Mutual Assistance of Urban Parents and Adult Children: Differences in Age, Educational and Income Groups

Abstract

Since 2019, Russia has been implementing The Federal project “Older generation”, which is one of the five Federal projects (FP) of the national project”Demography”. The purpose of the project is to expand the boundaries of active and efficient old age, strengthen the health of older people, and provide them with decent care from the state [Federal.., 2019]. In addition to government efforts, the family ties of the elderly are also important. One of the indicators of well-being of older people is the nature of their relationships with adult children. To analyze the mutual assistance of adult children and parents in Russia, we used the databases of the 2011, 2014, 2016, and 2018 COHR. Sub-samples of urban citizens aged 55–64 and 65 years and older who have adult children living separately were formed. The dynamics of various types of mutual assistance is described, and the change in the balance of monetary mutual assistance between parents and adult children in these age groups is shown. The differences in monetary mutual assistance and care for grandchildren by gender of parents, among educated/ uneducated parents and living in households with different income levels in the selected age groups are analyzed. Changing the models of interaction between parents and adult children can become one of the adaptive strategies in the next crisis social conditions in Russia.