Adult Children’s Life Events and Intergenerational Relations

• Main Authors: Wang, Hui-Chih, 王惠芝
• Other Authors: Lin, Ju-Ping
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/03707458243065432231

碩士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 人類發展與家庭學系 === 99 === The paper investigates the possible effects of adult children’s life events on their intergenerational coresidence, intergenerational economic support, and intergenerational contacts by using selected data from the Panel Study of Family Dynamics respectively in 2004 and 2007. The subjects under investigation were adult children aged from 20-50, with at least one of whose parents is alive. The results indicate the following findings. First, it shows contrasting difference in intergenerational relationship between adult sons and adult daughters. The former mostly live with their parents and meet them more often as well as provide more economic support than the latter, while the latter talk with their parents via telephones more frequently. Second, adult sons’ life events have impacts on the intergenerational relationships. Marriage would lead adult sons to live separately with their parents, while divorce or widowed would make them to live together with their parents. Also, adult sons would reduce the frequency of meeting their widowed parents. But when adult son have children of their own, they would provide more economic support to their parents. Third, adult daughters’ life events have impacts on the intergenerational relationships as well. Marriage, the birth of their first child, and unemployment would lead to the consequence of their living separately with their parents; while divorce or widowed would make them to live with their parents. In addition, with the rise of their salary, adult daughters’ would decrease the chances to meet their parents. And if they lost their jobs, the frequency of calling their parents would drop. Moreover, if adult daughters got married, or if their income were deduced, or the need of taking care of their parents were increased, they would cut down the economic support for their parents. In conclusion, the change of the adult children’s intergenerational relations are mainly resulted from their own resources and needs, not from the factors of their parents.