Support Exchanges Among Very Old Parents and Their Children: Findings From the Boston Aging Together Study

Abstract Very old parents and their “old” children are a growing group in industrialized countries worldwide. Care needs of very old parents can be substantial, while children may also face their own age-related issues. However, little is known about support exchanges within very-old parent-child dyads. This study aimed to identify patterns of support exchanges occurring in these dyads, as well as to ascertain individual and relationship factors associated with these patterns. Participants were 114 very old parents (age ≥ 90) and their children (age ≥ 65) from the Boston Aging Together Study. Data were collected using comprehensive, semistructured in-person interviews with both dyad members, including standardized assessments of support exchanges, relationship quality, health, and perceptions of family norms. Actor-Partner Interdependence Models (APIM) were used to predict upward and downward support reported by children and parents. Both dyad members not only reported substantial upward support (given to parents by children) in all domains but also notable amounts of downward support (given to children by parents) in the domains of emotional support, listening, and socializing. Findings showed significant associations of parent functional impairment, parent and child relationship quality, and child perceptions of family obligation with upward support, and of relationship quality with downward support. Continued support exchanges among very old parents and their children indicated that intergenerational theories still hold up in very late life relationships. Healthcare professionals should be aware that attention to relationship quality and family norms might be vital to ensure that support needs are met.

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“I’m Getting Older Too”: Challenges and Benefits Experienced by Very Old Parents and Their Children

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igab046.2776 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 754-754

Author(s):

Kathrin Boerner ◽

Elizabeth Gallagher ◽

Kyungmin Kim ◽

Daniela Jopp ◽

Yijung Kim

Keyword(s):

Social Contact ◽

Industrialized Countries ◽

Parent Child Relationship ◽

Policy Makers ◽

Very Old ◽

Old Adults ◽

Child Relationship ◽

Narrative Interview ◽

Depth Interviews ◽

Parent Child

Abstract Very old parents and their “old” children are a growing group in industrialized countries worldwide. Since most very old persons have outlived spouses and friends, their children, many of whom have reached old age themselves, are likely to become their primary social contact and to shoulder the care provision role. However, virtually nothing is known about the nature and implications of this relationship constellation. To fill this gap, the present study explored the challenges and rewards of the very old parent-child relationship. In-depth interviews were conducted with 114 parent-child dyads (parent age ≥ 90; child age ≥ 65). Narrative interview data on challenges and rewards were audiotaped, transcribed, and then systematically reviewed and coded, identifying recurrent themes and defining categories that reflected these themes. While both challenges and rewards were present, more rewards than challenges were reported overall. However, comparing parent and child perspectives revealed that the balance of challenges and rewards was less favorable for children. Narrative data further showed that the sense of burdening their children heavily weighed on at least a fourth of parents, reflecting this as a serious concern not only for children but also for parents. Challenges reported by children were often characterized by references to children’s own advanced age and health problems, and the prolonged caregiving involvement due to their parents’ longevity. Healthcare professionals, policy makers, and families should be made aware of this increasingly common phenomenon, and specific services and policies will be needed to adequately support very old adults and their families.

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“I’m Getting Older Too”: Challenges and Benefits Experienced by Very Old Parents and Their Children

Journal of Applied Gerontology ◽

10.1177/07334648211016113 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 073346482110161

Author(s):

Kathrin Boerner ◽

Yijung K. Kim ◽

Elizabeth A. Gallagher ◽

Kyungmin Kim ◽

Daniela S. Jopp

Keyword(s):

Health Care Professionals ◽

Common Phenomenon ◽

Industrialized Countries ◽

Parent Child Relationship ◽

Very Old ◽

Old Adults ◽

Child Relationship ◽

Depth Interviews ◽

Child Age ◽

Parent Child

Very old parents and their “old” children are a growing group in industrialized countries worldwide. However, virtually nothing is known about the nature and implications of this relationship constellation. To fill this gap, this study explored the challenges and rewards of the very old parent–child relationship. In-depth interviews were conducted with 114 parent–child dyads (parent age ≥90; child age ≥65). While both challenges and rewards were present, the balance of challenges and rewards was notably less favorable for children with more challenges experienced overall. Challenges reported by children were often characterized by references to children’s own advanced age and health problems, and the prolonged caregiving involvement due to their parents’ longevity. Health care professionals, policymakers, and families should be made aware of this increasingly common phenomenon, and specific services and policies will be needed to adequately support very old adults and their families.

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Supplemental Material for Dyadic Development in the Family: Stability in Mother–Child Relationship Quality From Infancy to Adolescence

Journal of Family Psychology ◽

10.1037/fam0000794.supp ◽

2020 ◽

Keyword(s):

Relationship Quality ◽

Family Stability ◽

Child Relationship ◽

The Family ◽

Mother Child Relationship

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Parental incarceration affects children’s emotional and behavioral outcomes: A longitudinal cohort study of children aged 9 to 13 years

International Journal of Behavioral Development ◽

10.1177/0165025421995918 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 016502542199591

Author(s):

Daragh Bradshaw ◽

Ann-Marie Creaven ◽

Orla T. Muldoon

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Relationship Quality ◽

Child Outcomes ◽

Behavioral Outcomes ◽

Secondary Analysis ◽

Parental Incarceration ◽

Child Relationship ◽

Children And Parents ◽

The Impact

Parental incarceration (PI) is negatively associated with emotional, educational, and psychological child outcomes. However, few studies explore potential mechanisms through which these outcomes are transmitted or the means by which prosocial outcomes might develop. This study used data from two waves of a population cohort study of children aged 9 years and followed up aged 13 years living in Ireland. Children and parents ( N = 8,568) completed measures of PI, primary caregiver (PCG) depression, PCG-child relationship quality, and child behavioral adjustment. We then conducted a secondary analysis on this national longitudinal study of children in Ireland. Using sequential mediation models, we observed a mediated indirect effect of PI on prosocial outcomes via PCG depression and PCG-child relationship quality. PI at age 9 was associated with increased difficulties and reduced prosocial behavior at age 13. Additionally, PI at age 9 affected PCG depression and the PCG-child relationship quality. Additionally, child prosocial outcomes, and emotional and behavioral difficulties were less apparent where PI had a weaker effect on PCG depression and the quality of PCG-child relationship. Supports that can mitigate the impact of PI for vulnerable caregivers and children are discussed.

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Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on Parenting and Children’s Externalizing Behaviors: Transactional Processes Over Time

Violence Against Women ◽

10.1177/1077801220985125 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107780122098512

Author(s):

Gerard Chung ◽

Todd M. Jensen ◽

Anna Parisi ◽

Rebecca J. Macy ◽

Paul Lanier

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Relationship Quality ◽

Low Income ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Externalizing Behaviors ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Child Relationship ◽

Assessment And Treatment ◽

Low Income Mothers ◽

Transactional Associations

This study used longitudinal data to examine the transactional associations between mothers’ spanking and mother–child relationship quality with children’s externalizing behaviors in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV). Data came from a sample of 1,152 low-income mothers with children age 10–14 years. Results showed that past-year IPV triggered transactional associations by increasing children’s externalizing behaviors which, in turn, increased spanking and subsequently more externalizing behaviors. Transactional associations were also found for relationship quality. All outcomes used were mothers-reported except relationship quality. Implications for practice include the importance of the mother–child dyad and their reciprocal processes in assessment and treatment.

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Do children's adjustment problems contribute to teacher–child relationship quality? Support for a child-driven model

Early Childhood Research Quarterly ◽

10.1016/j.ecresq.2015.08.003 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 34 ◽

pp. 13-26 ◽

Cited By ~ 34

Author(s):

Teresa M. Mejia ◽

Wendy L.G. Hoglund

Keyword(s):

Relationship Quality ◽

Adjustment Problems ◽

Children's Adjustment ◽

Children’S Adjustment ◽

Child Relationship

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Longitudinal Increases in Parent–Child Relationship Quality and Sensation Seeking Interact to Increase Risk-Taking During the College Transition

Emerging Adulthood ◽

10.1177/2167696817705954 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 66-71 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

João F. Guassi Moreira ◽

Eva H. Telzer

Keyword(s):

Relationship Quality ◽

College Transition ◽

Risk Taking ◽

Sensation Seeking ◽

Risky Behaviors ◽

Parent Child Relationship ◽

First Semester ◽

Child Relationship ◽

Risk Taking Behaviors ◽

Parent Child

We tested two competing predictions of whether changes in parent–child relationship quality buffer or exacerbate the association between sensation-seeking and risk-taking behaviors as individuals gain more independence during the high school–college transition. In the current longitudinal study, 287 participants completed self-report measures of sensation seeking, risk-taking, and parent–child relationship quality with their parents prior to starting college and again during their first semester. Overall, students displayed increases in risky behaviors, which were predicted by sensation seeking. Changes in relationship quality moderated the association between sensation seeking and risk-taking, such that sensation seeking predicted higher risk-taking behaviors during the first semester of college, but only for those who reported increases in relationship quality across the college transition. These results suggest that increased relationship quality may have an inadvertent spillover effect by interacting with sensation seeking to increase risky behaviors.

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