This study explores the association between intergenerational relationships and life satisfaction among urban elders in China, with a focus on the emotional dimension of intergenerational solidarity. Individual factors, effects of associational, affectual, functional and structural solidarity were examined by analyzing data collected from the Zhenjiang City Intergenerational Relationship Survey (ZJIRS) in 2007, Jiangsu province, China. Study results revealed that elders’ marital status, educational background, pension, and self-rated health were closely related to the degree of intergenerational solidarity. A higher level of education, possession of a medical insurance, and better heath condition had a positive relationship with elders’ life satisfaction. Through the comparison of intergenerational exchanges from both parents and children, the study found that Chinese elders had the highest level of life satisfaction when they receive more frequent contacts, financial support, and affection from their children. This study might contribute to the existing body of literature in the overall theoretic understandings of intergenerational solidarity, life satisfaction, as well as the association between specific dimensions of intergenerational solidarity and older adults’ life satisfaction.

Thesis advisor: James Lubben / Thesis advisor: Sara M. Moorman / Every year, more than three million allegations of childhood maltreatment are received by child protective services, many of which involve cases of abuse or neglect inflicted by the victims’ parents. A number of studies found that negative consequences of childhood maltreatment can last for a lifetime. Despite the long-term impact of childhood maltreatment, later-life relationships between adult victims of childhood maltreatment and their abusive parent have rarely been examined. This dissertation aims to address the gap in the literature by examining how adult victims of childhood maltreatment relate to their abusive parent when the parent becomes old and requires long-term care assistance. This three-paper dissertation utilized existing data sources: Wisconsin Longitudinal Study and National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States. The first paper examined the mediating effect of intergenerational solidarity with the aging mother in the association between maternal childhood maltreatment and adult psychological functioning. The second paper used longitudinal data analysis to compare long-term changes in affectual solidarity with aging mothers between adults with a history of childhood abuse and those without. This paper also examined moderating effects of the correlates of childhood abuse (i.e., poor social competency and lack of emotional regulation) in the association between childhood abuse and affectual solidarity with the aging mother. The third paper focused on the caregiving situation in which adult victims of childhood abuse provided care to their abusive parent. This paper investigated whether and how providing care to the abusive parent was associated with psychological distress among abused adult children, and whether self-esteem mediated the association. By revealing the dynamics of later-life relationships between adult victims of childhood maltreatment and their abusive parent, this three-paper dissertation not only contributes to creating new knowledge to the aging literature, but also provides future direction for social work practice and policy. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Social Work. / Discipline: Social Work.

This dissertation contributes to the literature on intergenerational transfers by examining the dynamics of financial assistance provided by midlife parents to their adult children across the life course. This dissertation also examines whether the cumulative advantage hypothesis stretches across generational lines during co-occurring life course experiences so that financial transfers convey additional advantages to adult children. I use panel data from four waves of the Health and Retirement Study (1992, 1994, 1996 and 1998) to provide a broad picture of the process of financial assistance to younger adults within extended families. I constructed within-family trajectories of assistance to demonstrate that financial transfers are more common than previously estimated. Over 60% of all midlife-parent households gave $500 or more at least once and many parents gave multiple transfers and/or gave transfers to several adult children during a seven-year period. In an examination of kinship structures that differentiates between paternal children and maternal children within blended families, I use nonlinear logistic regression models to show that the decreased likelihood that fathers provided financial assistance to children from a previous marriage accounted solely for the reduction in transfers that all stepchildren received compared to biological children. Multilevel regression models demonstrate that transfer amounts are also influenced by kinship structures and parental resources. Additional analyses show adult child life course transitions related to schooling and coresidence were influential for parents' transfer behaviors while other life course transitions related to work, marriage, home ownership and the addition of a grandchild to the family were not influential. The number of life course transitions experienced by adult children during later waves significantly increased the likelihood of transfer receipt. However, the diversification of experiences over time made it difficult to pinpoint specific life course transitions relevant to financial assistance from parents. The strong impact of previous transfers upon the likelihood that adult children would receive transfers at later waves shows that patterns of repeated transfers were common for many intergenerational families. I argue that future research should analyze the impact of parental wealth on transfers and should explicitly examine parents' motives for giving money to adult children. / Dissertation

This thesis examines the social context of stillbirth and its impact on women's life and on their relationships with their family members. The study sample includes 8 adult women from Israel. Israel is a country characterized by a high number of children in families and the centrality of religion in society. The methodology used in this study was semi-structured interviews. Our results were similar to those of previous studies in terms of the partner's attitude to the event. On the other hand, the results included novel findings regarding other family members' coping with the stillbirth event. Solidarity and other types of empathy were found to be relevant according to women's stories; whereas some filial norms were met with more ambivalent responses. This thesis demonstrates the importance of intergenerational solidarity, the mass influence of cultural context and ambivalence within everyday situations and the meaning of empathy from close family members. Particular attention needs to be paid to the intergenerational perspective, which focuses on the family (couple, divorced or single units) or the wider society in which they live. Moreover, the experience of particular social groups further exploration; for instance, single mothers and surrogates.

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Die vorliegende Dissertation untersucht, wie die intergenerationellen Beziehungen im heutigen China ausgestaltet sind und diskutiert ihre Auswirkungen auf die Altersvorsorge. Historisch gesehen war die Rolle des chinesischen Staates bei der Bereitstellung von Altersvorsorge sehr gering, und die Betreuung älterer Menschen wird immer noch hauptsächlich als Familienaufgabe angesehen. Die konfuzianische Norm der filial piety verpflichtet die Kinder im Erwachsenenalter, ihre Eltern finanziell und materiell zu unterstützen sowie sich um die Betreuung zu kümmern und entsprechend Hilfe zu leisten. In den letzten Jahrzehnten wurden jedoch traditionelle chinesische Familiennormen und – bräuche durch den sozioökonomischen, demographischen und kulturellen Wandel infragegestellt. Infolgedessen wird weitgehend ‒sowohl in der wissenschaftlichen Literatur als auch im öffentlichen Diskurs‒ angenommen, dass filial piety und die damit zusammenhängenden Formen der intergenerationellen Familienunterstützung zunehmend an Wert verlieren, was die Frage nach dem Wohlergehen älterer Generationen aufwirft. Im Folgenden betrachte ich drei Hauptaspekte der intergenerationelle Solidarität: strukturelle Solidarität (geografische Nähe), funktionale Solidarität (Pflege und finanzielle Unterstützung) und assoziative Solidarität (sozialer Kontakt) sowie deren Zusammenhänge. Ich argumentiere, dass die beobachteten Muster weder den traditionellen Anforderungen der filial piety entsprechen, noch auf eine Krise der intergenerationellen Familiensolidarität hinweisen. Stattdessen reflektieren sie die pragmatischen Bemühungen der Familien, ihre Beziehungen im Hinblick auf einen raschen Strukturwandel neu zu verhandeln und anzupassen. Allerdings ist die Anpassungsfähigkeit in der chinesischen Gesellschaft nicht gleich verteilt, besonders schwer ist es für sozialschwache Familien, die vergleichsweise schwächere Bindungen zu ihren erwachsenen Kindern haben. / This dissertation assesses the state of intergenerational relations in contemporary China, and discusses its implications for old age security. Historically, the role of the Chinese state in the provision of old age security has been minimal, and caring for older people is primarily seen as a family responsibility. The Confucian norm of filial piety obliges adult children to provide their parents with financial and material support as well physical care and assistance. In recent decades, however, traditional Chinese family norms and customs have been challenged by a number of socio-economic, demographic and cultural changes. As a result there is a widespread belief ‒both in academic literature and in the public discourse‒ that filial piety and related forms of intergenerational family support are on the decline, raising concerns about the well-being of older generations. In this study, I look at three main aspects of intergenerational relations or family solidarity: structural solidarity (proximity), functional solidarity (the provision of care and financial support) and associational solidarity (social contact), as well as their interrelations. Using a nationally representative dataset of Chinese families, I argue that the observed patterns neither correspond to the traditional demands of filial piety, nor indicate a crisis of intergenerational family solidarity. Instead, they reflect families' pragmatic efforts to renegotiate and adapt their relationships in the face of a rapid structural change. The capability to adapt is not equally distributed, however, and it is often the more vulnerable groups that have comparatively weaker ties to adult children.

<p>This thesis deals with a very important issue in South African society, i.e. the provision of financial and non-cash support to older persons. Older persons in South Africa can be described as a sizeable but vulnerable group requiring specific protection. Section 27 of the South African Constitution of 1996 obliges the state to take reasonable legislative and other measures within available resources to progressively realise the right of access to social security. Hence, the steps taken by the state to promote older persons&rsquo / right of access to social security and to protect their right to dignity need to be evaluated. The legislative framework for the provision of financial and non-cash support to older persons currently is fragmented into various statutes dealing with retirement income, state grants to older persons and care and support services for older persons. Therefore, the current legislation lacks an integrated approach to the provision of support and care to older persons, as well as a central principle on which to base future legislation concerning older persons. One such principle that could potentially be adopted is intergenerational solidarity, which can be described as the solidarity between the active working-age population, as one generation, from which benefits flow to older persons as the other. This thesis evaluates whether intergenerational solidarity should form the basis of South African legislation on the provision of retirement income and the provision of care and support to older persons, and if so, whether it in fact does. If the answer to the latter is in the negative, the thesis further examines whether the current process to reform the retirement income system and related legislation in South Africa would be a suitable platform to introduce the concept of intergenerational solidarity to legislation concerning older persons.</p>

<p>This thesis deals with a very important issue in South African society, i.e. the provision of financial and non-cash support to older persons. Older persons in South Africa can be described as a sizeable but vulnerable group requiring specific protection. Section 27 of the South African Constitution of 1996 obliges the state to take reasonable legislative and other measures within available resources to progressively realise the right of access to social security. Hence, the steps taken by the state to promote older persons&rsquo / right of access to social security and to protect their right to dignity need to be evaluated. The legislative framework for the provision of financial and non-cash support to older persons currently is fragmented into various statutes dealing with retirement income, state grants to older persons and care and support services for older persons. Therefore, the current legislation lacks an integrated approach to the provision of support and care to older persons, as well as a central principle on which to base future legislation concerning older persons. One such principle that could potentially be adopted is intergenerational solidarity, which can be described as the solidarity between the active working-age population, as one generation, from which benefits flow to older persons as the other. This thesis evaluates whether intergenerational solidarity should form the basis of South African legislation on the provision of retirement income and the provision of care and support to older persons, and if so, whether it in fact does. If the answer to the latter is in the negative, the thesis further examines whether the current process to reform the retirement income system and related legislation in South Africa would be a suitable platform to introduce the concept of intergenerational solidarity to legislation concerning older persons.</p>

My thesis deals with three generations living together in families in the context of past and present, with possible applications into social work. It focuses on an intergenerational solidarity and a mutual help among members of three-generational families which are adequate indicators of mutual relationships. Using ideas of Christian ethics and results of sociological researches it tries to answer the question about the importance of three generations living together within a family and using the theory of social behavior it tries to specify bases of three-generational families living together in cooparation with a social worker.