivalence. The social designation of rights and responsibilities casts the objective reality in different light to invoke a collective perception of equity even when no equity exists in the actual sense. This system of regulating collective interests is particularly important in relationships of giving that involve delayed and intangi14 Peter Laslett, "Is There a Generational Contract?" 27-28. 15 Norman Daniels, Am I My Parents' Keeper? An Essay on Justice between the Young and the Old, chap. 2. 16 Martha Baum and Rainer Baum, Growing Old: A Societal Perspective, 10; Laurence Kotlikoff, Generational Accounting: Knowing Who Pays, and When, for What We Spend, 97-98. This "rate of return" may decline in the future; see discussion in James Schulz, Economics of Aging, 172-175, and Norman Daniels, Am I My Parents' Keeper?: An Essay on Justice between the Young and the Old, 132. 17 Juanita M. Kreps, "Intergenerational Transfers and the Bureaucracy." 18 Robert Pruger, "Social Policy: Unilateral Transfer or Reciprocal Exchange."

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The Social Regulation of Interests ble gratification. Robert Pinker also refers to this logic of collective interest as a system of social equivalence,19 which creates the sense of equity in the way people are made to deserve the help they receive - that is, the sense of symbolic equity.

THE LOGIC OF SYMBOLIC EQUITY

In essence, the social contract entails a process of establishing symbolic equity that regulates the collective order of giving. To institutionalize the everyday acts of giving, a social contract must do more than cement goodwill and generosity with incentives and rewards: It must routinize giving through means of regulating the interests of givers and receivers. As givers and receivers in the support relationship are involved in an intrinsically inequitable relationship - in the material and instrumental sense - the social contract works according to a logic of fairness that restores the equity between them, symbolically. Cultural assignments of rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts create special standards of evaluation so that beneficiaries are regarded as having earned the right to be helped, and as receiving the aid legitimately. The social contract, when successful, resolves the question of power and hierarchy in the giver-receiver relationship through this formula of creating the symbolism of deservedness in symbolic equity. This logic of symbolic equity in the social contract finds an analogy in what Anthony Giddens calls dialectic of control - the notion that relations of power provide the subordinate with some degree of control over the other in defining the conditions of reproducing power through the very act of participating in that relationship.20 Support receivers sustain some measure of control in the hierarchical relationship of giving by legitimating their "deservedness," and by evoking their past contributions and gifts to the givers. The support relationship is therefore not a rigid, quid pro quo exchange of help, but a fluid 19 Robert Pinker, Social Theory and Social Policy, 153. See also his The Idea of Welfare, chap. 5. 20 Anthony Giddens, Central Problems in Social Theory: Action, Structure and Contradiction in Social Analysis, 6.

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The Gift of Generations series of giving that is symbolically constructed as reciprocation in this dialectic of control.21 Deeds and objects that are "matched" are rarely identical or even tangible in practice, but are created by individual perceptions and evaluations about what counts. They matter as equalizers in meaning and substance only to the givers and receivers concerned in their context of relevance; as such, any type of giving can count if it is meaningful to them. The process of creating symbolic equity entails the central premise that a long-term helping arrangement must level the playing field between the giver and receiver to routinize and redistribute the gift. By assigning rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts, the support system symbolically redresses the material inequity in the giver-receiver relationship. When condoning the idea that givers owe help to those who deserve it and that receivers are entitled to help from those who are obliged to give it, social support becomes a system of giving that regulates self-interests, and not just a sum of favors that people exchange to maximize their self-interests. In essence, symbolic equity is an evaluation that is shaped by the perceptions, dispositions, and converted interests of individual givers and receivers. As such, it is a subjective construct that is influenced by the assumptions people make about the nature of life and the interests that they pursue. People construct the meaning and value of giving and deserving according to this subjective vision of fairness created from accumulated memories of past experiences.22 At the society level, different standards of evaluating giving and deserving yield different social contracts. At the individual level, mismatched meanings of giving and deserving lead to a failure of establishing meaningful support relationships - just as they did for Dorothy and her grandchildren, and Toshio and his daughter-in-law. These evaluations are structured in the subjective meanings and equivalences that determine the value of the gifts. As Bourdieu has argued, they constitute a system of dispositions, habitus, that gener21 In this sense, this formulation is akin to Levi-Strauss's notion of generalized exchange; see Elementary Structures of Kinship, part 2. 22 Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise on the Sociology of Knowledge, 127.

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The Social Regulation of Interests ate particular preferences and interests that shape the rules of interaction.23 His notion that perceptions and actions embrace a logic of practice that holds its own internal system of symbolic meaning is also useful for understanding cross-cultural differences in helping behavior. Affluent societies agree that the vulnerable should be protected, but notions of who is vulnerable, what constitutes protection, and how the goal ought to be achieved hinge on these different systems of dispositions that constitute the logic of the social contract. This argument therefore suggests that social contracts for the elderly are different not because they are culturally "unique," but because they apply dissimilar standards of symbolic equity that derive from local knowledge and interests. DISTRIBUTION OF SYMBOLIC RESOURCES: EMPOWERMENT AND DISEMPOWERMENT

The analysis of symbolic equity now leads us to the notion that the social contract is not only a distributive system of material and instrumental resources, but also a distributive system of symbolic resources. These symbolic resources24 - rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts - are distributed to givers and receivers according to a logic of fairness that lies at the heart of the social contract. Withoutthis concern for symbolic resources, individual helping agreements are shortterm solutions that are unlikely to resolve what Alan Wolfe calls the dilemma between selfishness and selflessness.25 At best, the social contract distributes these symbolic resources to restore the equity in the giver-receiver relationship. Each society has two logical possibilities of establishing symbolic equity between those with and without material and instrumental resources - that is, between the giver and the receiver of the support 23 Pierre Bourdieu, The Logic of Practice, chap. 3; and Outline of a Theory of Practice, chap. 2. 24 I use the term symbolic resources to refer to the four social assignments: rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts. This term derives from Bourdieu's idea of symbolic capital, but refers here only to the specific assignments analyzed in this study. See Pierre Bourdieu, "Forms of Capital." 25 Alan Wolfe, Whose Keeper? Social Science and Moral Obligation, 215.

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The Gift of Generations relationship: They can be equalized by strengthening the weak, or by weakening the strong. Accordingly, these possibilities lead to two generic strategies of establishing symbolic equity between the giver and receiver which I will call the strategy of empowerment and the strategy of disempowerment. The strategy of empowerment refers to a process of legitimating dependency by recognizing the rights of the vulnerable. It strengthens the relative status of receivers by framing these rights in a language of deservedness (credit). Receivers are to be protected because they are entitled to help; their past contributions are made to count in their license to receive their "repayment." In this equation, the receivers are transformed from being helpless beneficiaries to entitled, deserving individuals. By contrast, the strategy of disempowerment represents an attempt to legitimate dependency by emphasizing the duties of givers in the support relationship. It weakens the relative status of givers by defining these duties in terms of their indebtedness (liability) to the receivers. Givers are thus obliged to help; they are diminished from being controlling givers to indebted, obligated persons. By assigning different symbolic resources - rights and responsibilities - both strategies establish an abstract kind of fairness in the support relationship I have called symbolic equity. Japan and the United States share these same structural options of restoring the equity between the giver and the receiver. Insofar as both share the same problem of inequity between the giver and the receiver, they face these same choices in regulating interests in the giver-receiver relationship. Yet they choose differently from these options, because they embrace different cultural definitions of vulnerability and he'p. How different symbolic resources come to count in some societies and not in others can be better understood in light of these different structural choices. The most fundamental distinction between the Japanese and American social contracts lies in these different strategies they choose to restructure the power dynamics between the giver and the receiver. Throughout the empirical analysis of this book, we have seen these different strategies of symbolic redistribution at work in the two societies. It is evident that, on the whole, Japan's approach to social sup172

The Social Regulation of Interests port primarily emphasizes the strategy of disempowerment. Japan's support system is essentially giver-driven, as its reliance on filial obligation, family responsibility, and preference for protection amply attest. The protective approach in Japan essentially promotes old-age security by making the givers accountable for giving. While some empowerment of the elderly is also found to some degree - notably in the social security and health care systems - the social contract is grounded primarily in the generalized designation of responsibilities rather than rights of its citizens. By contrast, Americans primarily emphasize the strategy of empowerment, as we have seen in their preference for independence, entitlements, and crisis intervention. The strategy focuses on promoting the autonomy of receivers by safeguarding a range of choices in the support system. Again, some disempowerment can also be found in the American contingency approach to a degree, especially for family caregivers, but the social contract derives primarily from the generalized exercise of rights rather than the prescription of responsibility per se. In both Japan and the United States, tolerance toward dependency is therefore determined not by different amounts of goodwill, but by the different derivations of symbolic equity in their respective cultures. These two symbolic strategies represent the most essential difference in the social contracts of Japan and the United States. The typological classification of different social expectations and assignments of the two strategies is shown in Table 8.1. The strategy of empowerment focuses on regulating the interests of receivers: It symbolically elevates their power by designating entitlements, and by inducing their expectation toward intervention in times of need. In this strategy, therefore, givers are expected to intervene when vulnerability is evident. By contrast, the strategy of disempowerment is directed to regulating the interests of givers: It diminishes the symbolic power of givers by designating obligations to them, to help and protect those who are deemed vulnerable. Receivers in this case are helped not so much by right but by their expectation for protection toward those who shoulder the designated duties. In both strategies, therefore, the giver-receiver relationship is symbolically restructured according to a distinct logic of fairness that regulates the helping arrangement. 173

The Gift of Generations Table 8.1. Strategies of regulating interests in helping relationships Strategies Empowerment of receivers Disempowerment of givers

Givers

Receivers

Expectation of intervention Designation of obligation

Designation of entitlement Expectation of protection

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CONSTRUCTIONS OF SUPPORT

The foregoing analysis of cultural assumptions and symbolic assignments now leaves us with multiple subtexts to interpret the practice of giving, receiving, and deserving across the two societies. Cultural assumptions and assignments shape support practices and are reinforced by them, in turn, in the dynamics of empowerment and disempowerment strategies. The conditions of these strategies are inevitably subsumed under the same semantic labels when we discuss them in the same language, but they carry different desires, options, and constraints for individuals in different cultural and social environments. In this last section of the chapter, I will identify these different conditions of deservedness created by symbolic strategies as they emerge from our comparative analysis, and then discuss their implications for the social contract. For this purpose, I will address the core issues of the social contract in turn; first I will deal with issues of vulnerability and security, then entitlement and obligation, and reciprocity and dependency. Finally I will address the failures and costs in the two strategies and their implications for individuals, both old and young. Vulnerability and Security When Toshio and Ernest - the Japanese retiree who married into the Shimada futon business and the American widower who lives in West Haven's elderly housing unit - express their fears about old age, they speak of different kinds of vulnerability. Toshio's uneasiness is pre174

The Social Regulation of Interests cipitated by his less than friendly daughter-in-law, who is unlikely to perform her designated caregiver role to his satisfaction. Ernest's problem, by contrast, has to do with not wanting to reach the point where he would be forced to depend on someone to live. While Toshio fears helplessness as a state of not having help, Ernest fears helplessness primarily as a state of being in need of help. The distinction between the two men's sense of helplessness rests in the different degrees to which disability is expected and accepted in old age, and the different solutions it implies. Although both men wish for more affectionate ties that would help alleviate those fears, their search for security leads to different directions because the quality of their helplessness is different. Toshio wants an assurance of dependable support - an assurance that is indeed the central feature of the protective approach to support in Japan. Because the knowledge that help will be available is the key to alleviating the Japanese sense of helplessness, the assignment of obligation and indebtedness to givers is critical to the protective approach. Filial coresidence has greater symbolic value in Japan than a similar living arrangement would have in the United States, because coresidence represents a proof that these assignments have been accepted by the givers in the family. In this context, coresidence amounts to a strategy of disempowerment, because it legitimates the formula of debt in the coresident children. Ernest prefers a scenario that allows him to maintain his autonomy until the end - although this is not, strictly speaking, a gift that anybody can be reasonably expected to give. The alleviation of helplessness is therefore not a direct responsibility of caregivers, but his own. The hallmark of the contingency approach in American society is thus the diffuse support network that facilitates the bearing of this responsibility. The greater symbolic value of customized help - according to need - in American society becomes more evident when we consider this responsibility assigned to the elderly. The American sense of security derives from the respect for self-reliance as part of this responsibility, which in turn leads to the preference for a strategy of empowerment. 175

The Gift of Generations Entitlement and Obligation When Yasumasa and Helen, the owner of the Nishikawa rice store and the West Haven homemaker, talk about their expectations of future support, they refer to different systems of entitlement and obligation in the giver-receiver relationship. Yasumasa has secured his son's and his daughters' obligations by evoking their debts explicitly ("Will you care for your father and mother when they are old and ill? We did a lot to take care of you when you were small and growing up"). By contrast, Helen allows greater flexibility in her daughters' obligation to help ("You can't expect the kids over at the drop of the pin. And I think girls drop the pin faster and do it than the boy will"). Yasumasa and Helen have different notions of obligation in mind: A child's obligation for Yasumasa is a duty; for Helen, a voluntary commitment. The distinction between the two people's anticipation of help lies in these different qualities of duties and commitment that are assigned to the givers in the support relationship. Both Yasumasa and Helen feel relatively secure with their personal support systems, because their children evidently accept the cultural assignments of duties and commitments. In the Japanese case, obligation is a nonnegotiable debt imposed on the younger generation. Obligation in the Japanese protective approach is part of a generalized designation of responsibilities that leaves little room for these givers to choose. In this sense, the greater symbolic value of family responsibility in Japan compared with that in the United States, both as a feature of social service delivery and as a legislative framework (fuyo gimu), also becomes more evident. To reproduce giving at the society level, the social contract in Japan distributes symbolic resources to disempower the givers. Helen's daughters subscribe to commitments of a more elective kind than those of their Japanese counterparts. In the American contingency approach, obligation refers to a chosen commitment to offer help, and it is more contingent on individualized need and personal affinity than in Japan. Under these conditions, commitment becomes a negotiable and variable symbolic resource for givers and receivers alike. In the contingency approach, obligation is construed 176

The Social Regulation of Interests as a choice: As such, it creates constraints for givers, but it does not disempower them. The two different notions of obligation in Japan and the United States also mirror a distinction in the idea of entitlement to the social contract. Entitlement in the Japanese protective approach refers to a sense of reward - a payoff for past contributions made primarily to a private contract.26 For example, Fuku who lives in a four-generation household can designate her children and grandchildren to be caregivers, because she has earned this reward through past sacrifices and hardships. By contrast, entitlement in the American contingency system refers to a sense of claim to rights designated primarily in a public contract. Ben and Judith, the middle-class opticians, have turned to Medicaid for Judith's mother and if necessary they will also take advantage of it themselves. These two approaches to entitlement reflect distinct notions of rights that are embedded in their respective strategies of empowerment and disempowerment. The two approaches to entitlement designate different credits and rights, in part because they entail distinct ideas about the complementarity of entitlement and obligation. In the Japanese context, entitlement and obligation are complementary: One's entitlement is another's obligation,27 and indeed one does not exist without the other. On the other hand, entitlement in the American context is not a component in a zero-sum relationship, but part of a generalized formula of rights and responsibilities assigned to each individual. The distinction between systems of rewards and claims therefore reflects these different notions of boundary in the availability of social and symbolic resources. The stronger sense of resource limits in Japan leads to the belief that empowering one person must disempower another; in the United States, the weaker sense of the upper limits of resources leads to the notion that one person can be empowered without disempowering another. 26 In fact, there is no exact translation for the English word entitlement in the Japanese language, which is symptomatic of the strategy of disempowerment. Approximate but insufficient translations are found in the words kenri (right) and shikaku (qualification). 27 Alvin Gouldner, "The Norm of Reciprocity: A Preliminary Statement," 169.

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The Gift of Generations Reciprocity and Dependency When Japanese and Americans talk about intergenerational support, they both refer to systems of reciprocity and dependency in the giver-receiver relationship. As we have seen, these systems are not readily explained by structural characteristics like the number of children or different levels of resource availability. They depend, in most cases, on the assumptions and assignments of credits, debts, and affinity that underlie the agreement of support between younger and older generations. These agreements are not always amicable or conflictfree, as we will discuss in the next section. Nevertheless, these agreements play a central role in the regulation of intergenerational interests in the support relationship. These systems of reciprocity and dependency also have somewhat different meanings in the two cultures. For example, the homemaker Hiro sees something of a reciprocal contract between herself and one designated son, which does not exist for her other nine children ("the right thing to do was to be with the eldest son. . . . It's not done otherwise"). She has a sense of contract with him that derives its social validity from the assignment of credits and debts for this specific relationship in the Japanese context. This son is not even her favorite child, and she would much rather live with one of her daughters, but it is he who represents the symbolic contract that ensures long-term security for Hiro. Under these conditions, moving with another child will not create symbolic equity; only staying with this eldest child establishes a legitimate social contract. By contrast, the former factory worker Theresa who lived in the senior housing unit refers to a sense of solidarity rather than a contract, when she talks about intergenerational relations ("we get together sometimes. . . . I don't need all that attention now. Except when I need them"). This solidarity also represents a helping arrangement, but one that embraces diffuse expectations that whoever can help will do so. Her intergenerational relationships sustain symbolic equity, because the careful regard for the reciprocal rights of each generation maintains their independence from one another.

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The Social Regulation of Interests This distinction between the two types of reciprocity reflects the different degree to which dependency is legitimated in the cultural fabric of Japanese and American societies. West Haveners amply testify to their desire for independence, as Ben and Judith were especially eager to point out ("they have to go their own way, and we have to go our way")- To Odawarans, dependency itself is no imminent threat, compared with that of not having appropriate help when one becomes dependent. Hence, Odawarans like Fuku who have all the help they need experience no sense of danger ("even my grandson is here now, see. I have nothing to worry about"). The different symbolic values of reciprocity are evident in these cases: The distribution of symbolic resources is directed to reducing dependency in the United States, and to legitimating dependency in Japan. Failures and Costs The social contract evolves around the principle of symbolic equity, but does not always succeed in regulating everyone's interests simultaneously. As social and cultural choices are made about whose rights and responsibilities - and whose credits and debts - should be reinforced among givers, receivers, and nonreceivers, symbolic equity is enhanced for some relationships and not for others. The socially and culturally acceptable costs and benefits of dependency fluctuate over time, as does the definition of the giver-receiver relationship, so that different generations do not always agree on the standard of symbolic equity. Establishing rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts requires social agreements that are not always easily achieved, especially under conditions of rapid social change.28 Symbolic strategies to resolve the problem of inequity and dependency in support relationships therefore lead to different individual successes, failures, and costs in the two societies. We have seen many cases of intergenerational conflict in Japan. Both Teru and Hiro feel unwelcome with their sons' families, but resign themselves 28 Nancy Foner, "When the Contract Fails: Care for the Elderly in Nonindustrial Cultures."

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The Gift of Generations to the demands of the younger generation in silent frustration. Toshio and his wife have moved out of their three-generation household because the intergenerational conflict grew out of control. These are cases where notions of entitlement and obligation have become mismatched because different generations maintain dissimilar perceptions of credits and debts; and they exemplify failures in establishing symbolic equity in the support relationship. In the multigeneration household, symbolic equity is not always easy to attain: Family members must forge compromises in everyday decisions and choices, about what to eat, when to talk, and where to sleep. The key to getting along, as Odawarans testify, lies in sustaining the sense of fairness in the everyday acts of giving. Otherwise, the system of coresidence - and the strategy of disempowerment - exacts a high price from those in the younger generation, especially as it expects them to start paying for their own old-age insurance at an early age. By contrast, the failure of support in American society is found more commonly in individual cases of withdrawal and isolation. Stella, for instance, exemplified this sense of isolation from her social supports when she pointed to the hostility, distrust, and bitterness that she perceived in the world around her. Dorothy has also withdrawn from her family and social network in the housing compound, to avoid both disappointment and dependency. Because the contingency approach sets a standard of symbolic equity that demands voluntary engagement, it also invites more d/sengagement in the support relationship than the protective approach.29 The withdrawal and isolation more common for the American elderly30 therefore derive not from an inherent absence of generosity in intergenerational ties, but from a greater willingness to withdraw from the relationship when the negotiation fails. When symbolic equity fails for the elderly in 29 This point is also consistent with psychologist Martin Greenberg's findings that people are less likely to request and accept help when they cannot reciprocate. He proposes that this behavior is due to discomfort associated with indebtedness. See "A Theory of Indebtedness," 17. 30 Elaine Cumming and William E. Henry, Growing Old: The Process of Disengagement. Although Cumming and Henry proposed that the process of disengagement in old age is universal, their thesis is tenable only in cultural contexts where voluntary disengagement is viable as a social option.

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The Social Regulation of Interests Japan, they pay the price of security with resignation; when it fails for the elderly in the United States, they pay the price of autonomy with disengagement. The imperfections of the social strategies in forging symbolic equity point to the constraints and limitations of constructing the social contract in each society. In this sense, the criterion of symbolic equity ultimately amounts to setting the threshold of acceptable flaws, and of the price that individuals are willing to pay; and the payment is inevitably higher for some than for others. The cultural negotiation in the dialectic of control therefore never completely succeeds in equalizing all relationships between the giver and the receiver.

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9

Conclusion

M

ODERN societies today contend with new population dynamics that have never before existed in their demographic history. As the number of older people grows, these countries must determine how best to organize themselves to provide for the needs of this population, while at the same time fostering the sense of social contract for the society as a whole. The constraints are real: Fiscal and material resources are finite and must be shared in a way that is perceived to be just. In the face of these problems, societies confront the fundamental questions of who gets what, how, and why. To answer these questions, these societies ultimately must appraise the principles underlying the reasons why some people should deserve more help than others. This study has systematically examined the Japanese and American answers to this fundamental question. It has explored the basic issues of vulnerability, dependency, security, protection, entitlement, and obligation that require direct attention if these societies are to meet the demands of different generations in the forthcoming decades. We have found that support is organized and perceived differently according to different cultural and social conditions; yet in both Japanese and American societies, the key to turning obligation into giving and charity into entitlement is the recognition that support between generations is a legitimate process of intrinsic value. Despite differences in both nations, the solution to the "problem" of old age in the final analysis is the gift of generations symbolized in a logic of fairness. The intrinsic value of giving in contemporary society is based on its secular standard of symbolic equity. Helping arrangements are institutionalized as a support system ultimately according to how fairness is defined in the contemporary culture, and how this fundamental eval182

Conclusion uation is structured into the social hierarchy of resource inequity. Thus, the argument I have proposed in this study points to the practice and assessment of symbolic equity as the essence of the social contract in each society. This argument is based on an examination of the premises and ground rules on which these societies draw, both implicitly and explicitly, to organize their helping arrangements. It highlights the significance of social expectations and solidarities that are grounded in cultural memories, and the salience of social strategies and regulations that control the different intergenerational interests. These expectations and strategies form the foundation of support systems in which succeeding generations of both societies participate with a sense of a "social contract." This argument, derived inductively from comparative empirical data, also points to the intersection of culture and power in our understanding of the social contract. The notion that support practices are sustained by the normative regulation of symbolic resources embedded in structural relationships takes us a step further in understanding how culture shapes power. The cultural assignments of rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts that I have examined in this study are essential processes of manipulating the structural dimension of the gift relationship. These cultural assignments create a redistribution of symbolic resources - through empowerment and disempowerment strategies - that restores the equity in the hierarchy of social difference between the gift giver and the receiver. Unlike in class inequity where theorists suggest that symbolic capital is used to reproduce the social difference,1 in the social contract, symbolic resources are used to redress the social difference, because this gift relationship is deeply embedded in a dialectic of control. CULTURE, POWER, AND THE SOCIAL CONTRACT

In support of the argument, this study points to the centrality of two key dimensions of support practices found across different societies. 1 Pierre Bourdieu, Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste; Michele Lamont, Money, Morals, and Manners: The Culture of the French and American Upper-Middle Class.

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The Gift of Generations The Significance of Cultural Assumptions Social support is structured by a set of expectations and dispositions about need, security, equity, and self-sufficiency that influence our values and preferences about what support ought to do. These cultural assumptions underlie the subjective reality in which we make sense of the nature of human relationships, anticipate our life course trajectories, and forge our gift relationships. To understand how and why the social contract works, then, it is important to recognize the key cultural assumptions, and identify how they mold and constrain the organization of support in each sociocultural context. These assumptions are central in forging the social ties of giving, receiving, and deserving help in old age, and also in assigning entitlements and obligations in the support relationship. Since these assumptions and assignments are defined culturally, it follows then that the outcome the way the social contract is organized - is also different from one country to another. As such, the social designation of "deserving citizens" is defined by our values and ideas that are constrained by the sociocultural conditions of different societies. In both Japan and the United States, these cultural assumptions play a pivotal role in shaping support arrangements by defining the giving and receiving of help in ways that are meaningful in their societies. The six cultural assumptions that I have discussed in this study concern the essence of social support: need, security, equity, intimacy, self-sufficiency, and resource affluence. In both societies, the same categories of assumptions matter in different ways. As we have seen, the Japanese tend to expect more vulnerability in old age than the Americans, and seek security in maximizing the certainty of support rather than minimizing dependency. The Americans, by contrast, pursue a more open life course scenario than the Japanese, and tend to seek security by maximizing their autonomy. The premium placed on protection in Japan and on crisis intervention in the United States makes much sense in the context of these assumptions and preferences. Japan's protective approach to support also relies on the assumption that the filial, not conjugal, tie is the most intimate and reliable social bond, and that this intergenerational relationship is the unit of 184

Conclusion self-sufficiency. This arrangement is "fair" in the Japanese context, because the serial order of giving is directed to the older generation, which successively takes its turn to depend on the younger generation for support. The American contingency approach, on the other hand, is linked to the perception that the conjugal tie takes precedence over the filial tie as the primary bond, and that the couple makes the independent unit of self-sufficiency. The "fairness" of this American arrangement relies on the sense of intergenerational equity that is directed to the younger generation, which will successively take its turn to seek its own independence. Clearly, the prevalence of filial coresidence in Japan and that of husband-wife households in the United States originate to a large extent in these assumptions about the nature of parent-child and husband-wife relationships. The Regulation of Interests Social support is also a helping arrangement that involves means to regulate interests, which are, in turn, grounded in cultural assumptions. The designation of rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts regulates the interests of givers and receivers to restore symbolic equity in the support relationship. To forge the social contract, these assignments are indispensable: Typically, the arrangement of reciprocal intergenerational support is based on a logic of credits and debts that establishes the notion of mutual interest; by the same token, the designation and reinforcement of rights and responsibilities to the elderly, the family, and the state establish the notion of collective interest for institutionalizing support arrangements. Regulating interests in the social contract is important, because support involves intrinsically unequal relationships. In each act of giving the giver and the receiver are not on equal footing, as giving is essentially a one-sided endeavor of material or instrumental transfer; the regulation of interests is a means to redress this structural inequity. The social assignments of rights, responsibilities, credits, and debts that construct notions of deserving citizens serve precisely this purpose. These assignments define the symbolic value of the gift in such a way that the helper derives a sense of obligation and fairness, and 185

The Gift of Generations the helped derives a sense of entitlement and deservedness. From this perspective, the social contract is not just a redistributive system of tangible material and instrumental resources: It is also a social agreement that relies on the assignment of symbolic resources to reformulate the structural interests of the gift relationship. In both Japan and the United States, this assignment of symbolic resources is fundamental to establishing long-term support arrangements, and the two societies emphasize different strategies to attain this goal. We have seen that Japan primarily adopts a strategy of disempowerment that is geared especially to regulating the interests of givers. If the Japanese are more prone to family support, it is not necessarily because they are more compassionate about their aging parents than the Americans; it is because their interests are regulated more effectively by using the family unit. By contrast, American society tends to adopt a strategy of empowerment that is directed to regulating the interests of support receivers. This strategy's assignment of entitlements and credits is more compatible with the American concern for crisis intervention rather than crisis prevention. Meanings and interests are therefore both essential elements to understanding the social contract. Meanings embodied in cultural memories are grounded in material conditions that make giving possible in the first place; and these meanings also shape the ground rules of giving, keeping, receiving, and deserving that transform the structural interests in those activities. Structural interests of gift relationships, in turn, also give shape to these rules by eliciting the social strategies for regulating deservedness. The social contract is therefore at once materially grounded, structurally conditioned, and also contingent on meaning. Clarifying these subjective and objective conditions of deservedness - and their recursive influences on one another - is therefore pivotal to understanding the practices of the social contract both empirically and theoretically. REFLECTIONS ON DIVERSITY AND CHANGE

A comparative study such as this which synthesizes a range of crosscultural observations relies on a conceptual framework that also 186

Conclusion subsumes both cultural and structural elements of the social contract. It suggests that a support system is only unique insofar as cultural assumptions and assignments vary from one society to another, and also that the principle that determines the notion of deservedness is nothing inherently unique to a certain culture. This principle of deservedness is simply a standard of symbolic equity that regulates interests differently in different cultures; therefore, support systems in different cultures share similar social mechanisms to cope with the same structural constraints of inequity. These differences and similarities taken together reveal the mutual constitution of culture and structure mediated in these practices. While it is tempting to focus on unique historical traditions - such as Confucianism and Christianity, or collectivism and individualism - to account for the differences between Japanese and Western support practices, these cultural explanations alone do not adequately account for the reasons why all societies nevertheless sustain these social contracts. By the same token, accounting for cross-national similarities in the social contract by focusing on the institutional conditions of capitalist economies neglects to explain why actors in different cultures nevertheless make dissimilar choices and commitments. This study has attempted to bridge these cultural and structural perspectives by linking them in the concept of symbolic equity. Understanding the workings of the social contract in both Japan and the United States - for all their differences and similarities - lies in identifying the common categories of assumptions and assignments relevant to routinizing support, and in recognizing the parallel logic2 in the social practices of transforming structural relationships. As such, this framework presupposes neither the uniqueness of cultures nor a "lag" in the structural evolution of societies that have dominated the culture-structure debate. The burgeoning recent efforts in comparative research to bridge the culture-structure divide seem to justify this contribution to the expanding scholarly enterprise.3 2 Pierre Bourdieu, The Logic of Practice, chap. 5. 3 See, for example, V. Lee Hamilton and J. Sanders, Everyday Justice: Responsibility and the Individual in Japan and the United States; Robert E. Cole, Strategies for Learning: Small-Group Activities in American, Japanese, and Swedish Industry;

187

The Gift of Generations This perspective also has the advantage of expanding the potential scope of future research in comparative gerontology. By applying a theoretical framework that centers on the notion of normative regulation, it is possible to develop a further understanding of support in Western and non-Western societies for which gerontological theories of modernization, disengagement, and activity have not accounted.4 Many non-Western, especially Asian, nations also share the characteristics of Japan's family support system, yet none of its cultural or socioeconomic conditions.5 India or Thailand, for example, espouses no Japanese features6 (e.g., Confucian values, ie family system, amae dependency, on obligations, or advanced industrial development), yet establishes similar patterns of multigenerational coresidence and filial obligation.7 These similarities may be accounted for, not by pointing to different religions and family systems, but to the logic of regulating interests based on like assumptions and assignments. By the same token, the diversity among Western societies - such as that between the welfare states and the nonwelfare states - might also be explored by comparing the key assumptions and relevant assignments among them. It might be conjectured, for example, that the cradle-tograve policies of the Scandinavian states derive from assumptions that need will be inevitable in old age, and that their responses to this life script are found in a strategy that both empowers the receiver and disempowers the giver simultaneously. The hypotheses that develop from

4

5

6 7

James R. Lincoln and Arne L. Kalleberg, Culture, Control and Commitment: A Study of Work Organization and Work Attitudes in the United States and Japan; Hiroshi Ishida, Social Mobility in Contemporary Japan: Educational Credentials, Class, and the Labour Market in Cross-National Perspective; Mary Brinton, Women and the Economic Miracle: Gender and Work in Postwar Japan; Margaret Lock, Encounters with Aging: Mythologies of Menopause in Japan and North America. Donald O. Cowgill and Lowell D. Holmes, Aging and Modernization; Donald O. Cowgill, Aging around the World; Elaine Cumming and William E. Henry, Growing Old: The Process of Disengagement; Robert J. Havighurst, "Successful Aging." Akiko Hashimoto, Hal Kendig, and Larry Coppard, "Family Support to the Elderly in International Perspective," 297; Deborah Davis-Friedmann, Long Lives: Chinese Elderly and the Communist Revolution; Linda Martin, "The Aging of Asia"; Janet Zollinger Giele, "Family and Social Networks," 69-70. Akiko Hashimoto, "Ageing in Japan." Akiko Hashimoto, "Living Arrangements of the Aged in 7 Developing Countries: A Preliminary Analysis."

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Conclusion this framework lend themselves to empirical tests to further our understanding of different types of social contracts. In the process, new categories of assumptions and assignments may well emerge from comparing nations of different types of political economies, unlike those in a comparison of Japan and the United States. Although this study has essentially been cross-sectional in nature, some reflections on the possibilities of change - especially the contested possibility of convergence between Japan and the United States - might nevertheless be stated. Whether changing structural conditions in Japan, such as the increasing pension benefits and declining filial coresidence, make it become "more like the West" can be examined by searching for evidence of convergence in specific cultural assumptions and assignments. Distinguishing between assumptions and assignments that are more sensitive to changing socioeconomic conditions, and those that are less so, is useful in this context. Theoretically, assumptions and assignments that respond more swiftly to changing structural conditions comprise potential forces of convergence, whereas those that are more resistant to change do not. As Japanese pension benefits increase with the maturity of the Employee Pension system available for a greater number of younger elderly, an increasing proportion will no longer depend on filial support for financial security. Although the pension and health care reforms of the 1980s have curtailed the financial responsibility of the public sector to some degree,8 the diffusion of Employee Pension benefits is nevertheless likely to increase the sense of self-sufficiency and resource alternatives. This prospective financial security of a greater number of Japanese elderly has already stimulated the private sector to start some new businesses that offer essential instrumental services. Kinoshita and Kiefer also point to the creation of new retirement communities.9 If those who benefit from higher levels of pension in the 8 The pension reform of 1985 increased the age of eligibility of future cohorts of beneficiaries, and the health care reform of 1986 introduced new copayment schemes for the elderly. 9 Yasuhito Kinoshita and Christie Kiefer, Refuge of the Honored: Social Organization in a Japanese Retirement Community, especially 74-77.

189

The Gift of Generations future indeed take advantage of those services that can substitute for family support, then it is possible that they will invest less in the social contract with their children. Whether the prospective affluence is a sufficient condition itself to alter the nature of primary bonds, however, remains questionable in the foreseeable future. Whether the declining trend in coresidence - from 70% to 60% between 1980 and 1990 10 -will make Japan become "more like the West" can also be examined by searching for evidence of change in some cultural assumptions and assignments. The assumptions and assignments that affect coresidence, however, seem slow to change in spite of the changing socioeconomic environment. Some data in this study suggest that the declining rate of coresidence in Japan reflects a trend toward a postponement of coresidence rather than an abandonment of this practice. As Masa's, Shizu's, and Fumihiko's cases show, these Japanese families have adapted to social and geographic mobility of the younger generation by delaying coresidence, while retaining their expectation of future support essentially intact. The declining coresidence in Japan therefore has not so much to do with changing cultural assumptions of need and security that are converging toward the West, but with a modification of past practices to suit new structural conditions.11 Evidence from recent national surveys shows that over 80% of Japanese men and women still expect coresidence to be essential once aging parents are frail or widowed;12 Naoi Michiko also confirms the trend toward delayed coresidence at the national level, and refers to the phenomenon as tochudokyo.13 Delayed coresidence therefore represents a variant of the strategy of disempowerment, rather than a switch to the strategy of empowerment. It is unlikely, for this reason, that the rate of coresidence in Japan will ultimately fall to the level of Western societies in the foreseeable future.14 10 11 12 13

Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 44. Akiko Hashimoto, "Family Relations in Later Life: A Cross-Cultural Perspective." Daisaku Maeda and Yutaka Shimizu, "Family Support for Elderly People in Japan," 235. Naoi Michiko, Koreisha to kazoku: Atarashii tsunagari o motomete, 103-104. It is also notable that Yuzawa Yasuhiko predicted this trend in 1973; see his "Rojin fuyo mondai no kozo to tenkai." 14 For the relevance of bequests in this context, see Norkio O. Tsuya and Linda G. Martin, "Living Arrangements of Elderly Japanese and Attitudes toward Inheritance."

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Conclusion Another variant in Japan's strategy of disempowerment can be found in the diversification of women's social assignment as primary caregivers. As new social conditions - such as the abolishment of the stem family system ie, geographical mobility, and higher dependency ratio - make the availability of yome less certain, increasingly more daughters will become caregivers also to their own aging parents.15 Yome, after all, is not an ascribed status like birth order or age that comprises the basis of social assignments, so her obligation has become more negotiable in recent years. As in Toshio's and Hiro's cases, the yome's assignment is also a source of irrevocable conflict for many families.16 Japan's response to this growing uncertainty about yome's roles and obligations is likely to be found in enlisting daughters to supplement or sometimes replace these daughters-in-law.17 Since yome are themselves daughters to their own aging parents, however, this modification of practice is only likely to escalate women's caregiving obligations.18 Thus the modified assignment represents neither an empowerment of women nor of the elderly, but a variation in the strategy of disempowerment in which women's caregiving obligations will intensify.19 As such, the revised assignment broadens, but does not 15 This is especially likely in a metropolitan area like Tokyo where the proportion of daughters who provide care for their own parents has increased in recent years, while that of daughters-in-law has remained the same. See Miura Fumio, Zusetsu koreisha hakusho 1994, 47. 16 The tension and conflict between yome and parents-in-law have also been noted by many Japan scholars. See Ezra F. Vogel, Japans New Middle Class: The Salary Man and His Family in a Tokyo Suburb, 203-207; Yoshinori Kamo, "A Note on Elderly Living Arrangements in Japan and the United States," 303. 17 A recent national survey conducted by the Rojin Taisakushitsu of the Japan Management and Coordination Agency also shows an increase in the preference for daughters as caregivers; see Choju shakai to danjo no yakuwari ishiki: Choju shakai ni okeru danjobetsu no ishiki no keiko ni kansuru chosa hokoku, 41, 172. 18 The escalating caregiver burden of Japanese women has been well documented; see Daisaku Maeda, "Family Care in Japan," and also Christie W. Kiefer, "Care of the Aged in Japan." 19 Ruth Campbell and Elaine Brody have shown that gender role attitudes are significantly less egalitarian in Japan than in the United States, although the latter's achievement is also limited. See Ruth Campbell and Elaine M. Brody, "Women's Changing Roles and Help to the Elderly: Attitudes of Women in the United States and Japan"; Elaine Brody, " 'Women in the Middle' and Family Help to Older People"; and Elaine M. Brody, Pauline T. Johnsen, Mark C. Fulcomer, and Abigail

191

The Gift of Generations drastically change, the key assumptions of intergenerational equity and primary bonds underlying the practice of serial care.20 For as long as some of these basic assumptions and strategies remain in force, it seems reasonable to project that Japan is likely to continue pursuing its protective approach, and that the United States will also likely continue its contingency practices. To the degree that systems of entitlements and obligations are tied to these cultural expectations and solidarities, the fundamental nature of the social contract in these societies is unlikely to change dramatically in the foreseeable future. Although some modification in support practices will inevitably take place, a fundamental transformation of a security structure, such as from a Japanese to an American one, is unlikely. This conclusion therefore agrees with that of Palmore and Maeda's study of aging in Japan for different reasons:21 If the Japanese continue to prize certainty above autonomy because of their perception of anticipated need, then it is only reasonable for them to continue seeking protection over crisis intervention; as long as they forge their primary bonds and interdependent ties with their adult children, their preference for support maintained by the obligation of adult children will also continue. I therefore propose that the normative regulation of interests plays a greater role than filial piety in shaping society's response to economic and demographic pressures. M. Lang, "Women's Changing Roles and Help to Elderly Parents: Attitudes of Three Generations of Women." The ambivalence of Japanese women themselves is also reflected in the conflicting findings of recent surveys. Morgan and Hiroshima, for example, have found a generally high degree of satisfaction among married women living in extended family residence; Ogawa's study, by contrast, suggests their increasing reluctance for filial dependence. Philip S. Morgan and Kiyoshi Hiroshima, "The Persistence of Extended Family Residence in Japan: Anachronism or Alternative Strategy?"; Naohiro Ogawa, "Resources for the Elderly in Economic Development." 20 The gendered assignments also continue to be problematic. William Kelly therefore suggests that the increasing strain between genders may potentially become more significant than the tension between generations as the caregiver burden escalates; see "Japan's Debates about an Aging Society: The Later Years in the Land of the Rising Sun." 21 Erdman Palmore and Daisaku Maeda, The Honorable Elders Revisited: A Revised Cross-Cultural Analysis of Aging in Japan, chaps. 2 and 7.

192

Conclusion In conclusion, it is useful to point to five areas of further research that this study identifies. First, a comprehensive assessment of change in social support requires not only an examination of changing demographic and institutional conditions, but also an analysis of change in cultural assumptions and assignments. To develop an understanding of a "changing contract" that Vern Bengtson calls for,22 or the "permanence" of intergenerational solidarities of the kind that Martha Baum and Rainer Baum suggest,23 there is a need for historical and longitudinal data not only on changes in objective conditions over time, but also on changes in subjective perceptions of intergenerational interests. Second, a comparative study of two countries can exaggerate differences over similarities24 to account for dichotomized variance; further research on the symbolic dimension of the social contract could therefore benefit from examining variation in multiple (Western and non-Western) countries of different cultures and political economies. Third, as a comparative study such as this one focuses more on macrosocial variance than on microsocial differences, further research is needed to account also for different "cultural" assumptions and assignments by gender, class, and ethnicity. Fourth, in contrast to most social support research, this study has focused on support largely as a distributive system of symbolic resources; a promising area of future research lies in an effort to identify how closely, or loosely, this system links to the distribution of material and instrumental resources. Fifth, the intersubjectivity of meaning across different generations requires further attention for refining the symbolic equity thesis. Future research could therefore benefit from examining the congruities and incongruities of cultural responses across the interest positions of different generations by developing matched multigenerational samples. Finally, the question of fairness in designating individual, family, and state responsibilities to help the vulnerable in affluent societies is a 22 Vern L. Bengtson, "Is the 'Contract across Generations' Changing? Effects of Population Aging on Obligations and Expectations across Age Groups." 23 Martha Baum and Rainer Baum, Growing Old: A Societal Perspective, 8. 24 Joseph J. Tobin, D. Wu, and D. Davidson, Preschool in Three Cultures: Japan, China, and the United States, viii.

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The Gift of Generations matter of relative choice between strategies of empowerment and disempowerment. As we have seen, each strategy, based on different sets of assumptions and assignments, has its strengths and weaknesses, costs and benefits, and successes and failures. Nevertheless, the question of who deserves to be helped and why remains at the heart of the social contract that redistributes gifts from one generation to the next. The answers must address the dilemma of reconciling egoism and altruism as a fundamental condition of social support, and must be found in a negotiation guided by the standards of symbolic equity embedded in the tapestry of culture, power, and economy. By the year 2025, 20% of Americans and 25% of Japanese will be aged 65 and over. As population dynamics change, it is reasonable to expect that some of our needs and social relationships will also be transformed. A question of survival may become a matter of comfort; minimum sufficiency may become inadequate; and along the way, new rules, codes of conduct, and alternative risk insurance may also emerge. Yet, even as societies change in the amount of comfort and inequity they take for granted, it seems unlikely that the gift of generations itself will become dispensable for many years to come.

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Appendix Methods of Research

T

O learn about cross-national patterns of support from different aspects, I used multiple methods of data collection in this study. In fieldwork, I used three research methods: participant observation, focused interviews, and surveys. Because the same methods were used in both sites - West Haven and Odawara - the cross-national data are systematically comparable in all three respects. I collected most of the data during two years of fieldwork between 1980 and 1982, and updated them subsequently whenever possible. My last visits to the two cities took place in summer 1994. This study uses primary data from a total of 49 interviewees, 471 survey respondents, and innumerable local observations. I carried out all of the focused interviews and participant observation myself, and interviewed many of the survey respondents as well. I conducted fieldwork in both Japanese and English - being fluent in both languages as a Japanese who also lived in England and the United States as well as Germany for 17 years. In both communities, I interacted with the local elderly residents as an "outsider," being a woman in her early 30s, originally from Tokyo, and affiliated with an American university. My experience and familiarity with both Japanese and American cultures were essential in developing rapport with the residents, and in observing the cultural nuances of what was said and done. At the same time, my being an "outsider" in both communities also proved valuable in probing residents to talk openly and frankly about their private concerns, and to explore the cultural conceptions that they take for granted in everyday life. Virtually all of the elderly persons I talked to in Odawara and West Haven were receptive to my request for their time, and they were 195

Appendix also generally friendly and cooperative in responding to my questions about their lives. WEST HAVEN SURVEY

Data were collected as part of a pilot study conducted by the Yale Health and Aging Project during the planning stage for the "Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly," funded by the National Institute on Aging (N01-AG-0-2105). The project is carried out by the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale School of Medicine, and I participated in it as a research assistant and interviewer. The questionnaire used in this pilot study consisted of 209 questions, from which I selected 92 questions for the comparative study. The questionnaire was pretested for 71 respondents in Waterbury, Connecticut. The West Haven sample was generated by stratified cluster design by type of housing and by sex. The general housing subsample used a sampling frame of utility outlets, and the public housing subsample was selected from the two elderly housing projects in West Haven City. Both subsamples were stratified by sex in a ratio of 1 male to 1.5 females. The survey was conducted as two field trials over staggered periods, yielding response rates of 59% and 61%. The general housing subsample had 242 respondents and the public housing subsample had 109 respondents. The West Haven sample in this study derives from the general housing subsample and 20 randomly selected respondents in the public housing subsample. I selected the latter respondents to represent the proportion of segregated housing residents of the elderly population in West Haven City (18.3%). WESTSIDE ODAWARA SURVEY

Following the West Haven survey, I conducted the Westside Odawara survey in collaboration with the Department of Social Welfare of Tokyo Metropolitan University. The questionnaire consisted of 60 questions: 50 of them derived from the West Haven survey and 10 196

Methods of Research were added for supplementary information. The questionnaire was translated into Japanese (and reworded where necessary) by two independent translators, and pretested with 9 respondents in Tokyo. The Odawara sample was generated by stratified simple random design, using the city's roster of residents over age 65 as the sampling frame. The survey was carried out over a 5-day period by 18 trained interviewers recruited mainly from the Department of Sociology at Tokyo Metropolitan University. Each interview lasted between 30 minutes and 2 hours. The Westside Odawara survey generated a total of 209 respondents; the response rate was 84%.

FOCUSED INTERVIEWS

During the fieldwork, I collected case studies from survey respondents and informants to obtain detailed information about individual perceptions, personal circumstances, and histories. I selected 25 interviewees in West Haven and 24 interviewees in Westside Odawara from a pool of survey respondents who indicated their willingness to participate in the case study after finishing the questionnaire, and a pool of local informants who agreed to be formally interviewed. The West Haven case studies consisted of 20 survey respondents and 5 local informants; the Odawara case studies consisted of 19 survey respondents and 5 local informants. All of the case studies introduced in this book, however, are selected from the pool of survey respondents in both West Haven and Westside Odawara, with the one exception of a local informant cited in Chapter 1. To collect a broad range of case studies, I selected the interviewees according to their diversity in age, sex, marital status, and household composition. Thus, the West Haven interviewees consisted of 14 women and 11 men; 10 of them were married and 15 were unmarried; 9 of them were in their 60s, 12 were in their 70s, and 4 were in their 80s; and 11 lived alone, 8 lived with their spouse only, and 6 lived with at least one adult child. Of the 24 Odawaran interviewees, 15 were women and 9 were men; 11 of them were married and 13 were unmarried; 10 were in their 60s, 10 in their 70s, and 4 in their 80s; and

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Appendix 7 lived alone, 5 lived with their spouse only, and 12 lived with at least one adult offspring. Interviews usually lasted from 1 to 6 hours, over one to three meetings. I talked with all of the interviewees privately in their homes, except in one case where the interviewee requested to meet at a local diner; in all meetings, no other person was present during the interview. During these sessions, I obtained detailed information about five areas of inquiry: personal history; daily activities; social relationships; utilization of formal services; and perceptions and values about aging, family, and support relationships in the past and present, and expectations about them in the future. I asked the same set of questions on these five subjects to all interviewees systematically, while also allowing them the latitude to focus their responses on matters they chose to emphasize. The questions were therefore comparable in both communities. Although additional interviews with specific family members of the elderly would have also aided the case study analysis, I chose in the end not to seek out these caregivers directly, in the interest of maintaining the trust of elderly interviewees who offered their thoughts on sensitive family relationships in confidence. All of the interviews were tape-recorded.

PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION

I was a participant observer for 15 months in West Haven and 9 months in Odawara. During these periods, I either lived in or commuted to these communities, and participated in a range of activities with informants, senior citizen groups, and social service agencies. I visited the elderly, their families, and their friends, both in their homes and out in the city. I took part in their social activities and observed them in multiple social situations: playing bingo and cards, competing in gateball, going on excursions, shopping, cooking, working, and even collecting garbage. I visited them in hospitals, senior centers, community centers, and other group settings. I also attended the meetings of advocates, social service administrators, and community volunteers, and visited day care centers, homes for the elderly, public housing for the elderly, and nursing homes. I ac198

Methods of Research companied social workers, home health aids, and welfare commissioners on their daily rounds, and participated in meals services and mobile bathing services. I also interviewed many social service administrators and probed them about their community service organizations. I recorded these observations in 800 pages of notes during fieldwork in both communities.

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Index

abundance, 160-1; see also resource affluence Achenbaum, Andrew, 154 administrative jurisdiction, 29, 32 adult adoption (yoshi engumi), 4-5 adulthood: as life stage, 147, 148 affection, 49; see also primary bonds of affection age: ascriptive status of, 40, 41-2, 68-9; as criterion, 40-2, 44, 45; and living arrangements, 54-7, 55 t; and need, 148 age discrimination, 40, 42 Age Discrimination in Employment Act (U.S.), 37nl2,40,42 age grading, 59 age integration, 59-60 age segregation, 59-60 age stratification, 155 aged dependency ratio, 11, 159, 191 aging, 70; changes due to, 38, 43; fairness in, 41, 42; life cycle approach to, 101-2; see also old age aging problem, 12-13 Akiyama, Hiroko, 166 altruism, 15, 194 amae (dependency), 188 anticipation of need: in Japan, 66,68,71,72, \Q\\see also expectation Antonucci, Toni, 58, 166 arc of freedom, 146 Arling, Greg, 67n44 ascriptive status, 41; age as, 40, 41-2, 68-9; ethnicity as, 41; gender as, 41 Asian nations, 188

autonomy, 60, 147, 151, 155, 157-8, 192; in American social support, 173, 175, 180; maximizing, 184; networks and, 64; security and, 152, 153 average wage, 29, 31 bathing and bedding services, 45 Baum, Martha, 153-4, 193 Baum, Rainer, 153-4, 193 bedding rentals, 44 bedridden (the) (netakiri), 44 Bellah, Robert, 60 Benedict, Ruth, 146 Bengtson, Vern, 154, 193 Berger, Peter, 14 Blau, Peter, 165 Bourdieu, Pierre, 14, 15, 144, 170-1, 171n24 Brody, Elaine, 191nl9 Brown, Keith, 50 Campbell, John, 48 Campbell, Ruth, 166, 191nl9 Cantor, Marjorie, 58, 64n39 certainty, 152, 184, 192 change, 38, 186-94; due to aging, 38, 43; and social support, 193; see also economic change; social change; technological change "changing contract," 193 childhood: as life stage, 147, 148 childlessness, 5, 64-5, 118, 148 children: as confidantes, 62; reciprocal ties with, 140; relations with, 58-9; in resource/support network, 64, 141; see also parent-child relations choice, 155; American preference for, 104; in Japan, 87; obligation as, 177;

215

Index choice (cont.) perception of, 59-60; and resource affluence, 159; and security, 152, 153; in support system, 14, 152, 173 Christianity, 187 Chudacoff, H. P., 50 class, 32, 118, 159, 183 closed competition, 41n25 collective interest(s), 15, 164, 168-9, 185; see also interest(s) collective memory, 150 collectivism, 72, 158, 187 communities: West Haven/Odawara compared, 22, 28-33 community bonds, 60 community organizations: Odawara (chonaikai), 27, 46; West Haven, 43-4 community responsibility, 13 community services: West Haven/Odawara compared, 31-2 comparative analysis, 17, 193; cultural assumptions of deservedness and fairness, 143-62 comparative gerontology, 188-9 compartmentalized equity, 40, 41-2,48 compassion, 144, 155 competition, 41, 42 confidantes, 62, 63t, 109 conflict avoidance, 84 Confucian ethics, 72, 101, 187, 188 conjugal bond/tie, 50, 62, 141, 156-7; in case studies (U.S.), 140; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141; as primary bond, 185; see also couple conjugal household(s), 53, 54-6, 57, 58, 185 connectedness, 156 Connecticut: family responsibility law in, 47; social services for elderly in, 31 contingency approach (U.S.), 50, 66, 72-3, 104, 133, 140-2, 173, 180, 185, 192; cultural assumptions underlying, 143, 144, 147, 149, 151-2; diffuse support network as hallmark of, 175; entitlement in, 177; obligation in, 176-7 continuity, 38, 78, 91, 101-2, 129

contribution(s), 79, 83; and claim of dependency, 155; in legitimation of private contract, 102 control, 155; in case studies (Japan), 88, 91, 94, 98; in case studies (U.S.), 129; choice in, 152, 153; see also dialectic of control convergence: Japan/U.S., 189, 190 coresidence, 9, 56, 129, 175, 180, 185, 188; declining rate of, 189, 190; different conditions of, 53-4; in filial households (Japan), 53, 57; primary bonds of affection and, 157; widowhood and,57 costs, 174, 179-81 couple (the): as unit of selfsufficiency, 141, 157, 185 couple culture (U.S.), 62, 109, 130, 133 credits, 42-3, 165-7, 177, 179, 180; assignment/designation of, 15, 16, 164, 169, 178, 183, 185, 186; in case studies (Japan), 79, 80; as symbolic resource, 171 crisis intervention (U.S.), 104, 173, 184, 186, 192 cross-national comparisons, 32, 171, 188-9 cross-national synthesis, 16-17, 171-3 cultural assignments, 187, 188, 189, 194; analysis of change in, 193; see also social assignments cultural assumptions, 70, 187, 188, 189,194;change in, 190, 193; regarding credits and debts, 165-6; defining reciprocity, dependency, entitlement, and obligation, 142; of deservedness and fairness, 143-62; regarding families, 48; regarding giving and deserving, 13; significance of, 184-5; in social contract, 143, 144; and support networks, 71; underlying helping arrangements, 14-15, 28 cultural construction of support, 174-81 cultural differences: in definitions of vulnerability, 172; in reciprocity and dependency, 178-9

216

Index cultural ideals, 141, 151 cultural values: of gifts, 16; of filial obligation, 78-9; see also values culture, 9, 194; and power and the social contract, 13, 17, 183-6; and structure, 187 daughters, 88, 191 day care, 43, 44 debts, 165-7, 179, 180; assignment/ designation of, 15, 16, 164, 169, 175, 178, 183, 185; as symbolic resource, 171 degradation, 42-3 delayed coresidence, 190 delayed reciprocity, 166 demographic factors, 28, 29, 193 demographic histories, 10-11, 150 dependability, 142 dependence/dependency, 2, 42-3, 64, 79, 155, 163, 182; in case studies (Japan), 84, 88, 89, 98, 102; in case studies (U.S.), 109-10; claim of, by elderly, 153, 154, 155; in conjugal tie, 140; costs and benefits of, 179; cultural assumptions underlying, 142; legitimated, 150-1, 171, 178-9; minimizing, 184; mutual, 93; in private contract, 50; reciprocity and, 174, 178-9; tolerance for, 16, 173; see also amae dependency ratio; see aged dependency ratio dependent population, 11 deservedness, 17, 186; in case studies (Japan), 79, 84-9; conditions of: Japan/U.S., 174; cultural assumptions of, 143-62; ideas of, 14, 38; meaning of, 9-10; and perception of vulnerability, 71-2; principle of, 187; sense of, 72, 154; in social contract, 165, 194; social strategies regulating, 186; standard of evaluation in, 9; in strategy of empowerment, 172; symbolism of, 169 deserving, 153, 174; cultural assumptions regarding, 13; ground rules of, 186; meaning of, 144 deserving citizens, 184; social designation of, 1-17 Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRGs), 12

dialectic of control, 169-70, 181, 183 dichotomized variance, 193 diffused security, 65, 104, 141, 175, 178; in case studies (U.S.), 110, 140 dignity, 42 disability; see physical disability disempowerment, 165, 171-3, 174, 177, 180, 183, 186, 190, 191 disengagement, 180, 188 distributive justice, 42n26 diversity, 186-94 division of labor, 58, 141 divorce, 57n21 Dore, Ronald, 38-9 double structuration, 14 Dowd, James, 165 dynamic of power: and resource allocation, 159; in support relations, 164, 167, 172 economic change: in Odawara, 24-6 economic factors: in comparison, 28, 29, 30-1; and public support programs, 12 Edo (Tokyo), 23 Edo Period, 23 egoism, 194 elderly (the): as group, 40; negative stereotypes about, 150; in Odawara, 22, 24-5, 26-7; talk about their past, 18; in West Haven, 20-2; see also services to elderly elderly counselors (rqjinsodan-in), 46 elderly festivals (keiro gydji), 44 elderly populations, 10-11; Odawara, 30; U.S./Japan, 36; West Haven, 29-30 eldest son, 78, 88, 166, 178 eligibility criterion/criteria: age as, 40-2, 44, 45-6; disability as, 44, 66-8; family status as, 45-6; income as, 44, 66-7; need as, 45; of social security, 12, 148; of social services, 43-8; of social support, 148 emotional support; see social support Employee Pension system (Japan), 189 employment: laws, 37; opportunities, 12, 37; services, 43, 44

217

Index empowerment, 164-5, 171-3, 177, 183, 186, 188, 194 entitlement, 16, 39, 142, 182, 186; in American support system, 155, 173; assignment of, 186; in case studies, 79; in case studies (Japan), 83, 88, 91, 100; in case studies (U.S.), 109, 129, 134; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141; cultural assumptions regarding, 72, 142, 184, 192; expectations of, 35-43; and intergenerational conflict, 180; notion of, 38; and obligation, 174, 176-7; rules of, 70; social security as (U.S.), 142; U.S./Japan differences, 39-40 equal opportunity, 39, 155 equity, 14, 15; cultural assumptions underlying, 144, 153-5, 184; dual notions of, 40; expectations of, 35-43; in Japan, 41; meaning of, 39-40; in old-age policies, 42; and private contract, 49; see also compartmentalized equity; intergenerational equity; symbolic equity Estes, Carroll, 159 ethnic diversity, 32, 53n9, 70 evaluation: of gifts, 166; standards of, 6, 9, 16, 169, 171; symbolic equity as, 170-1 expectation(s): of alternative resources, 145; of entitlement, obligation, and equity, 35-43; of generosity, 161; of intergenerational equity, 144, 153-5; and life course trajectories, 144, 145-51; of need, 149f, 151, 173; regarding parent-child obligations, 47; of security, 152; of support, 176-7; of vulnerability, 1-10 extended family, 80 extended stem family system; see stem family system failures, 174, 179-81 fairness, 185, 193-4; cultural assumptions of, 143-62; logic of, 16, 169, 171, 173, 182-3; meaning of, 17, 72; sense of, 180; in social contract, 9,

165; standards of evaluation for, 16; in reciprocal relations, 153 familism, 48 family, 156; cultural origins of, 50; definition(s) of, 51n5; individual, and the state, 43-8; Japan/U.S. compared, 50-1; living arrangements, 51-2; and networks, 54-5; in Odawara, 26; tension in, 94; as unit of self-sufficiency, 46, 157, 158, 186; and vulnerability, 2; in West Haven, 21; see also extended family; nuclear family; stem family system family responsibility, 12-13, 193-4; Japan/U.S. compared, 46-7; in Japan's social support, 173, 176 family responsibility laws, 46-7 family status, 45; as eligibility criterion for services (Odawara), 45-6 family support: in contingency approach (U.S.), 141; as informal support system (Japan), 4, 5, 9; see also social support filial coresidence; see coresidence filial obligation, 156, 188; in case studies (Japan), 93, 101; in case studies (U.S.), 139-40, 134; Japanese system of, 78-9, 102, 173; norms of (Japan), 101-2; rules of (Japan), 88 filial relations/ties, 50; in family support, 50-1; in Japan, 64, 65, 141, 142, 156-7; as primary bond, 184-5; turn in, 153-4; see also parentchild relations filial responsibility; see family responsibility financial assistance, 12 financial security; see security formal support; see instrumental services; public support systems four-generation household (Japan), 52, 79, 177 frail elderly (kyojaku rqjin), 44n31 friendly visitors, 44, 45 friends/friendships, 60; in case studies (Japan), 91, 98; in case studies (U.S.), 109-10, 113, 119, 124; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141; relations with, 57, 58, 61, 62; in resource network, 64,68

218

Index fuel assistance, 43; in case studies (U.S.), 105, 109 Fukutake, Tadashi, 42n26 Gans, Herbert, 60, 62n37 gender: ascriptive status of, 41; assignments by, 191-2, 192n20; living arrangements by, 54, 55t; relations, 32; role attitudes, 191 n 19 generosity, pool of, 161 geographical characteristics, 29, 30-1; Odawara, 23-4; West Haven, 22 geographic mobility (Japan), 8, 190, 191 Giddens, Anthony, 151, 169 gift relationship, 17, 184; structure of, 183,186 gift(s): evaluation of, 166; symbolic value of, 17, 185-6; value of, 170 giver-receiver relationship, 15, 183; entitlement and obligation in, 176; reciprocity and dependency in, 178—9; regulation of interests in, 164, 165, 167, 169, 170, 171-2, 173, 174t, 178, 179, 181, 185-6 givers: interests of, 162; obligation to give, 16; and receivers, 163-4; strategy of disempowerment and, 173 giving, 15, 153, 174; cultural assumptions regarding, 13; ground rules of, 186; institutionalizing, 169-70; intrinsic value of, 182-3; meaning of, 144; practice of, 51; routinizing, 15-16 Golden Rule, 150 "good society," 35 Goodin, Robert E., 167nl3 goodwill, 15, 16, 161, 164, 173 Gouldner, Alvin, 17 Greater New Haven, 29, 32; community organizations, 43 Greater New Haven Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMS A), 20 Greenberg, Martin, 180n29 guarantee, notion of, 38 habitus, 15, 144, 170-1 Hagestad, Gunhild, 146 Hakone, 23, 24 Hareven, T. K., 50 Hashimoto, Hiroko, 39 health care, 12, 36-7, 43, 85, 159

Health Care for the Aged Law (Japan), 37nll health care reforms (Japan), 189 health care systems (Japan/U.S.), 48, 173 help: cultural definitions of, 172; customized according to need, 140, 175; meaning of, 144; perception of, 71; worth of, 162 helping arrangements, 144; comparing, 28-9; contentment with, 152-3; cultural assumptions regarding, 142; designation of rights and responsibilities in, 168-9; institutionalized, 182-3; in Japan, 71, 72; logic of fairness in, 173; in private domain, 49-70; reciprocity in, 167; recognition of vulnerability in, 65-70; security and, 151; symbolic equity in, 170-1; typologies of, 143, 145; value of, 144, 145t; see also social support helplessness, 175 Hewitt, John, 155 Hobbes, Thomas, 17 Hochschild, Arlie, 59 Homans, George, 165 home helpers (katei hoshi-in), 44, 45 Honcho-chiku, 27 horizontal alliance, 59 household(s), 51-7; concentration of resources in, 64; parent-child relations in, 157; protection sought in (Japan), 102; successions, 23; tensions in (Japan), 84-9, 102; as unit of selfsufficiency, 157 household transitions, 56-7, 65 housing services, 3, 43, 124; see also public housing husband-wife households; see conjugal household ie; see stem family system Ikels, Charlotte, 166 immigration, 104, 141 income: in case studies (Japan), 92, 93, 94, 99; in case studies (U.S.), 105, 109, 110, 119, 124, 134; as criterion of need, 44, 66-7 income maintenance, 37 independence, 2, 42, 64, 70, 147, 155; American preference for, 6-7, 173, 179; in case studies (U.S.), 103, 104,

219

Index independence (cont.) 109-10, 113, 118, 124, 130, 133; of child(ren), 140; claim by younger generation, 153; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141-2; in Japan, 71-2, 157; notions of, 43; perceptions of, 158; in U.S., 157 India, 188 individual(s): and family and the state, 43-8; and responsibility, 43, 193-4; and rights, 38-9; as unit of selfsufficiency, 157,158 individualism, 38, 72, 187 individualizing comparisons, 16-17 industrial composition, 29, 30-1 industry, 31nl7, 188; Odawara, 24-6; West Haven, 19-20 informal social security system(s): American, 141; in case studies (Japan), 83, 84, 93, 94, 101; eligibility for, 148; Japan, 79, 98 informal support, 49; logistic regression estimates, 67t; see also social support institutional factors, 35 institutionalization, 34; rates of, 34nl instrumental resources: distribution of, 193 instrumental services, 38, 46 integration: Odawara, 27; West Haven, 22; see also age integration interdependence, 157, 158 interests, 13-17; in social contract, 162, 186; social regulation of, 164-81, 185-6, 187, 188; see also collective interest(s); mutual interest(s) intergenerational equity, 153-5, 192; expectation of, 144, 153-5 intergenerational relations, 59; conflict in, 179-80; Japan, 78, 80; normative regulation of, 9; and solidarity, 193 intergenerational support, 80, 182; reciprocity and dependency in, 101, 178-9 intersubjectivity, 193 intervention, 70, 72; practice in private domain, 49-70; responsibilities of, 10-13; see also crisis intervention intimacy, 49; cultural assumptions regarding, 184; in household, 51 Ishida, Takeshi, 38-9

isolation: in case studies (Japan), 87, 88; U.S., 117, 118; as failure in American system, 180 Italian-Americans, 62n37; intergenerational relations of, 129 Japan: compared with U.S., 28; Ministry of Health and Welfare, 39; Prime Minister's Office, 69; subjective perception of vulnerability in, 71-102 "Japan-style welfare society," 48 Jefferson, Thomas, 154 Johnson, Colleen Leahy, 53n9, 62n37,129 justice, Japanese sense of, 41; see also social justice Kanagawa Prefecture, 31, 44n32 Kanto, 23, 29 Kaufman, Sharon, 69 Kawashima, Takeyoshi, 50 keeping, 164, 186 Keith, Jennie, 59 Kelly, William, 192n20 Kiefer, Christie, 189 Kinoshita, Yasuhito, 189 labor force: mobility, 19; participation of elderly, 42 labor markets, 159 Law for the Promotion of Employment for Middle-Aged and Older Persons (Japan), 37n 12, 42 Law for the Welfare of the Aged (Japan), 35, 38, 39, 42 Lebra, Takie, 59, 68, 166 Lee, Hye Kyung, 38 legal aid, 43, 44 life course trajectories, 146, 184; anticipated, 50-1; expectation of need based on, 68-70, 144, 145-51 life cycle: Japanese approach to, 101-2; and living arrangements, 52, 57 life expectancy, 10, 54, 150, 151 life scripts, 5, 146, 148-50, 152, 188; collective, 147-8, 150 life transitions, 49, 146; widowhood as, 109 lineal transference, 166 Little, Virginia, 58 living alone, 52, 56, 57, 62, 148; hitorigurashi, 44, 45

220

Index living arrangements, 51-7; in case studies (U.S.), 109, 129; choice of confidante by, 63t; of extended family, 80; patterns of association with relatives and friends by, 6It; primary bonds of affection in, 157; West Haven and Westside Odawara, 52t, 53-8, 55t living with children, 52, 53, 56, 62; see also coresidence; three-generation households living with spouse, 52, 53, 62; see also conjugal household logic of practice, 16-17 loneliness, 71,87, 94 Low Cost Fuel Assistance Program (U.S.), 105 Luckmann, Thomas, 14 macrosocial variance, 193 Maeda, Daisaku, 192 marital status: choice of confidante by, 63t; living arrangements by, 54, 55t marriage, 156 material resources, 193 Mauss, Marcel, 17, 165 meal programs, 3, 43, 44, 45 meaning: intersubjectivity of, 193; in social contract, 186 Medicaid, 13nl6, 37nll, 47, 139 Medical Subsidies for the Aged (Japan), 37n 11 Medicare, 37nl 1,40, 47 Meiji Period, 24 Meiji Regime, 24 method of difference, 28 microsocial variance, 193 might need script, 147-50, 149f, 152 might support script, 152 Mill, John Stuart, 28 Minkler, Meredith, 159 minorities: in Japan, 41; see also ethnic diversity modernization, 25, 188 mortality rates, 11 municipal agents (West Haven), 46n38 mutual care rule: in Japan, 79-80, 84, 87 mutual interests, 15, 164, 165-7, 185; in conjugal tie, 140; see also interest(s) mutual obligations, 110; boundaries of, 64 mutuality, 102, 163 Myles,John, 159

Nakane, Chie, 50 Naoi, Michiko, 190 National Pension (Japan), 48n50 National Welfare Pension (Japan), 48n50 need, 15; age and, 148; beliefs about (U.S.), 104; as contingency, 104; criteria of, 66-8; cultural assumptions underlying, 144, 145-51, 184; as eligibility criterion for services, 45; expectations of, 149f, 151; help customized according to, 140, 175; life course trajectories and, 68-70; unmet, 117-18 need trajectories, 101, 144, 145-51, 152, 155 neighborhood organizations; see community organizations neighbors, 58, 64; in U.S., 64n39 network(s); see social network(s) Neugarten, Bernice, 40, 69 Neugarten, Dail, 40 New Haven, 19,20 New Haven Colony, 19 noninterference, norm of, 133-4, 140 nonprofit organizations, 44n32 normative conditions, 35, 48; differences of, 37-43 normative regulation, 188, 192 normative solidarity, 154 nuclear family(ies), 50, 133; of children, 140 nursing home(s), 2, 3, 5, 57, 158; access to (Odawara), 46; in case studies (U.S.), 114, 124, 130, 139-40, 145 obligation, 16, 182, 185; in case studies (Japan), 100; collectivization of (Japan), 157-8; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141; cultural assumptions defining, 72, 142, 147, 184, 192; entitlement and, 174, 176-7; expectations of, 35-43; and intergenerational conflict, 180; in Japan, 39; parent/child (U.S.), 47; in private contract, 50; rules of, 70; and security (Japan), 152; social assignment of (Japan), 102; U.S./Japan differences in, 39-40; voluntary, 104; see also on occupational diversity: Odawara, 25-6 occupational mobility: in case studies (Japan), 100-1, (U.S.), 104

221

Index Odawara, Japan, 17, 18; family and resource networks in, 64-5; formal services to elderly in, 44-6; friendships in, 62; peer networks in, 59, 60; social history of, 23-4; see also Westside Odawara Odawara City, 29, 32; Division of Elderly Services, 44 Ohira government, 13nl6 old age, 10-11; cultural assumptions regarding, 147-8; and need for help, 68-9; pessimism regarding, in Japan, 150; problem of, 11, 40, 182; resource availability in, 142; vulnerability as inevitable process of, 71; see also aging; elderly (the) old-age policies, 37; normative differences in, 38-43, 48 old-age subculture, 59 Old Boston Post Road, 19, 31 Older Americans Act, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 42,44 on (obligation), 188 ontological security, 151 options; see choice Orloff, Ann Shola, 159 Palmore, Erdman, 192 parent-child relations, 167nl3, 185; in case studies (Japan), 101; in case studies (U.S.), 105, 109, 113, 124, 130, 140; see also filial relations/ties paternalistic ideology (Japan), 38 patrilineal stem family; see stem family system peer group ties/networks, 7, 58, 59, 60, 141, 161 pension benefits/pensions, 37; in case studies (Japan), 85, 88, 92, 93, 99, 100; in case studies (U.S.), 130, 131; Japan, 48n50, 189-90; U.S., 140 physical disability: in case studies (Japan), 84-5, 88, 94, 98; in case studies (U.S.), 103, 105, 109, 115, 134; as criterion of need, 67, 68 Pinker, Robert, 35, 169 Plath, David, 68 police stations (koban), 46 political factors, 34; in comparison, 28, 29 population aging, 11

population dynamics, 13, 182, 194 postindustrial nations, 9, 11, 38; social contract in, 28 power, 194; culture and, 183; and culture and the social contract, 183-6; relations, 169 primary bonds of affection, 50, 190, 192; cultural assumptions underlying, 144, 155-7; Japan/U.S., 184-5 primogeniture, 4n5, 50, 57 principle of household unit (setai tan 7 no gensoku), 46 principle of private initiative (shitekifuyono gensoku), 46 private contract, 17, 49-50, 65, 129; ambivalence about (Japan), 88; American, 104, 141-2; in Japan, 153; dependability of, 142; essence of, 72; protection in, 101, 102; and younger generation, 80 private domain: expectations of vulnerability in, 1-10; practice of protection and intervention in, 49-70 private insurance, 159 protection, 70, 72, 171, 182; in Japan's social support, 173; practice of, 49-70; valued in Japan, 184, 192 protective approach (Japan), 50, 66, 68, 72-3, 101-2, 104, 173, 184-5, 192; central feature of, 175; cultural assumptions underlying, 143, 144, 147, 148, 150-2; entitlement in, 177; obligation in, 176 prototypes, 150 public contract, 17; dependability of, 142 public discourse: regarding social services, 48 public domain: responsibilities of intervention in, 10-13; rights and responsibilities in, 34-48 public housing, 44; in case studies (U.S.), 110, 113-14, 118-19, 124 public policy, 12, 35, 159; life course trajectories in, 148; normative conditions of, 48 public support systems, 2, 3, 11-13

222

Index Rawls,John, 17 Reagan government, 13nl6 receivers, 16; givers and, 163—4; interests of, 162; strategy of empowerment and, 173; see also giver-receiver relationship receiving, 174; ground rules of, 186; meaning of, 144; practices of, 51; social ties of, 184 reciprocal support: in case studies (Japan), 88; and conjugal relations, 140; and intergenerational relations, 15,185 reciprocal relations: equivalence of value in, 17 reciprocity, 16; assumptions underlying, 72, 142; basis of, 153; in case studies (Japan), 79-80, 91; credits and debts in, 165-7; and dependency, 174, 178-9; institutional conditions of, (Japan), 102; norms of, 101, 110, 130; in private contract, 50; rules of, 70; voluntary, 141 referral/coordination services, 43 regulation of interests, 185-6, 187, 188; in giver-receiver relationship, 164, 165, 167, 169, 170, 171-2, 173, 174t, 178, 179, 181 relative deprivation, 71 relatives, 58, 60, 64; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141; patterns of association with, 61t religious affiliation: Odawara, 27; West Haven, 20-1 research methods, 195-9 resentment, 134, 154 residency: Odawara elderly, 24, 26; West Haven elderly, 21 resilience, 146, 147; American elderly, 103, 104; in contingency approach (U.S.), 141-2 resource affluence, 177; cultural assumptions underlying, 144, 145, 158-61, 184 resource allocation, 36-7, 159, 161; Odawara, 46; politics of, 12 resource availability: and household, 54; and social networks, 58 resource networks; see social network(s) resources: concentration of, 64-5; perception of, 104; "soft," 161;

unequal access to, 14; see also symbolic resources responsibility(ies), 179; regarding aging, 146-7; assignment/designation of, 15, 163, 164, 168-9; assumptions about, 9; collectivization of (Japan), 157-8; equality of, 154; in Japanese support system, 173; of intervention, 10-13; rights and, 16, 34-48; as symbolic resource, 171, 172; see also family responsibility; state responsibility retirement, 7, 11, 26; in case studies (Japan), 91-101; in case studies (U.S.), 130-4 rights, 179; in American support system, 173; assignment/designation of, 15, 164, 168-9, 183, 185; equality of, 154; notions of, 177; and responsibilities, 16, 34-48; as symbolic resource, 171, 172; of the vulnerable, 172; see also entitlement risk, calculation of, 144, 146, 194 Rohlen, Thomas, 158 Rose, Arnold, 59 Rubin, Lillian, 60 safety, 21-2,27, 151 Scandinavian states, 188 scarcity, 160 Schulz, James, 48 security, 4, 5, 14, 15, 37, 70, 72, 180, 182; in case studies (Japan), 79-80, 83,84,88,89,91,93,94,98,100, 101; in case studies (U.S.), 109, 110, 113, 118, 124, 129, 133; contingency approach to (U.S.), 140-1; cultural assumptions underlying, 144, 151-3, 184; in Japan, 71-2, 173; Japan/U.S. compared, 142; preparation for, 57; and private contract, 49, 50; protective approach to (Japan), 101-2; vulnerability and, 174-5; see also diffused security; ontological security; structured security self-interest, 15 selfishness/selflessness dilemma, 171 self-reliance, 144; boundaries of, 158; ideal of (U.S.), 151, 175; responsibility for, 147 self-sufficiency, 14, 15, 158-9; beliefs about, 38, 104; boundaries of, 64,

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Index self-sufficiency (cont.) 158; in case studies (U.S.), 109, 124, 130, 153; in contingency approach (U.S.), 140, 142; cultural assumptions underlying, 144, 157-8, 184; of family, 48; notions of, 43; preparation for, 57; and private contract, 49, 50; threshold of, 148; see also unit of self-sufficiency senile dementia, elderly with (chiho rqjin), 44n31 senior centers, 43, 44 seniority (Japan), 41 serial order of care, 153, 154, 155, 166, 185, 192; in case studies (U.S.), 140; in Japan, 79, 102 sex: choice of confidante by, 63t; see also gender Shanas, Ethel, 58 Skocpol, Theda, 159 Smith, Robert, 158 social assignments, 15, 142; regarding giving and deserving, 13; of rights/responsibilities/ credits/debts, 164, 171n24; see also cultural assignments social change, 18, 179; in Japan, 78, 98; in U.S., 19-20 social constraints, 146, 174; and rules of obligation, 87, 88 social construction of reality, 14 social construction of support, 174-81 social contract, 9, 12, 72, 165, 174, 181, 186-9; aged dependency ratio in, 11; cultural assumptions and values in, 143, 144; culture and power and, 17, 183-6; differences between Japan and U.S., 16, 161-2, 172-3; as distributive system of symbolic resources, 171-3; of elderly, 9-10; entitlement in, 177; failures and costs, 179-81; framework of analysis, 13-17; future of, 13; gifts/countergifts in, 167; regulation of interests in, 185-6; rights and responsibilities in, 34, 35, 39-40; rules of entitlement, obligation, and reciprocity in, 70; social assignments in, 142; social support as, 164, 168; symbolic equity in, 169-71,

183; see also private contract; public contract social equivalence, 169 social exchange, 165 social institutions, 156 social justice, 40, 42 social network(s), 49, 50-1; in case studies (U.S.), 110, 113, 118; in contingency approach (U.S.), 140-1; diffused, 104, 110, 175; family and, 64-5; see also peer networks; support networks social participation: age criterion in, 40-1; entitlement to, 39; programs to encourage, 38 social policy; see public policy social sanctions, 78-9 Social Security Act (U.S.), 37nnl0, 11 social security: expenditures, 36; policies (Japan/U.S.), 38-9 social security system(s), 10, 11, 31,37, 159, 168; eligibility criteria, 12, 148; Japan, 11-12,48, 173; U.S., 11-12,48, 130, 140, 142; see also informal social security system(s) social services, 12, 37-8; eligibility criteria, 44-6; level of commitment to, 29; in public housing: case studies (U.S.), 119, 124; stigma of rely ing on, 42-3; West Haven/Odawara, 43-8 social support, 165; change in, 193; cultural assumptions in, 15, 184-6; cultural preferences for, 9; eligibility for, 148; in Japan, 172-3; Japan/U.S. compared, 28; key dimensions of, 183-6; regularizing, 164; rules of, 158; as social contract, 164, 168; social institutions in, 156; unequal relations in, 185-6; in U.S., 139; see also informal support; support systems social ties, 58-63 Social Welfare Council (Odawara), 44 socioeconomic characteristics: and factors, 50-1; Odawara, 24-6, 27; West Haven, 19-20, 21-2

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Index sons, 140; see also eldest son spouse, 62, 104, 113; death of, 57; loss of, 130, 133; as primary tie, 141 standard of evaluation, 9, 16, 17; see also deservedness standard of living, 37n9 state (the): individual and family and, 43-8 state responsibility, 13, 193-4; in case studies (U.S.), 134; individual rights and, 38-9; see also responsibility stem family system (ie), 4, 50, 188, 191; see also family stigma, 42; of public housing, 124 strategy of disempowerment, 172-3, 174, 175, 177, 180, 188, 194; used in Japan, 186, 190, 191 strategy of empowerment, 172-3, 174, 175, 177, 188, 194;used in U.S., 186 structural conditions: Japan, 189-90 structure: culture and, 187 structured security, 65, 80 subjective perceptions, 143, 144; of independence, 71-2; of intergenerational interests, 193; in recognition of need, 68; of resource affluence, 159-61; of security, 71-2; of vulnerability, 70, 71-102, 103-42 substitution principle, 58 support network(s), 10, 18, 58-60; boundaries of, 62; case studies (U.S.), 109-10; in Japan, 71; in U.S., 50-1; see also peer networks; social networks support relations/relationship: bonds of affection as, 156; boundaries of, 157; cultural assumptions in, 145t, 162; equity and inequity in, 16, 163-4; social assignments in, 15; subjective/objective conditions of, 13-14 support resources; see resources support systems, 5, 15-16, 187; in case studies (U.S.), 109-10; foundation of, 183; sense of entitlement in, 142; see also social support symbolic capital, 171n24, 183

symbolic equity, 13-17, 167, 168-9, 171-2, 178, 182-3, 185, 187-8, 194; derivations of (Japan/U.S.), 173; logic of, 169-71; principle of deservedness as standard of, 187; in social contract, 165, 179-81, 183 symbolic equity thesis, 193 symbolic resources, 16, 143, 164, 176, 177; distribution of, 171-3, 179, 183, 196, 193 symbolic strategies, 173, 174, 174t, 179-80 symmetric/asymmetric reciprocity, 166 Taisho Period, 24 technological change, 18, 20, 22, 25 telephone reassurance services, 44,45 Thailand, 188 three-generation households, 5, 52, 56, 57, 79, 102; in case studies (Japan), 89-91, 100; in case studies (U.S.), 125-30; economic advantages of, 80 Tilly, Charles, 16, 143 Title 19;seeMedicaid Titmuss, Richard, 15 TokaidoRoad, 23, 31 Tokugawa Regime, 23 Tokyo, 23, 60n32 trajectories of need; see need trajectories transportation services, 3, 27, 43 triangulation: of networks, 157; of services, 44, 64, 65, 68, 104, 141 trust, 151, 155-6 turn: in filial relations, 153-4; sense of (U.S.), 140 two-generation households, 53, 131 typologies: of helping arrangements, 143, 145; of intergenerational equity, 153; of primary bonds of affection, 156; of resource affluence, 160-1; of self-sufficiency, 157-8; of social expectations and assignments, 173, 174t uncertainty, 104, 152 unit(s) of self-sufficiency, 43, 157-8; alternative resources outside of, 159; in contingency approach

225

Index unit(s) of self-sufficiency (cont.) (U.S.), 141; couple as, 185; family as, 46; household as, 51; intergenerational relationship as, 184-5; see also self-sufficiency United States, 28; subjective perception of vulnerability in, 103-42 Universal Pension Plan (Japan), 37nl0 values, 13-17, 34, 72; of deservedness and fairness, 143-62; in Japan, 78, 102; changing, 18; in/and social contract, 143; see also cultural values variation-finding comparison, 16-17, 143 vertical alliance, 59 voluntary organizations, 44, 161 volunteer work, 59; in U.S., 43-4, 114, 125,130 vulnerability, 14, 144, 171, 182, 184; assumptions about, 9; cultural definitions of, 172; evaluating, 49; expectations of, 1-10; and help, 173; recognition of, 45, 65-70, 144; resource network and, 64-5; and security, 153, 174-5; subjective perception of (Japan), 71-102; subjective perception of (U.S.), 103-42 Weiner, Annette, 164 Weir, Margaret, 159 Welfare Commissioner Law (Japan), 45n38

welfare commissioners (minseiiin), 45 welfare council professionals, 46 welfare policy; see public policy West Haven, Connecticut, 17, 18, 19-22; compared with Westside Odawara, 28, 29-33; Department of Elderly Services, 44n29; ethnic composition of, 20-1; family and resource network in, 64-5; friendships in, 59, 60, 62; living arrangements in, 52t, 53-8, 55t; profile of, 30t; services to elderly in, 43-4 West Haven Housing Authority, 114 Western societies, 188-9 Westside Odawara, 22-7; compared with West Haven, 28, 29-33; living arrangements, 52t, 53-8, 55t; profile of, 30t; see also Odawara widowhood, 57, 118, 130, 140 widows, 62; in case studies (U.S.), 105-14 will need script, 147-50, 149f, 152 will support script, 152 Wolfe, Alan, 171 women; see gender Wuthnow, Robert, 161 yome, 74n3, 102, 191; in case studies, 74, 76, 92, 93, 96-7, 98, 145 yoshi, 78, 92, 94

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