The sandwich generation in Brazil

Abstract

The paper analyzes the demographic determinants and implications of the ‘sandwich generation’ in Brazil. This generation is characterized by women who are likely to devote a significant amount of time to caring for both young children and elderly parents. In the past few decades, Brazil has been facing a rapid fertility and mortality decline, but the average fertility age has changed very little. The combination of these elements has had socioeconomic consequences on women and families. More specifically, we investigate: (i) what is the probability of a woman having a young child (less than one year of age) and a living parent; (ii) what is the average time that women spend within the sandwich generation and how has this duration changed over time; and (iii) what is the average age when children experience a grandparent’s death. We use a SOCSIM microsimulation to analyze these three questions.