Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 May 19:8982643251342705.
doi: 10.1177/08982643251342705. Online ahead of print.

Are Relationship Patterns Between Parents and Adult Children Associated With ADL Disability Risk in Later Life?

Madison R Sauerteig-Rolston  1   2   3 , Patricia A Thomas  4   5 , Shawn Bauldry  4   5 , Elizabeth A Richards  5   6 , Kenneth F Ferraro  4   5
Affiliations

Are Relationship Patterns Between Parents and Adult Children Associated With ADL Disability Risk in Later Life?

Madison R Sauerteig-Rolston et al. J Aging Health. .

Abstract

BackgroundThis study examined whether patterns of relationship quality between parents and adult children were associated with the onset of ADL disability in later life.Research Design and MethodsUsing data from the Health and Retirement Study (N = 8,101), we studied whether support, strain, and patterns of relationships between parents and adult children were related to age of onset of ADL disability among parents.ResultsGreater support from adult children (based on parental report) was associated with later onset of ADL disability, and greater social strain was associated with earlier onset of disability. Compared to high-quality relationships, adverse, indifferent, and ambivalent relationships were associated with an earlier onset of ADL disability over time.DiscussionIt is important to acknowledge the complexity of relationships between parents and their adult children to understand how patterns of quality within these relationships influence ADL functioning in later life among parents.

Keywords: activities of daily living; ambivalence; parent/adult–child relationship patterns; social strain; social support.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Conceptual representation of the relationship quality indicators based on the mean score of social support and social strain.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Antonucci TC, Ajrouch KJ, & Birditt KS (2014). The convoy model: Explaining social relations from a multidisciplinary perspective. The Gerontologist, 54(1), 82–92. 10.1093/geront/gnt118 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bauldry S, Thomas PA, Sauerteig-Rolston MR, & Ferraro KF (2023). Racial–ethnic disparities in dual-function life expectancy. The Journals of Gerontology. Series A, 78(7), 1269–1275. 10.1093/gerona/glad059 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bengtson VL, Elder GH Jr, & Putney NM (2012). The life course perspective on ageing: Linked lives, timing, and history. In Katz J, Peace S, & Spurr S (Eds.), Adult lives: A life course perspective (pp. 9–17). Policy Press.
    1. Bengtson VL, Giarrusso R, Mabry JB, & Silverstein M (2002). Solidarity, conflict, and ambivalence: Complementary or competing perspectives on intergenerational relationships? Journal of Marriage and Family, 64(3), 568–576. 10.1111/j.1741-3737.2002.00568.x - DOI
    1. Bengtson VL, & Oyama PS (2010). Intergenerational solidarity and conflict: What does it mean and what are the big issues? In Cruz-Saco MA & Zelenev S (Eds.), Intergenerational solidarity: Strengthening economic and social ties (pp. 35–52). Palgrave Macmillan US.

LinkOut - more resources