JOURNAL ARTICLE

The Reciprocal Relationship of Self-Rated Health and Instrumental Help From Adult Children: Evidence From Germany.

  • Published In: Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences, 2023, v. 78, n. 8. P. 1435 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Jessee, Lisa 3 of 3

Abstract

This article examines the bidirectional relationship between instrumental help from adult children (i.e., assistance with household chores) and older adults' self-rated health (SRH) using four waves of data from the German Ageing Survey (DEAS) involving 3,914 parents aged 40–95 years. Employing dynamic panel models with fixed effects to address reverse causality and omitted variable bias, the study finds no significant longitudinal effects of instrumental help on future SRH or vice versa. Instead, prior levels of SRH and instrumental help independently predict their own future states, suggesting that health and intergenerational support in later life operate largely independently. The findings imply that interventions to promote healthy aging may be more effective if focused on earlier life stages and on maintaining stable intergenerational support rather than expecting direct health benefits from instrumental help in older age.

Additional Information

  • Source:Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences. 2023/08, Vol. 78, Issue 8, p1435
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Politics and Government
  • Publication Date:2023
  • ISSN:1079-5014
  • DOI:10.1093/geronb/gbad063
  • Accession Number:169728877
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences is the property of Oxford University Press / USA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Looking to go deeper into this topic? Look for more articles on EBSCOhost.