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The Effects of Ageing on Intergenerational Support Exchange: A New Look at the Hypothesis of Flow Reversal

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  • Matthijs Kalmijn

    (University of Amsterdam
    Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI))

Abstract

There has been debate about whether the flow of intergenerational support reverses as parents age. One view is that in western countries, parents remain ‘net donors’ to children, even in very old age. Such a conclusion coincides with notions of parental altruism and would be in contrast to notions of exchange and reciprocity over the life course. This paper examines the thesis of flow reversal in a new way: it uses prospective longitudinal data, it combines data from samples of ageing parents and samples of adult children, it develops a way to create measures of balance from frequency items on support exchange, and it combines objective measures of support exchange with subjective perceptions of symmetry. The focus is limited to support that involves time and effort. The support that parents give to children declines with age, the support they receive increases, and at around age 75–76, parents become ‘net receivers’. The decline in downward support is stronger than the increase in upward support, suggesting that declining parental opportunities to give plays an important role in the flow reversal. In sum, the analyses provide evidence for what we can call delayed and parent-driven flow reversal. Evidence for flow reversal is stronger in the sample of adult children, pointing to the limitations of sampling ageing parents. Finally, there is correspondence between objective measures of support exchange and perceptions of symmetry, although on the whole, few parents regard themselves as ‘net receivers’.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthijs Kalmijn, 2019. "The Effects of Ageing on Intergenerational Support Exchange: A New Look at the Hypothesis of Flow Reversal," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 35(2), pages 263-284, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:eurpop:v:35:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s10680-018-9472-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s10680-018-9472-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hung-Lin Tao, 2013. "Informational Ambiguity and Survey Bias: Husbands’ and Wives’ Reports on Their Contribution to Their Families," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 111(3), pages 713-724, May.
    2. Olle Lundberg & Mats Thorslund, 1996. "Fieldwork and measurement considerations in surveys of the oldest old," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 165-187, February.
    3. Ronald Rindfuss & Martin Piotrowski & Barbara Entwisle & Jeffrey Edmeades & Katherine Faust, 2012. "Migrant remittances and the web of family obligations: Ongoing support among spatially extended kin in North-east Thailand, 1984–94," Population Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 66(1), pages 87-104.
    4. Kyungmin Kim & Steven H. Zarit & David J. Eggebeen & Kira S. Birditt & Karen L. Fingerman, 2011. "Discrepancies in Reports of Support Exchanges Between Aging Parents and Their Middle-Aged Children," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 66(5), pages 527-537.
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    Cited by:

    1. Alice Goisis, 2023. "Maternal Age at First Birth and Parental Support: Evidence From the UK Millennium Cohort Study," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(5), pages 1-33, October.
    2. Yashuo Chen & Chunjiang Yang & Shangjun Feng, 2019. "The Effect of Social Communication on Life Satisfaction among the Rural Elderly: A Moderated Mediation Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-13, October.
    3. Steele, Fiona & Zhang, Siliang & Grundy, Emily & Burchardt, Tania, 2024. "Longitudinal analysis of exchanges of support between parents and children in the UK," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 119908, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Xing Zhang & Anna M. Hammersmith, 2024. "Adult Children’s Marital Timing and Upward Intergenerational Financial Transfers: Variation across Gender, Race, and Ethnicity," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-19, September.

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