Elder-Child Coresidence in the United States

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We examine patterns of coresidence between elders and their adult children using a very large sample ( N greater than 3.5 million) of individuals 60 and older from the 1990 decennial census. The size of the data set allows for very fine demographic detail. The study presents cross-sectional data on the probability that an elder coresides with a child, disaggregated by the elder’s gender, age (in single years), and presence or absence of spouse, and by the child’s gender. Findings include the following: (1) Younger elders are more likely to coreside with sons, and older elders are more likely to coreside with daughters; (2) for men without spouses, coresidence rates with both sons and daughters increase monotonically from age 60 to 90; and (3) among all of the groups that analyzed, only women over age 80 without spouses are more likely to live with daughters than sons.