Onset of Physical Impairment of Independently Living Older Adults and the Support Received from Sons and Daughters in the Netherlands

Abstract

This study examined the relation between the onset of physical impairment of older parents and the instrumental and emotional support received from adult children in the Netherlands. The data were derived from 1,313 older parents who participated twice in a large survey with an interval of about one year between the times of measurement. For the 356 parent-child relationships of the 186 parents who experienced an onset of physical impairment, the support intensities were compared with the support in the child relationships of parents who remained in good health. The results indicated that, given the onset of physical impairment, both sons and daughters are likely to increase the intensity of instrumental and emotional support to their parent, but the increase is the strongest in mother-daughter relationships. Multivariate regression analyses showed that the intensity of support was significantly determined by the onset of parental physical impairment, but even more so by the type of parent-child relationship.