Characteristics of Children and Intergenerational Transfers

This paper presents an analysis of intergenerational transfers involving the elderly in Taiwan, with particular attention to the types of support received by the elderly and the sources of this support.

We address some of the theoretical issues which must be considered in a study of intergenerational support and the implications of these issues with regard to appropriate methodological strategies.

Empirically, this paper examines the nature and patterns of several types of support that are received and/or provided by the elderly, with particular attention to variations in the likelihood of receiving support according to certain sociodemographic, health status and family composition characteristics. Subsequent analysis focuses on the providers of each type of support, by identifying individual providers and characterizing the full networks of providers. The final section looks exclusively at children as providers of support to their elderly parents, and examines the propensity of children to provide specific types of support across a number of characteristics.

Dataset(s): Survey of Health and Living Status of the Elderly: Taiwan, 1989.