Intrafamilial Upstream Transfers and Household Production

Abstract

The article investigates intergenerational transfers from children to parents and provides evidence for an exchange motive. The transfers are, therefore, interpreted as expenditures for intrafarnilial services. The application of the household production approach to the transfer-service relationship provides a new perspective into the following discussion: as cultural background determines the technology of the household production to a great extent, it is supposed that religion as one of the main cultural factors has an effect on the incidence of transfers.