Eva-Maria Merz

Intergenerational family solidarity: value differences between immigrant groups and generations.

Although immigrants may be more dependent on their immediate family for support, they may also experience a wider generation-gap in values regarding intergenerational solidarity, because of processes of acculturation. Based on large scale survey data (N = 2,028), differences between first and second generation immigrants in values regarding intergenerational solidarity were examined among family members in the Netherlands with an immigration background from Turkey, Morocco, Suriname, and The Dutch Antilles. Using a multilevel analytic approach, effects of family and individual characteristics on values regarding intergenerational solidarity were tested, considering the perspectives of two generations. It was found that immigrants with Moroccan and Turkish backgrounds scored higher on values with respect to intergenerational family solidarity than immigrants stemming from Suriname and The Antilles. First generation immigrants placed higher values on family solidarity compared to second generation immigrants. Additionally, religious denomination was a significant predictor of higher values with respect to intergenerational family solidarity. Immigration and acculturation may create great strains in migrant families. Policies to support the fabric of intergenerational solidarity should consider ethnic and religious background and immigration history.

Wellbeing of adult children and ageing parents: associations with intergenerational support and relationship quality

ABSTRACT The current study describes from an attachment-theoretical viewpoint how intergenerational support in adult child-parent relationships is associated with wellbeing in both generations. The attachment perspective and its focus on affective relationship characteristics is considered as an important theoretical framework for the investigation of special relationships across the life span. Data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (N=1,456 dyads) were analysed to investigate if relationship quality moderated the association between providing intergenerational support to parents and wellbeing in adult children, on the one hand, and receiving intergenerational support from children and wellbeing of older parents on the other hand. The perspectives of both relationship partners were taken into account to allow for dependence within dyads. Intergenerational support, in terms of instrumental help provision, was negatively associated with the childs and parents wellbeing. Being the stronger and wiser partner in adult-child parent relationships, as reflected by giving advice and being the initiator within the relationship, was beneficial for the wellbeing of both generations. Additionally, relationship quality was the strongest predictor of wellbeing in both generations. Parental wellbeing was benefited by filial support in high quality relationships. If an intergenerational relationships was of high quality, the challenges of intergenerational support provision and receipt were easier to deal with for both generations, parents and children.

Wellbeing depends on social relationship characteristics: comparing different types and providers of support to older adults

ABSTRACT This paper examines the associations between different forms of support, who provides the support and the wellbeing of older adults in Germany. Particular attention is paid to the wellbeing differences associated with kin and non-kin providers and with emotional support and instrumental support. In addition, the quality of relationships with kin and non-kin is examined as a moderator of the association between social support and wellbeing. Data for 1,146 respondents to the German Ageing Survey in 2002 were analysed to determine the combinations of emotional or instrumental support, kin or non-kin providers and relationship quality that best predicted wellbeing. Emotional support from kin and instrumental support from non-kin were both found to associate positively with wellbeing. Emotional support from non-kin providers did not associate with wellbeing, whereas instrumental support from kin providers had a negative association with one aspect of wellbeing. Higher relationship quality, whether with kin or non-kin, positively related to wellbeing. Interestingly, the negative impact of instrumental kin support was qualified by relationship quality. In other words, for people with high-quality relationships, receiving instrumental support from kin did not decrease wellbeing. When the relationship with a family carer or supporter is characterised by high quality, the challenges of frailties in old age, such as decreasing capacities and an increasing need for social support, can be met without compromising wellbeing.

The association of family support and wellbeing in later life depends on adult attachment style

The current study examines the association between family support and wellbeing in the elderly, paying particular attention to the possible moderating role of attachment style. Data from a community-dwelling, ethnically diverse, elderly sample (N = 1118) were analyzed to determine the best linear combination of emotional support, instrumental support, and attachment styles predicting wellbeing. Emotional support generally was associated with higher wellbeing whereas instrumental support was related to decreased wellbeing. As expected, however, these associations were qualified by attachment style. Receiving emotional support had stronger positive and instrumental support less negative effects on the wellbeing of elderly individuals with higher attachment security. Given increased longevity, family networks may become important sources of support for the elderly. Work detailing when, how, and for whom particular types of family support are beneficial is a key agenda within developmental psychology and social gerontology.

Lung Function after the Minimal Invasive Pectus Excavatum Repair (Nuss Procedure)

BackgroundThe Nuss procedure was introduced at our center in 1999. The operation was mainly performed for cosmesis. Little information is available regarding the influence of this operation on lung function.MethodsThe aim of this study, a prospective analysis, was to analyze the effect of the Nuss procedure on lung function variables. Between 1999 and 2007 a total of 203 patients with pectus excavatum were treated with the Nuss procedure, of whom 145 (104 male, 41 female) were located at Emma Children’s Hospital. In the latter subset of consecutive patients, static lung function variables [total lung capacity (TLC), functional residual capacity (FRC), vital capacity (VC)] and dynamic lung function variables [forced expired volume in 1 s (FEV1), maximum expiratory flow (MEF50)] were performed using spirometry and body box measurements at four time points: prior to operation (T0), 6 months after the Nuss procedure (T1, n = 111), prior to removal of the Nuss bar (T2, n = 74), and 6 months after removal (T3, n = 53). All values were expressed as a percent of normal values for sex, age, and height. Results were compared with a paired-samples t-test, with the level of significance at p = 0.05.ResultsAt 6 months after bar insertion the TLC, FRC, VC, FEV1, and MEF50 showed a significant increase; and prior to bar removal the FRC and MEF50 showed significantly increased values. At 6 months after Nuss bar removal, none of the lung function variables showed any significant change compared to the preoperative values.ConclusionAfter the Nuss procedure for pectus excavatum, there was no improvement of pulmonary function, but neither was the patient’s pulmonary function harmed by resolving a largely cosmetic problem.

Attachment, social network size, and patterns of social exchange in later life

Dispositional styles of relating to significant others—adult attachment—are linked to social relatedness across the life span. Prior work has concentrated on the receipt of perceived social support and not examined links between attachment and patterns of exchange. Data from a sample of older adults (N 1,118) were used to examine how secure, dismissive, and fearfully avoidant dimensions were associated with network size and patterns of exchange in kin and non-kin networks. Security was related to larger network size, greater reciprocity, and less “giving” to kin, whereas dismissiveness was associated with smaller non-kin networks, greater reciprocity, less “giving” to kin and non-kin, and more relationships involving “receiving” from kin. Levels of fearful avoidance were associated with fewer reciprocal relationships and more “receiving” from kin. Data are interpreted in light of attachment’s manifestations in motivational and interpersonal systems and may help explain variations in later life social network functioning.

Inter-generational relationships at different ages: An attachment perspective

ABSTRACT This study examines the characteristics of parent-child relationships after childhood from a theoretical attachment perspective. It describes how relationships between adult children and their parents vary by age group of the child on three dimensions that were derived from attachment theory: direction, penetration and quality. Data from 4,589 respondents to the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study were analysed to describe relationships between adult-children and their parents. Analyses of covariance were used to specify differences by age group. The results showed that age had notable effects on relationships between adult children and parents, especially their direction and penetration or centrality. The direction was reversed for parents of children in the two oldest age groups. The level of penetration was lower for the older age groups, and quality was higher in the younger age groups, but the effect size was small. The age effects on the dimensions were qualified by the personal circumstances of the adult children. Having ones own children was associated with different patterns of attachment at different ages. Adult children may be an important source of support for their elderly parents and may even become ‘attachment figures’. Given the current increases in longevity, there could be increasing pressure on adult children to support their parents. Attachment theory is a useful framework for studying the characteristics of inter-generational relationships, also after childhood.

The long reach of childhood. Childhood experiences influence close relationships and loneliness across life

This paper intends to gain insight into the role of childhood relationships and experiences within the parental home for the formation and meaning of later family relationships and loneliness. Particularly, childhood attachment to mother and father and stressful childhood experiences were studied in their association with satisfaction in the romantic relationship, the quality of adult family ties and the perceived quality of the social network, i.e. loneliness in adulthood. Based on data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (N=3980) structural equation models were estimated to predict adult relationships and loneliness with childhood experiences. Positive attachment experiences with parents, such as reliability, closeness and supportiveness during childhood were associated with greater satisfaction in the romantic relationship, stronger family ties and less loneliness, whereas stressful childhood experiences, such as conflicts and violence negatively predicted the quality of adult relationships. Life span theoretical perspectives, such as attachment theory are discussed as useful unifying framework to study social relationships, their interconnectedness and association with outcome during all phases of life.

Mother–Child Relations in Adulthood: Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Families in the Netherlands

Based on the Model of Family Change, the authors examined how mother–child relations among non-Western immigrants and natives were characterized by patterns of solidarity. Latent Class Analysis was applied to data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (2004) on the practical and emotional support that Dutch, Turkish, Moroccan, Surinamese, and Antillean adult children gave and received from their mother (N = 1,267). A similar five-class typology in all origin groups revealed three types of full-interdependence (“reciprocal,” “upward,” and “downward”), emotional-interdependent, and independent mother–child relationship. Whereas full-interdependence prevailed among immigrants, Dutch were more characterized by downward-interdependence and emotional-interdependence. Irrespective of the child’s origin, independent relationships were uncommon. The results evidence the importance of emotional intergenerational ties in adulthood across families of different origins.

Consequences of Filial Support for Two Generations: A Narrative and Quantitative Review

This narrative and quantitative review synthesizes findings from 55 (N = 54,550) studies on the association between providing support to elderly parents and well-being of adult children as well as well-being of parents, in an endeavor to determine the prevailing direction of effects, magnitude of effects, and possible factors that may moderate these effects. The relation between caring for an elderly parent and well-being and/or caregiver burden in adult children was found to be insubstantial. Likewise, being cared for by adult children was found to be weakly related to well-being in elderly parents. More complex models including psychological aspects of caring; aspects of the intergenerational relationship, such as quality; and the inclusion of both the adult child’s and the parent’s perspectives on providing and receiving support appear more promising for understanding caregiving and well-being in intergenerational relationships beyond childhood.