The impact of adult children's economic hardship on older parents' psychological well-being
Date
2021-08
Authors
Kim, Dahee
Major Professor
Advisor
Gilligan, Megan
Martin, Peter
Russell, Daniel
Gudmunson, Clinton
Shelley, Mack
Committee Member
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Abstract
The individual life course is embedded and shaped in multiple contexts. As a macro-context, macroeconomic crises may directly impact individual education, work, and family pathways by changes in economic circumstances. At the same time, the macroeconomic crises may indirectly impact the patterns of these pathways through the closest and interdependent relations. As a micro-context, family interdependent relations allow one’s life transitions and trajectories to affect the others’ life course development. Within parent-child relations, parents’ and children’s life course may have implications for each other’s development. Adult children’s life transitions that happen on the expected timing are likely to positively affect parents’ psychological well-being, whereas adult children’s failures or postponement of developmental achievements may have a negative effect on parents’ psychological well-being.
Drawing insights from the life course perspective, this dissertation investigated how adult children’s economic hardship may be associated with older parents’ psychological well-being. Moreover, the dissertation examined the mediating effects of parent-adult children relations on the association between adult children’s economic hardship and older parents’ psychological well-being. Lastly, the moderating effect of older parents’ characteristics on the indirect impact of adult children’s economic hardship on parents’ psychological well-being was also tested.
This dissertation used data from the National Survey of Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) collected 2013–2014. The data from 1,684 U.S. older adults aged 60 to 84 who have at least one living children were analyzed. Mediation and moderated mediation analyses were performed using Mplus 7.34.
The findings indicated that older parents whose children experienced economic hardship reported a low level of psychological well-being. In the mediation model, older parent-adult children relationship quality fully mediated the association between adult children’s economic hardship and older parents’ psychological well-being. However, there was no mediating effect of intergenerational support on the association between adult children’s economic hardship and older parents’ psychological well-being. Moderated mediation analyses revealed the significant moderating effect of older parents’ economic hardship experiences on the mediation model. Older parents without economic hardship experiences demonstrated a greater indirect effect of adult children’s economic hardship on parents’ psychological well-being than older parents with economic hardship experiences. However, there were no moderating effects of older parents’ gender and socioeconomic status on the indirect impact of adult children’s economic hardship on parents’ psychological well-being.
The dissertation reviewed the research trends of the family life course perspective across the Great Depression, the Great Farm Crisis, and the Great Recession, and pointed out the involvement of multiple contexts in shaping individual development. Moreover, drawing from the concepts of linked-lives, transitions, and timing from the life course perspective, this dissertation investigated a complicated mechanism of older parents’ development within relations with their adult children. Lastly, this dissertation suggested developing community-based intervention programs to enhance intergenerational relationships for older adults residing in communities.
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dissertation