ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on living arrangements and social interactions of the elderly in the face of the transformations Taiwan is undergoing. Dealing with the rapidly increasing elderly population in Taiwan will become a serious social issue, encompassing many aspects of society, including healthcare, welfare, living arrangements, leisure activities, psychological support, and manpower utilization. In Taiwanese society, which is strongly rooted in Chinese culture, adaptations to population aging depend largely on elders' families and confucianism underpins many aspects of Chinese culture. Other researchers have also pointed out that the representation of nuclear families in the total population of Taiwan was positively correlated with education, level of urbanization, and nonagricultural activities. Three of the five value principles emphasized in Chinese tradition are directly related to family relationships: parent-child, husband-wife, and brother-sister. As the Taiwan economy modernizes, leisure activities become increasingly significant, much as they have in other industrial and postindustrial economies.
