6 minute read

Parent-Child Relationship

Effects Of Childlessess On The Elderly

Considering the closeness and mutually supportive relationships that many adult children and elderly parents enjoy, it is reasonable to expect that elderly individuals who are parents would be happier than those who do not have children. However, the research on this issue has consistently demonstrated that individuals who are childless are as happy and well-adjusted as are parents, even in the later years. Further, people who are sixty-five or older and do not have children are more likely to report advantages than disadvantages of childlessness. Individuals who have remained childless have been found to develop social networks that compensate for the absence of support from adult children. However, the emphasis on such compensatory mechanisms vary by gender. For example, childless women are more likely than their male counterparts to develop close friendship networks and become involved with community and religious organizations. Not surprisingly, older individuals who are the most likely to be disadvantaged by their childlessness are widowed men who had been dependent primarily on their wives for instrumental and emotional support.

The one area in which there are substantial differences between the experiences of parents and the childless in the later years is living arrangements. Elderly people who are childless are about 50 percent more likely to live in some form of residential care at some point than are parents. One might expect that this would mean that childless men would be the most likely to live in residential care at some point in their later years; however, the fact that women are more likely to be childless, combined with their longer life expectancy, means that childless women are more likely than childless men to live in residentialcare facilities at some point.

J. JILL SUITOR KARL PILLEMER

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ARDITTI, J. A. "Rethinking Relationships Between Divorced Mothers and Their Children: Capitalizing on Family Strengths." FAMILY RELATIONS 48 (1999): 109.

AQUILINO, W. S., and SUPPLE, K. "Parent-Child Relations and Parents' Satisfaction with Living Arrangements When Adult Children Live at Home." Journal of Marriage and the Family 53 (1991): 13–27.

BRODY, E. M. Women in the Middle: Their Parent- Care Years. New York: Springer, 1990.

BULCROFT, K. A., and BULCROFT, R. A. "The Timing of Divorce: Effects on Parent-Child Relationships in Later Life." Research on Aging 13 (1991): 226–243.

CHAKRABARTI, S.; KULHARA, P.; and VERMA, S. K. "The Pattern of Burden in Families of Neurotic Patients." Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 28 (1993): 172–177.

CONNIDIS, I. A., and MCMULLIN, J. A. "Permanent Childlessness: Perceived Advantages and Disadvantages Among Older Persons." Canadian Journal on Aging 18 (1999): 447–465.

DEWIT, D. J., and FRANKEL, B. G. "Geographic Distance and Intergenerational Contact: A Critical Assessment and Review of the Literature." Journal of Aging Studies 2 (1988): 25–43.

FREDRIKSEN, K. I. "Gender Differences in Employment and the Informal Care of Adults." Journal of Women & Aging 8 (1996): 35–53.

FULIGNI, A. J.; TSENG, V.; and LAM, M. "Attitudes Toward Family Obligations among American Adolescents with Asian, Latin American, and European Backgrounds." Child Development 70 (1999): 1030–1044.

GOTTLEIB, B. H., and PANCER, S. M. "Social Networks and the Transition to Parenthood." In The Transition to Parenthood: Current Theory and Research. Edited by G. Y. Michaels and W. A. Goldberg. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 1988.

HAGESTAD, G. "Dimensions of Time and the Family." American Behavioral Scientist 29 (1987): 679–694.

JOHNSON, C. L. "Postdivorce Reorganization of Relationships Between Divorcing Children and Their Parents." Journal of Marriage and the Family 50 (1988): 221–231.

KAMO, Y. "Racial and Ethnic Differences in Extended Family Households." Sociological Perspectives 43 (2000): 211–229.

KAUFMAN, G., and UHLENBERG, P. "Effects of Life-Course Transitions on the Quality of Relationships Between Adult Children and Their Parents." Journal of Marriage and the Family 60 (1998): 924–938.

KIM, H. K., and MCKENRY, P. C. "Social Networks and Support: A Comparison of African Americans, Asian Americans, Caucasians, and Hispanics." Journal of Comparative Family Studies 29 (1998): 313.

KIVETT, V. R. "Centrality of the Grandfather Role Among Older Rural Black and White Men." Journals of Gerontology 46 (1991): S250–258.

KULIS, S. S. "Social Class and the Locus of Reciprocity in Relationships with Adult Children." Journal of Family Issues 13 (1992): 482–504.

LOGAN, J. R., and SPITZE, G. "Family Ties: Enduring Relations Between Parents and Their Grown Children." Journal of Marriage and the Family 44 (1996): 217–224.

LUBBEN, J. E., and BECCERRA, R. M. "Social Support Among Black, Mexican, and Chinese Elderly." In Ethnic Dimensions of Aging. Edited by D. E. Gelfand and C. M. Barresi. New York: Springer, 1987.

MORBARAK, M. E.; SCHARLACH, A. E.; and L. SOKOLOV, BIRBA J. "Employment, Social Networks, and Health in the Retirement Years." International Journal of Aging and Human Development 35 (1992): 145–159.

MYLES, J. Old Age in the Welfare State. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1989.

NEWMAN, K. S. Falling from Grace: The Experience of Downward Mobility in the American Middle Class. New York: Free Press, 1988.

PHINNEY, J. S.; ONG, A.; and MADDEN, T. "Cultural Values and Intergenerational Value Discrepancies in Immigrant and Non-Immigrant Families." Child Development 71 (2000): 528–539.

PILLEMER, K., and SUITOR, J. J. "Elder Abuse." In Handbook of Family Violence. Edited by V. Van Hasselt, H. Bellack, R. Morrison, and M. Hersen. New York: Plenum, 1988.

PILLEMER, K., and SUITOR, J. J. "Will I Ever Escape My Child's Problems? Effects of Adult Children's Problems on Elderly Parents." Journal of Marriage and the Family 53 (1991): 585–594.

PITCHER, B. L., and LARSON, D. C. "Elderly Widowhood." In Aging and the Family. Edited by S.J. Bahr and E. T. Peterson. Lexington, Mass.: Lexington Books, 1989.

ROBERTS, R. E. L.; RICHARDS, L. N.; and BENGTSON, V. L. "Intergenerational Solidarity in Families: Untangling the Ties That Bind." Marriage and Family Review 16 (1991): 11–46.

ROBINSON, K. M. "Family Caregiving: Who Provides Care, and At What Costs?" Nursing Economics 15 (1997): 243–247.

ROSSI, A. S., and ROSSI, P. H. Of Human Bonding: Parent Child Relations Across the Life Course. New York: Aldine de Gruyter, 1990.

SELTZER, M.; MAILICK, L.; and WAILING, L. "The Dynamics of Caregiving: Transitions During a Three-Year Prospective Study." The Gerontologist 40 (2000): 165–178.

SHMOTKIN, D. "Affective Bonds of Adult Children With Living Versus Deceased Parents." Psychology and Aging 14 (1999): 473–82.

SILVERSTEIN, M.; PARROTT, T. M.; and BENGTSON, V. L. "Factors that Predispose Middle-Aged Sons and Daughters to Provide Social Support to Older Parents." Journal of Marriage and the Family 57 (1995): 465–475.

SPITZE, G., and LOGAN, J. R. "Employment and Filial Relations: Is There a Conflict?" Social Forum 6 (1991): 681–697.

SPITZE, G.; LOGAN, J. R.; DEANE, G.; and ZERGER, S. "Adult Children's Divorce and Intergenerational Relationships." Journal of Marriage and the Family 56 (1994): 279–293.

STONE, R.; CAFFERATA, G. L.; and SANGL, J. "Caregivers of the Frail Elderly: A National Profile." The Gerontologist 27 (1987): 616–626.

SUITOR, J. J., and PILLEMER, K. "Did Mom Really Love You Best? Exploring the Role of Within-Family Differences in Developmental Histories on Parental Favoritism." Motivation and Emotion (2000): 104–115.

SUITOR, J. J., and PILLEMER, K. "The Presence of Adult Children: A Source of Stress for Elderly Couples' Marriages?" Journal of Marriage and the Family 49 (1987): 717–725.

SUITOR, J. J.; PILLEMER, K.; KEETON, S.; and ROBISON, J. "Aged Parents and Aging Children: Determinants of Relationship Quality." In Handbook of Aging and the Family. Edited by Victoria Bedford and Rosemary Bliezner. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1985.

UMBERSON, D. "Relationships Between Adult Children and Their Parents: Psychological Consequences for Both Generations." Journal of Marriage and the Family 54 (1992): 664–674.

WALKER, A. J.; MARTIN, S. S. K.; and JONES, L. L. "The Benefits and Costs of Caregiving and Care Receiving for Daughters and Mothers." Journal of Gerontology 47 (1992): S130–139.

WENGER, G. C.; SCOTT, A.; and PATTERSON, N. "How Important is Parenthood? Childlessness and Support in Old Age in England." Ageing and Society 20 (2000): 161–82.

WHITE, L. "The Effect of Parental Divorce and Remarriage on Parental Support for Adult Children." Journal of Family Issues 13 (1992): 234–250.

Additional topics

Medicine EncyclopediaAging Healthy - Part 3Parent-Child Relationship - Parent-adult Child Relations In Historical Context, The Quality Of Parent-adult Child Relations