Older Adults' Descendants and Family Networks in the Context of Global Educational Expansion
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4122345 |
|---|---|
| Authors | R Margolis (0000-0002-3331-591X, Western University), Mara Getz Sheftel (0000-0003-1899-8764), Haowei Wang (0000-0003-4409-6596, Syracuse University), Raeven Faye Chandler, L Newmyer (0000-0002-9240-7187, Bowling Green State University), A M Verdery (0000-0003-1005-7580, Pennsylvania State University) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 51 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 213-256 |
| Publication date | 2025-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Population and Development Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0098-7921 • E-ISSN: 1728-4457 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/padr.12681 |
| PMID | 40880861 |
| OpenAlex | W4403828635 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 114 |
Family networks are key to understanding the well-being of older adults because kin provide instrumental and financial support, help manage health and disability, and encourage social integration. Two momentous societal changes have shaped the families of contemporary older adults: the first and second demographic transitions and global educational expansion. The intersection of these two processes raises questions about how older adults are faring in terms of their kin availability. This paper examines the socioeconomic bifurcation of adults in midlife and beyond in terms of the existence of descendants and other kin. Disparities in kin availability may vary across socioeconomic status and contexts, and so we examine this phenomenon worldwide, analyzing data on two thirds of the world's population of adults aged 50 and above. Our results highlight different kin structures by socioeconomic status. High socioeconomic status adults have fewer descendants but a higher likelihood of having at least one child with tertiary education, a partner, and living parents. Low socioeconomic status older adults have larger families with more younger kin. Our results shed new light on potential mismatches between the contemporary family networks of older adults and longstanding social norms and assumptions about caregiving, family, and health policies
Context (archaeology · Developmental psychology · Geography · Life course approach · Population · Socioeconomic status · Sociology · Demography · Health disparities and outcomes · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Medicine · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies · Psychology · Gerontology
Women’s Education, Autonomy, and Reproductive Behaviour
Childlessness in Europe
Social Inequalities in Health
Family formation and the frequency of various kinship relationships
Social Networks in Adult Life and a Preliminary Examination of the Convoy Model
Cross-National Differences in Older Adult Loneliness
Social and Emotional Loneliness Among Divorced and Married Men and Women
Death of family members as an overlooked source of racial disadvantage in the United States
The Disproportionate Impact Of Dementia On Family And Unpaid Caregiving To Older Adults
Population Aging and the Generational Economy
Global burden of maternal bereavement
Filial Obligations in Post-Divorce Stepfamilies
Generational Economics and the National Transfer Accounts
Social Support in America
Life Course Events and Migration in the Transition to Adulthood
Older mother's health and adult children's education
The Second Demographic Transition Theory
Our Only Child Has Died”—A Study of Bereaved Older Chinese Parents
The Convoy Model and Later‐Life Family Relationships
Losing and Gaining in Old Age
The Physical, Mental, and Social Health of Middle-Aged and Older Adults Without Close Kin in Canada
The Death of a Child and Parents’ Psychological Distress in Mid to Later Life
Social Networks Among Men and Women
Kinlessness Around the World
Reciprocity in Parent-Child Relations Over the Adult Life Course
No Spouse, No Son, No Daughter, No Kin in Contemporary China
Older Adults Without Close Kin in the United States
Care Received and Unmet Care Needs Among Older Parents in Biological and Step Families
Attitudes regarding filial responsibilities to help elderly divorced parents and stepparents
Global Educational Expansion and Socio-Economic Development
Divorce, Repartnering, and Stepfamilies
Families in Later Life
Healthy Grandparenthood
Parental marital disruption and intergenerational transfers
Family Change and Changing Family Demography
Stepfamily Structure and Transfers Between Generations in U.S. Families
A Cohort Perspective on the Demography of Grandparenthood
The Swedish Kinship Universe
Skewed Sex Ratios at Birth and Future Marriage Squeeze in China and India, 2005–2100
The Schooling of Offspring and the Survival of Parents
Stability across cohorts in divorce risk factors
The Rise of Sonless Families in Asia and North Africa
Kinship Reconsidered
Living arrangements, intergenerational support types and older adult loneliness in Eastern and Western Europe
Social Isolation in America
Core Discussion Networks of Americans
The Gender Revolution
Links Between Demographic and Kinship Transitions
Family embeddedness and older adult mortality in the United States
Another Gendered Demographic Dividend
Delayed Marriage and Very Low Fertility in Pacific Asia
From social integration to health
The Social Connectedness of Older Adults
Where have all the children gone? Women's reports of more childlessness at older ages than when they were younger in a large-scale continuous household survey in Britain
The Unfolding Story of the Second Demographic Transition
Long-Term Effects of the Demographic Transition on Family and Kinship Networks in Britain
The Family Safety Net of Black and White Multigenerational Families
Educational Inequality and Family Relationships
The formal demography of kinship V
How does the demographic transition affect kinship networks
The formal demography of kinship
Why does women's education stabilize marriages? The role of marital attraction and barriers to divorce
More education, fewer divorces? Shifting education differentials of divorce in Taiwan from 1975 to 2010
Stratified patterns of divorce
Educational Differences in Divorce in Japan
Projection of populations by level of educational attainment, age, and sex for 120 countries for 2005-2050
The impact of parent's and spouses' education on divorce rates in Norway
Trajectories of Grandparents' Perceived Solidarity with Adult Grandchildren
Sons, Daughters, and Intergenerational Social Support
Black Deaths Matter
Social Disconnectedness, Perceived Isolation, and Health among Older Adults
Marriage and Family in East Asia
Race/Ethnic Differences in Spatial Distance Between Adult Children and Their Mothers
The Decoupling of Marriage and Parenthood? Trends in the Timing of Marital First Births, 1945-2002
Do Sons or Daughters Give More Money to Parents in Urban China
High Hopes but Even Higher Expectations
Stability and Change in the Educational Gradient of Divorce. A Comparison of Seventeen Countries
Structural Inequities in the Kin Safety Net
Remarriage as an Incomplete Institution
Family structure and the intergenerational transmission of educational advantage
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |