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Marital Status, Childlessness, and Social Support among Older Canadians*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 November 2014

Margaret J. Penning  and
Zheng Wu
Margaret J. Penning*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, University of Victoria
Zheng Wu
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, University of Victoria
*
†Correspondence and requests for reprints should be sent to / La correspondance et les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adressées à: Margaret Penning, Ph.D. Department of Sociology University of Victoria PO Box 1700 STN CSC Victoria, BC V8W 3P5 ([email protected])
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Abstract

Despite evidence of increasing diversification of family structures, little is known regarding implications of marital and parental status for access to social support in later life. Using data from Statistics Canada’s 2007 General Social Survey, this study assessed the impact of marital and parental status intersections on social support among adults aged 60 and older (n = 11,503). Two-stage probit regression models indicated that among those who were currently married or separated/divorced, childless individuals were more likely to report instrumental (domestic, transportation) and emotional support from people outside the household. Conversely, among never-married or widowed older adults, being childless was associated with reduced domestic support but without differences in other support domains. Findings suggest that marital and parental status intersections are not uniformly positive, neutral, or negative regarding implications for extra-household social support. Future work should address complexities of these relationships in order to better understand rapidly changing family structures.

Résumé

Malgré les preuves de la diversification croissante des structures familiales, on connaît peu de conséquences de l'état matrimonial et parental pour l'accès à l'aide sociale dans la vie plus tard. En utilisant les données de l'Enquête sociale générale de 2007 de Statistique Canada, cette étude a évalué l'impact des intersections de l'état matrimonial et parental sur le soutien social chez les adultes âgés de 60 ans et plus (n = 11 503). Modèles probit de regréssion en deux étapes ont indiqué que, parmi ceux qui sont actuellement mariés ou séparés/divorcés, les personnes sans enfants étaient plus susceptibles de déclarer un soutien instrumental (domestique, transport) et émotionnel des personnes hors du ménage. A l'inverse, chez les personnes âgées célibataires ou veuves, être sans enfant a été associée à du soutien interne réduit, mais sans différences dans un autre support. Les résultats suggèrent que les intersections de l'état matrimonial et parental ne sont pas uniformément positive, neutre ou négative à l'égard des implications pour le soutien social extra-ménage. Les travaux futures devraient répondre à la complexité de ces relations afin de mieux comprendre les structures familiales qui évoluent rapidement.

Keywords

agingCanadachildlessmarital statussocial supportvieillissmentCanadasans enfantl'état matrimonialle soutien social
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 33 , Issue 4: Special Issue on Aging Families , December 2014 , pp. 426 - 447
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2014 

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Footnotes

*

This article is based on a paper presented at the International Symposium on Aging Families, sponsored by the SSHRC-funded Population Change and Life Course Strategic Knowledge Cluster, Victoria, BC, 3–4 June 2013. We thank the participants, editors, and anonymous reviewers for their feedback.

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