ABSTRACT
The process of modernization, driven by industrialization, has produced tremendous economic, political, and social change throughout the world. The rich life further fosters respect for elders who also serve as guardians of traditional wisdom and ritual. As industrialization and advanced medical technology gradually increase life expectancy, the same trends also erode the power and prestige of the elderly. Taiwan has also experienced rapid modernization and tremendous social change after World War II. The belief that children are the source of old-age support has been weakened faster than the increase in accepting alternative arrangements for long-term care of unhealthy parents. As the life-span of the world populations becomes longer and fertility rates decline, co-residence eventually will place a tremendous burden on the middle generation. As industrialization and modernization bring demographic transitions, an aging population becomes a global phenomenon.
