Background and Aim:
In an era of increased geographic mobility and shifting family structures, many adult children live apart from their aging parents, balancing feelings of duty with emotional distress. The concept of filial anxiety, worry and anticipatory concern about one's parents' health, dependency, and mortality, has gained renewed attention in contemporary caregiving research. This study aims to examine how adult attachment styles, perceived filial obligation, and physical/emotional distance from parents interact to predict filial anxiety. It also explores whether death anxiety mediates the relationship between distance and filial anxiety, and whether attachment style moderates this relationship.
Method:
A quantitative, cross-sectional design will be employed. Approximately 200 adult children (aged 25-45) with at least one living elderly parent will be recruited through online and community networks. Participants will complete standardized measures including the Adult Attachment scale, the Filial Obligation Scale, the Filial Anxiety Scale, and the Death Anxiety Inventory, along with self-reported indices of physical and emotional distance. Data will be analyzed using regression-based mediation and moderation models (PROCESS macro), to test hypothesized direct, indirect, and conditional effects.
Results:
Data collection and analysis are currently in progress. Preliminary expectations suggest that higher attachment anxiety and stronger filial obligation will predict elevated filial anxiety, while greater perceived distance will intensify death-related concerns, further contributing to filial anxiety. Moderation by attachment style is anticipated, indicating that anxious attachment amplifies distress when emotional or physical distance increases.
Conclusion:
This study seeks to provide an integrative understanding of filial anxiety by linking attachment processes, perceived duty, and the realities of long-distance caregiving. Findings are expected to contribute to the development of culturally sensitive interventions that address emotional well-being among adult children supporting elderly parents from afar.