Intergenerational Ties in Adulthood

according to a meta-analysis what matters for health?

social relationships predict longevity and survival

increasing longevity makes parent-child ties the

modal period of life

while ___ bonds are on decline, parent-child ties are increasing

marriage

are couples more likely to marry or cohabit now

cohabit

what is the reason behind the differences in marriage now

more people are pursuing education

are young adults more likely to live with partners or parents

parents

those that coreside with their parents are are more likely to have

better relationships with their parents

what is the basis for parent-child ties

affection

children establish enduring ___ to parents, which is never broken

attachment

what is the intergenerational solidarity model

affection, contact and support influence each other; more affection influences contact which provides more opportunities to receive support

parents view children as their __

legacy and future

those that view children as their legacy and expect them to carry on their goals are more likely to

have better closeness, contact and well-being

midlife adults are more likely to support __ compared to older adults

younger children

intergenerational ambivalence model

when conflicting expectations cause positive and negative feelings to co-occur

what type of advice is most common in close parent-child ties and is the reason for intergenerational ambivalence?

unsolicited advice

social convoy

model that shows that we are supported by social relationships and protected by them

__ ties tend to be ambivalent

family

intergenerational ambivalence

when negative and positive feelings co-occur

what is the sandwich generation

middle generation (G2) has to respond to G1 and G3 simultaneously; not common

pendulum swing

when midlife adults balance support exchanges with generation above and below and help where needed; most common

contingency theory

when midlife adults support the needy (those with greater needs_

intergenerational support typically flows __ until parents reach late life and report needs

downstream

family exchanges study

interviewed 3 generations on their needs, relationship quality, obligation, support exchanges and amount of contact

what did the family exchanges study find

intergenerational support usually occurs downstream but that is not the only way

generational stake hypothesis

when adults view their children as their legacy and future to carry out their values, this influences their closeness, contact and wellbeing (more interested in young children)

what theory is this an example of: G1 had greater disabilities (assistance with everyday needs)

contingency theory

on a daily basis who did midlife adults help/provide support to

young adults

providing emotional support and advice to children was associated with greater or worse daily mood in G2

greater

providing any support to parents (G1) was associated with better or worse daily moods

worse

why might daily mood be worse when providing support to G1

older adults problems are not flexible and easily fixable compared to younger

midlife adults exhibited favorable or unfavorable cortisol responses on days when they provided support to adult children

favorable

midlife adults exhibited dysfunctional cortisol responses on days when they provided support to younger/older

older parents

cortisol responses follow a __ process (peaks when we wake up and declines throughout the day)

diurnal

what does giving to the good and needy mean

parents provide support to those children that are good, successful or have a lot of problems

what age group specifically is more likely to have more needs and are more likely to receive financial support from parents

emerging adults (18-24 years)

having one child with problems predicted better/worse/unchanged parental wellbeing

worse

parents’ wellbeing is compromised if there is a child that suffers even if the other are successful (having successful children does not buffer); parents endure

lower life satisfaction and more depressive symptoms

are aging parents likely to provide daily support to their middle children similar to when they provided support when they were younger?

yes they provided emotional and practical support and advice

why was financial support not provided on a daily basis by aging parents to their midlife children

frequency of financial support doesn’t matter but rather the quantity of support and it may not be done on a daily basis

what protects/buffers older parents from their distress over their children’s problems

providing daily support to adult children who reported major life problems (being able to help them)

are older parents with disabilities still likely to help their children

yes, they still gave them emotional and practical support and advice

older parents with disabilities, along with providing support also

received support from their children

ecological momentary assessment

report collected every 3 hours

experience sampling

randomly prompt individuals to report

when older adults with disabilities provided practical support, this was associated with

less negative mood

parents with no disability, providing support ___ associated with negative mood

not

what are some factors that can influence intergenerational ties

within family differences, gender, race/ethnicity, culture, LGBT

mothers tend to prefer the same children across time: sons or daughters

daughters

they value daughters because of

similar values and attitudes

mothers reported depressive symptoms when receiving care from ___ child, they would rather prefer no care

non-preferred

children that share values and attitudes are more or less likely to be chosen as caregivers at both waves rather than being chosen at one

more

children that were chosen at both waves also had increased

emotional closeness

majority of adult children report high/low levels of positive relationship qualities with sibling

high

those that recalled experiencing maternal favoritism when they were younger, their sibling relationship suffered or improved

suffered; less likely to feel close to sibling and have more conflicts

parental favoritism was associated with

sibling tension

did it matter whether the interviewee was favored or their sibling when it came to sibling conflict/tension

no

which dyad involves the most conflict

mother-daughter dyad

are black or white families more likely to help adult children

white but somewhat equal

are black or white families more likely to help older parents

black since they gain emotional rewards when helping family members

providing family support was associated with better/worse well-being among blacks

worse since it exacerbated their reactivity to daily tensions

__ children receive and provide more support to parents compared to children in western cultures

Asian

asian cultures prefer matrilineal or patrilineal

patrilineal

western cultures prefer matrilineal or patrilineal

matrilineal

a lack of reciprocity in asian or western cultures

asian because although sons are favored, daughters usually become caregivers even though they didn’t receive the same support

balanced support:

providing and receiving similar amount of support to and from parents and parent-in-laws

unbalanced support

exchanges between parent not same as parent-in-law (only obligatory exchanges not emotional)

in italy, lesbian and gay parents reported higher levels of __ in their families compared to heterosexual parents

dyadic adjustment, flexibility and communication

children raised by gay parents showed

as good emotion regulation and psychological well-being as children raised by heterosexual parents

do adult men and women in same sex relationships have weaker ties to their parents?

yes they leave home younger and move farther

although men and women in same sex relationship are more likely to leave, they are less likely to leave their parents for

partners

was there difference between the frequency of contact that men and women in same sex relationships had with their parents

no

how do lgbtq adults maintain ties with rejecting parents

through conflict management (conflict education, avoidance, acceptance and boundary)

Dr. Jill Suitor’s TED talk about parental favoritism 

those who shared values and supported their mother were more likely to be favored

parents or children report that their relationship with each other is excellent

parents

what are 2 factors that impact the support that midlife generations provide

relationship and changing factors (solitary theory and contingency)

in terms of contact, strength of ties and ambivalence between men and women in same sex relationships compared to those in hetero

not much difference