Norms of Filial Responsibility for Aging Parents Across Time and Generations

TLDR

The study examined how the expectation that adult children care for aging parents varies across adulthood, historical time, and generational position. Using four waves of USC Longitudinal Study of Generations data (1985‑2000), the authors applied a multilevel latent growth model to 4,527 observations from 1,627 individuals in 333 families. Filial norms weakened after midlife, after parental death, and over time, yet strengthened in later‑born generations, highlighting their malleability across the life course.

Abstract

This investigation examined the normative expectation that adult children should be responsible for the care of their aging parents, and how this norm changes over the adult life span, across several decades of historical time, in relation to generational position in families, and between successive generations. Analyses were performed using 4 waves of data from the University of Southern California (USC) Longitudinal Study of Generations between 1985 and 2000. A multilevel latent growth model was estimated using 4,527 observations from 1,627 individuals nested within 333 families. Results revealed that filial norms weakened after midlife, in response to parental death, and over historical time, yet strengthened in later‐born generations. Findings are discussed in terms of the malleability of filial responsibility over the life course.