Components or Manifestations of Care: A Phenomenological Analysis of the Components of Intergenerational Care Culture in the Family over the Past Half-Century in the Cultural Region of Kashan, Aran and Bidgol

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to phenomenologically explore and identify the indigenous components and manifestations of intergenerational care culture among families across three generations in the cultural region of Kashan, Aran and Bidgol.

Methods and Materials: This qualitative study employed a descriptive phenomenological design. Participants were selected through criterion-based purposive and voluntary sampling and included 12 members from four families representing three generations, together with one local specialist, for a total of 13 participants. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews lasting approximately 40–80 minutes and continued until data saturation was achieved. Twenty-two researcher-developed interview questions were finalized after three pilot interviews. Interviews were audio-recorded with participants’ consent, transcribed, coded, and analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step phenomenological method. Strategies including epoché, member checking, external expert review, and systematic documentation were applied to enhance the trustworthiness of the findings.

Findings: The analysis indicated that intergenerational care culture was represented by 15 major components, including ethical conduct, helping behavior, love for the family, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, balanced affection and firmness, endurance of caregiving burden, responsibility, respect for others’ rights, consistency between words and actions, anger management, social cohesion, culturally sensitive policymaking, dignity, proportionate discipline, and ecological concern. Ethical conduct emerged as the most fundamental component, followed by helping behavior, love for the family, and moral guidance. The findings further suggested that the middle generation demonstrated stronger involvement in several dimensions of caregiving, while the overall pattern reflected continuity of traditional caregiving values alongside a gradual transition from a predominantly duty-based model toward a more affective, reciprocal, and exchange-oriented model.

Conclusion: Intergenerational care in the studied cultural region is a multidimensional phenomenon grounded in ethical, emotional, familial, social, and cultural values, while simultaneously undergoing generational transformation in the meaning and expression of caregiving.