Private Intergenerational Transfers between Parents and Children in the U.S., and Consequences of the Great Recession

Sebastian F. Daza, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Alberto Palloni, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Few studies have examined transfer patterns over time and how they change with family dynamic, timing of certain events, and across the business cycle. This paper contributes to the literature on intergenerational transfers by, first, examining the dynamics of money, time, and space resources, over time and across the life course; and, secondly, by providing new evidence on the consequences of the great recession of 2008 on support. We use 9 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (1994-2010). Our preliminary results show a positive albeit small effect of the great recession on monetary transfers from parents to children, time spent (care) from children to parents, and coresidence. They also show the importance of race, socioeconomic status, and coresidence in the likelihood of support. These findings motivate the discussion about how specific characteristics of the recession could explain changes in the intergenerational flows observed in the U.S.