Intergenerational support and life satisfaction of young-, old- and oldest-old adults in China

Objectives: This study investigated variation across different old-age groups in the association between intergenerational support and elderly life satisfaction in China, taking into account both exchange patterns and different types of support.Method: Using the first two waves (2010 and 2012) of China Family Panel Studies, we applied the fixed-effect approach to examine the moderating effect of age separately for exchange patterns and different types of intergenerational support. The sample included 3989 elderly people.Results: There were age differences in the association between intergenerational support and elderly life satisfaction, for both exchange patterns and different types of support. Particularly, there was significant difference between the young-old (61–70) and the oldest-old (85+) in terms of the association.Conclusion: Theoretically, this study helps to elaborate on social exchange and equity theories by introducing explanations from socio-emotional selectivity theory. It further highlights how policies for elderly care should be developed considering the diverse needs, characteristics and goals of elderly people rather than treating them as a singular homogenous group, in particular in relation to different old-age groups.