Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-8ctnn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-21T13:53:45.708Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Childhood memories, family ties, sibling support and loneliness in ever-widowed older adults: quantitative and qualitative results

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 December 2014

EVA-MARIA MERZ  and
JENNY DE JONG GIERVELD
EVA-MARIA MERZ*
Affiliation:
Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, The Hague, The Netherlands.
JENNY DE JONG GIERVELD
Affiliation:
Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, The Hague, The Netherlands. Department of Sociology and Social Gerontology, VU University Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
*
Address for correspondence: Eva-Maria Merz, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, P.O. Box 11650, 2502AR The Hague, The Netherlands E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Family relationships play a major role in individuals' lives and can be a source of comfort, support and protection during the entire lifecourse. Particularly in the context of life events, such as widowhood, family relationships may be salient for (older) adults in coping with feelings of grief, loss and loneliness. Using Dutch survey data and 18 in-depth interviews from a sub-sample, this study examines the role of family relationships through the lifespan in reducing loneliness among ever-widowed older adults (i.e. persons who have at some time during their life experienced the death of a spouse). Particular attention was paid to childhood memories, family ties and support from siblings. Quantitative analyses examined associations between loneliness and childhood experiences of relationships with parents, family ties and sibling support. Qualitative data elucidated how ever-widowed adults recall relations with parents and siblings and experience current family relations. Quantitative and qualitative data showed that emotional support from siblings reduced loneliness. Additionally, positive memories of childhood relationships and current family ties were negatively related to loneliness. In times of ever-increasing longevity, work detailing how family relationships across the lifecourse are supportive in alleviating loneliness is a key issue on the social research and policy agenda.

Keywords

widowhoodlonelinesschildhood memoriessibling supportfamily ties
Type
Articles
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 36 , Issue 3 , March 2016 , pp. 534 - 561
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Attias-Donfut, C. 2001. The dynamics of elderly support: the transmission of solidarity patterns between generations. Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie, 34, 1, 9–15.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baumrind, D. 1980. New directions in socialization research. American Psychologist, 35, 7, 639–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bedford, V. H. 1998. Sibling relationships troubles and well-being in middle and old age. Family Relations, 47, 4, 369–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bengtson, V. L. 2004. Beyond the nuclear family. The increasing importance of multigenerational bonds. Journal of Marriage and Family, 63, 1, 1–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carstensen, L. L., Isaacowitz, D. M. and Charles, S. T. 1999. Taking time seriously. A theory of socioemotional selectivity. American Psychologist, 54, 3, 165–81.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cicirelli, V. G. 1995. Sibling Relationships Across the Life Span. Plenum Press, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Connidis, I. A. 1989. Siblings as friends in later life. American Behavioral Scientist, 33, 1, 81–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crosnoe, R. and Elder, G. H. Jr. 2004. From childhood to the later years: pathways of human development. Research on Aging, 26, 6, 623–54.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dannenbeck, C. 1995. Im Alter einsam? Zur Strukturveränderung sozialer Beziehungen im Alter [Lonely at old age? On the structural change of social relationships at older age]. In Bertram, H. (ed.), Das Individuum und seine Familie [The Individual and His/Her Family]. Leske + Budrich, Opladen, Germany.Google Scholar
Davila, J., Burge, D. and Hammen, C. 1997. Why does attachment style change? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 4, 826–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
De Jong Gierveld, J., Broese van Groenou, M., Hoogendoorn, A. W. and Smit, J. H. 2009. Quality of marriages in later life and emotional and social loneliness. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 64B, 4, 497–506.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
De Jong Gierveld, J. and Dykstra, P. A. 2008. Virtue is its own reward? Support-giving in the family and loneliness in middle and old age. Ageing & Society, 28, 2, 271–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
De Jong Gierveld, J. and Kamphuis, F. 1985. The development of a Rasch-type loneliness scale. Applied Psychological Measurement, 9, 3, 289–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
De Jong Gierveld, J. and Peeters, A. 2003. The interweaving of repartnered older adults’ lives with their children and siblings. Ageing & Society, 23, 2, 187–205.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
De Jong Gierveld, J. and Van Tilburg, T. G. 1999. Manual of the Loneliness Scale. VU University, Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Denzin, N. K. 1970. The Research Act: A Theoretical Introduction to Sociological Methods. Aldine de Gruyter, Chicago.Google Scholar
Doherty, N. A. and Feeney, J. A. 2004. The composition of attachment networks throughout the adult years. Personal Relationships, 11, 4, 469–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Drefahl, S. 2012. Do the married really live longer? The role of cohabitation and socioeconomic status. Journal of Marriage and Family, 74, 3, 462–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dykstra, P. A. 1993. The differential availability of relationships and the provision and effectiveness of support to older adults. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 10, 3, 355–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dykstra, P. A., Kalmijn, M., Knijn, T. C. M., Komter, A. E., Liefbroer, A. C. and Mulder, C. H. 2012. Codebook of the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study, a multi-actor, multi-method panel study on solidarity in family relationships, Wave 2. NKPS Working Paper 8, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, The Hague, The Netherlands.Google Scholar
Elder, G. H. Jr. 1995. Life trajectories in changing societies. In Bandura, A. (ed.), Self-efficacy in Changing Societies. Cambridge University Press, New York, 46–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Feeney, J. A. 2008. Adult romantic attachment. Developments in the study of couple relationships. In Cassidy, J. and Shaver, P. R. (eds), Handbook of Attachment. Theory, Research, and Clinical Applications. Guilford, New York, 456–81.Google Scholar
Gilligan, M., Suitor, J., Kim, S. and Pillemer, K. 2013. Differential effects of perceptions of mothers’ and fathers’ favoritism on sibling tension in adulthood. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 68B, 4, 593–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gold, D. T. 1987. Siblings in old age: something special. Canadian Journal on Aging/La Revue canadienne du vieillissement, 6, 3, 199–216.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grossmann, K., Grossmann, K. E. and Kindler, H. 2005. Early care and the roots of attachment and partnership representations. In Grossmann, K. E., Grossmann, K. and Waters, E. (eds), Attachment from Infancy to Adulthood. The Major Longitudinal Studies. Guilford, New York, 98–136.Google Scholar
Grossmann, K., Grossmann, K. E., Kindler, H. and Zimmermann, P. 2008. A wider view of attachment and exploration. The influence of mothers and fathers on the development of psychological security from infancy to young adulthood. In Cassidy, J. and Shaver, P. R. (eds), Handbook of Attachment. Theory, Research, and Clinical Applications. Guilford, New York, 857–79.Google Scholar
Grundy, E. and Henretta, J. C. 2006. Between elderly parents and adult children: a new look at the intergenerational care provided by the ‘sandwich generation’. Ageing & Society, 26, 5, 707–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guiaux, M., Van Tilburg, T. and Broese van Groenou, M. I. 2007. Changes in contact and social support exchange in personal networks after widowhood. Personal Relationships, 14, 3, 457–73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hagestad, G. O. 1998. Towards a society for all ages: New thinking, new language, new conversations. Keynote Address United Nations, New York, October1st.Google Scholar
Hardt, J. and Rutter, M. 2004. Validity of adult retrospective reports of adverse childhood experiences: review of the evidence. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 2, 260–73.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hawkley, L. C., Hughes, M. E., Waite, L. J., Masi, C. M., Thisted, R. A. and Cacioppo, J. T. 2008. From social structural factors to perceptions of relationship quality and loneliness: the Chicago health, aging, and social relations study. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 63B, 6, S375–84.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hogerbrugge, M. J. A. and Komter, A. E. 2012. Solidarity and ambivalence: comparing two perspectives on intergenerational relations using longitudinal panel data. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 67B, 3, 372–83.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kachadourian, L. K., Fincham, F. and Davila, J. 2004. The tendency to forgive in dating and married couples: the role of attachment and relationship satisfaction. Personal Relationships, 11, 3, 373–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaufmann, F.-X., Kuijsten, A., Schulze, H.-J. and Strohmeier, K. P. (eds) 2002. Family Life and Family Policies in Europe. Volume 2, Problems and Issues in Comparative Perspective. Oxford University Press, Oxford.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kobak, R. R. and Sceery, A. 1988. Attachment in late adolescence: working models, affect regulation, and representations of self and others. Child Development, 59, 1, 135–46.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
LaRossa, R. 2005. Grounded theory methods and qualitative family research. Journal of Marriage and Family, 67, 4, 837–57.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lopata, H. Z. 1996. Current Widowhood; Myths and Realities. Sage, London.Google Scholar
Lowenstein, A. 2007. Solidarity–conflict and ambivalence: testing two conceptual frameworks and their impact on quality of life for older family members. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 62B, 2, S100–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mallers, M. H., Charles, S. T., Neupert, S. D. and Almeida, D. M. 2010. Perceptions of childhood relationships with mother and father: daily emotional stressor experiences in adulthood. Developmental Psychology, 46, 6, 1651–61.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Manning, W. D. and Smock, P. J. 2005. Measuring and modeling cohabitation: new perspectives from qualitative data. Journal of Marriage and Family, 67, 4, 989–1002.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCormick, C. B. and Kennedy, J. H. 1994. Parent–child attachment working models and self-esteem in adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 23, 1, 1–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merz, E.-M. and Consedine, N. S. 2009. The association of family support and wellbeing in later life depends on attachment style. Attachment & Human Development, 11, 2, 203–21.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Merz, E.-M., Consedine, N. S., Schulze, H.-J. and Schuengel, C. 2009. Wellbeing of adult children and ageing parents: associations with intergenerational support and relationship quality. Ageing & Society, 29, 5, 783–802.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merz, E.-M. and Jak, S. 2013. The long reach of childhood. Childhood experiences influence close relationships and loneliness across life. Advances in Life Course Research, 18, 3, 212–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merz, E.-M., Schuengel, C. and Schulze, H.-J. 2007. Intergenerational solidarity: an attachment perspective. Journal of Aging Studies, 21, 2, 175–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merz, E.-M., Schuengel, C. and Schulze, H.-J. 2008. Inter-generational relationships at different ages: an attachment perspective. Ageing & Society, 28, 5, 717–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mikulincer, M., Shaver, P. R. and Pereg, D. 2003. Attachment theory and affect regulation: the dynamics, development, and cognitive consequences of attachment-related strategies. Motivation and Emotion, 27, 2, 77–102.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miles, M. B. and Huberman, A. M. 1984. Qualitative Data Analysis: A Sourcebook of New Methods. Sage, Beverly Hills, California.Google Scholar
Musick, K. and Bumpass, L. 2012. Reexamining the case of marriage: union formation and changes in well-being. Journal of Marriage and Family, 74, 1, 1–18.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pai, M. and Ha, J.-H. 2012. Impact of widowhood on parent–child relations: does parents’ personality matter? Journal of Marriage and Family, 74, 3, 494–509.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perlman, D. and Peplau, L. A. 1981. Toward a social psychology of loneliness. In Gilmour, R. and Duck, S. (eds), Personal Relationships 3: Personal Relationships in Disorder. Academic Press, London, 31–43.Google Scholar
Pinquart, M. 2003. Loneliness in married, widowed, divorced, and never-married older adults. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 20, 1, 31–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pinquart, M. and Sörensen, S. 2001. Influences on loneliness in older adults: a meta-analysis. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 23, 4, 245–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reinhardt, J. P., Boerner, K. and Horowitz, A. 2006. Good to have but not to use: differential impact of perceived and received support on well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 23, 1, 117–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Repetti, R. L., Taylor, S. E. and Seeman, T. E. 2002. Risky families: family social environments and the mental and physical health of offspring. Psychological Bulletin, 128, 2, 330–66.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rossi, A. S. and Rossi, P. H. 1990. Of Human Bonding, Parent–Child Relations Across the Life Course. Aldine de Gruyter, New York.Google Scholar
Russell, D. W. and Cutrona, C. E. 1991. Social support, stress, and depressive symptoms among the elderly: test of a process model. Psychology and Aging, 6, 2, 190–201.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sánchez, M. M., De Jong Gierveld, J. and Buz, J. 2014. Loneliness and the exchange of social support among older adults in Spain and the Netherlands. Ageing & Society, 34, 2, 330–54.Google Scholar
Scott, S. B., Bergeman, C. S., Verney, A., Longenbaker, S., Markey, M. A. and Bisconti, T. L. 2007. Social support in widowhood: a mixed methods study. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 1, 3, 242–66.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Seeman, T. E. 1996. Social ties and health: the benefits of social integration. Annals of Epidemiology, 6, 5, 442–51.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Soons, J. P. M. and Liefbroer, A. C. 2008. Together is better? Effects of relationship status and resources on young adults’ well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25, 4, 603–24.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Soons, J. P. M., Liefbroer, A. C. and Kalmijn, M. 2009. The long-term consequences of relationship formation for subjective well-being. Journal of Marriage and Family, 71, 5, 1254–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stevens, N. 1995. Gender and adaptation to widowhood in later life. Ageing & Society, 15, 1, 37–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tesch-Römer, C., Motel-Klingebiel, A. and Von Kondratowitz, H.-J. 2002. The relevance of the family network for the quality of life of elderly people: comparing societies and cultures. Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie, 35, 4, 335–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, P. A. 2010. Is it better to give or to receive? Social support and the well-being of older adults. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 65B, 3, 351–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Uchino, B. N., Cacioppo, J. T. and Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K. 1996. The relationship between social support and physiological processes: a review with emphasis on underlying mechanisms and implications for health. Psychological Bulletin, 119, 3, 488–531.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Utz, R. L., Reidy, E. B., Carr, D., Kessler, R., Nesse, R. and Wortman, C. 2004. The daily consequences of widowhood: the role of gender and intergenerational transfers of subsequent housework performance. Journal of Family Issues, 25, 5, 683–712.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van IJzendoorn, M. H. and Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J. 2010. Invariance of adult attachment across gender, age, culture, and socioeconomic status? Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 27, 2, 200–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Tilburg, T. and De Leeuw, E. 1991. Stability of scale quality under various data collection procedures: a mode comparison on the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale. International Journal of Public Opinion Research, 3, 1, 69–85.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vogt Yuan, A. S. 2009. Sibling relationships and adolescents’ mental health: the interrelationship of structure and quality. Journal of Family Issues, 30, 9, 1221–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Voorpostel, M. and Van der Lippe, T. 2007. Support between siblings and between friends: two worlds apart? Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 5, 1271–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Voorpostel, M., Van der Lippe, T. and Flap, H. 2012. For better or worse. Negative life events and sibling relationships. International Sociology, 27, 3, 330–48.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wenger, C. G., Davies, R., Shahtahmasebi, S. and Scott, A. 1996. Social isolation and loneliness in old age: review and model refinement. Ageing & Society, 16, 3, 333–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
White, L. 2001. Sibling relationships over the life course: a panel analysis. Journal of Marriage and Family, 63, 2, 555–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zeifman, D. and Hazan, C. 2008. Pair bonds as attachments. Reevaluating the evidence. In Cassidy, J. and Shaver, P. R. (eds), Handbook of Attachment. Theory, Research, and Clinical Applications. Guilford, New York, 436–55.Google Scholar
Zunzunegui, M. V., Béland, F. and Otero, A. 2001. Support from children, living arrangements, self-rated health and depressive symptoms of older people in Spain. International Journal of Epidemiology, 30, 5, 1090–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed