Construction Of Stay For The Elderly Living In Rural Situation And Social Support Systems

Since the1970s, a phenomenon of "declining birthrate and aging society" has become increasingly prominent and showed a deepening trend in China. Due to the implementation of China’s family planning policy, the birth rate continues to decline; and with the improvement of the living standards and medical conditions, the average life expectancy of the Chinese population as well as the elderly population continuously increase, thereby changing the age structure of the population of China. At the same time, the miniaturization of modern family structure, coupled with increased population movements and migrant employment, incubates "empty nest" families and gradually weakens family’s pension function, especially in rural areas where economy is relatively backward and medical facilities, hygienic conditions, entertainment, as well as old-age security resources are limited, the predicament of the left behind elderly is more prominent. In the strength of family alone cannot solve the problem of left behind elderly any longer.Based on the historical background and practical challenges, the author believes that studies on the construction of a diverse social support system for the left behind elderly in rural areas are imperative. On the one hand, the pension problem itself is dynamic:different times, people faces different needs and difficulties which require adjustment and improvement in current pension policy according to the actual situation in order to a state in which "the elderly has been taken care of. On the other hand, focusing on the left behind elderly in rural areas, a newly emerged vulnerable social group, and building a corresponding social support system will further promote the building of a new socialist countryside as well as the establishment and improvement of a social security system of new countryside. Consequently, it helps to maintain social stability and harmony and to reduce turbulence and anxiety in a period of transformation while realizing a smooth flow of the rural labor force. Specifically, this paper focuses on theoretical discussions and empirical exploration from the following perspective. Firstly, the author makes an estimate of the left behind elderly in rural ears and their growth pattern. Secondly, this paper reveals the predicament of left behind elderly in rural areas, examines the current social support system, analyzes the insufficiency of the system, identifies the problems and summarizes the reasons based on investigations. In the end, this paper tries to explore methods to build a government—led, family—and—relatives—based, grassroots—organizations—supported, and nonprofit—organization—assisted pluralistic social support system to guarantee contented twilight years achieve a state in which the elderly is been taken care of and lead a peaceful and contented life in twilight years.