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Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Building a social support network for informal caregivers of older adults
T2 - A case study of Carer Cafés in Hong Kong
AU - Fung, Ka-yi
AU - Chan, Wing-Sun
PY - 2025/3/31
Y1 - 2025/3/31
N2 - This study addresses the social care issue of supporting older adults' informal caregivers at the community level. It assesses how community café initiatives, particularly the Carer Café project by the Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centres (HKFWC), develop support networks and enable access to embedded social capital. Utilizing the organizational brokerage model, this research analyzes the network characteristics formed around informal caregivers within the café. This qualitative study employs individual in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations to collect data. We interviewed 26 informants and observed the operation of five Carer Cafés. Key findings indicate that support networks are deeply integrated with the organization's norms, influencing social interactions in terms of frequency, duration, outward focus, and collaboration. Caregivers benefit from various forms of social capital derived from the Carer Café's networks, which provide enduring support beyond the café setting. While the support networks have extended to the community, they remain embedded in the organization. This embeddedness helps staff take note of caregivers' situations and facilitates the flow of assistance from organizations to caregivers. The study highlights the importance of organizational embeddedness in shaping support networks, offering insights for improving caregiver services and informing policy development.
AB - This study addresses the social care issue of supporting older adults' informal caregivers at the community level. It assesses how community café initiatives, particularly the Carer Café project by the Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centres (HKFWC), develop support networks and enable access to embedded social capital. Utilizing the organizational brokerage model, this research analyzes the network characteristics formed around informal caregivers within the café. This qualitative study employs individual in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations to collect data. We interviewed 26 informants and observed the operation of five Carer Cafés. Key findings indicate that support networks are deeply integrated with the organization's norms, influencing social interactions in terms of frequency, duration, outward focus, and collaboration. Caregivers benefit from various forms of social capital derived from the Carer Café's networks, which provide enduring support beyond the café setting. While the support networks have extended to the community, they remain embedded in the organization. This embeddedness helps staff take note of caregivers' situations and facilitates the flow of assistance from organizations to caregivers. The study highlights the importance of organizational embeddedness in shaping support networks, offering insights for improving caregiver services and informing policy development.
U2 - 10.1016/j.jaging.2025.101310
DO - 10.1016/j.jaging.2025.101310
M3 - Journal article
VL - 72
JO - Journal of Aging Studies
JF - Journal of Aging Studies
SN - 0890-4065
M1 - 101310
ER -