Older Adults’ Descendants and Family Networks in the Context of Global Educational Expansion

Family networks are key to understanding the wellbeing of older adults because kin provide instrumental and financial support, help manage health and disability, and encourage social integration. Two momentous societal changes have shaped the families of contemporary older adults: the first and second demographic transitions and global educational expansion. The intersection of these two processes raises questions about how older adults are faring in terms of their kin availability. This paper examines the socioeconomic bifurcation of adults in midlife and beyond in terms of the existence of descendants and other kin. Disparities in kin availability may vary across socioeconomic status and contexts, and so we examine this phenomenon worldwide, analyzing data on two thirds of the world's population of adults aged 50 and above. Our results highlight different kin structures by socioeconomic status. High socioeconomic status adults have fewer descendants but a higher likelihood of having at least one child with tertiary education, a partner, and living parents. Low socioeconomic status older adults have larger families with more younger kin. Our results shed new light on potential mismatches between the contemporary family networks of older adults and longstanding social norms and assumptions about caregiving, family, and health policies.