Macro-level determinants of informal help and care

The frequency and intensity of grandparental child care vary considerably across European countries. Some authors indicate that grandparents in Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands show a higher propensity of care, but they are less likely to provide care on a regular basis (Fokkema, Ter Bekke and Dykstra Reference Fokkema, Ter Bekke and Dykstra2008; Hank and Buber Reference Hank and Buber2009; Ogg and Renaut Reference Ogg and Renaut2006). On the contrary, southern countries (Italy, Spain and Greece) show the lowest proportion of caring grandparents, but grandparents who provide some care tend to provide it regularly. This variation is partially caused by different family settings, for example, the co-residency of parents and adult children and grandchildren. Hank and Buber (Reference Hank and Buber2009) also point out the potential differences in perceiving the intensity of care about which grandparents report.

A similar pattern has been observed also in the case of adult children taking care of their older parents. Support to parents is provided in two forms: help and care (Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik Reference Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik2009; Igel et al. Reference Igel, Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik2009). Help is characterised as less demanding and it is more prevalent in Northern European countries. On the contrary, care as a more demanding form of support is more common in Southern European countries. The divide between northern transfer regimes with a high proportion of people providing less-intense support and southern transfer regimes with a low proportion of people providing more-intense support has been suggested also by other authors (see e.g. Bonsang Reference Bonsang2007; Ogg and Renaut Reference Ogg and Renaut2006).

Classification of countries not belonging to the group of either southern or Scandinavian countries is less clear. Kraus et al. (Reference Kraus, Czypionka, Riedel, Mot and Willemé2011) build a typology of countries based on the organisation and generosity of their systems of formal care. Western countries such as France, Germany and Belgium belong to a cluster of mostly Nordic countries (Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands) with the most generous and well-developed systems of care. Eastern countries generally share a low generosity in terms of financial support but they differ with regard to the level of development. The system is well-developed in Estonia, Slovakia, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, while it shows a lower level of development in Poland, Hungary, Lithunia and Romania. According to Jappens and Van Bavel (Reference Jappens and Van Bavel2012), Eastern European countries usually show a high level of support exchange between parents and adult children.

The variation across countries is associated with cultural aspects. Fokkema, Ter Bekke and Dykstra (Reference Fokkema, Ter Bekke and Dykstra2008) found that people in Scandinavian countries demonstrate low responsibility towards their family members, while people in southern countries generally feel much more obligated to support their relatives. Besides culture, the welfare state regime seems to be a crucial factor for macro-level differences. Northern countries are characterised by strong welfare states that secure a substantial part of the caring responsibilities for dependent people. On the contrary, southern countries rely on families as key providers of help and care. According to Igel and Szydlik (Reference Igel and Szydlik2011), a strong welfare state motivates (‘crowd-in’) family members to help each other, but discourages them (‘crowd-out’) from providing demanding care on a regular basis. The crowding-in effect has been shown also by others (Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik Reference Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik2009; Künemund and Rein Reference Künemund and Rein1999; Motel-Klingebiel, Tesch-Römer and von Kondratowitz Reference Motel-Klingebiel, Tesch-Römer and von Kondratowitz2005). The main idea is that the existence of a strong welfare state does not lead to the weakening of family solidarity but it rather changes the structure and characteristics of interpersonal relationships within the family (Daatland and Lowenstein Reference Daatland and Lowenstein2005).

On the basis of the findings cited above, it can be hypothesised that the help and care of parents and the care of grandchildren are positively related on the macro-level. Countries with a high proportion of people who support their older parents have a high proportion of grandparents looking after grandchildren and vice versa. Before testing this hypothesis, the conclusion of findings on individual factors related to help and care is provided in the following section.

Individual determinants of informal help and care

Gender is one of the most distinct factors influencing the likelihood of grandparents' care. Women look after grandchildren considerably more often than men (Danielsbacka et al. Reference Danielsbacka, Tanskanen, Jokela and Rotkirch2011; Hank and Buber Reference Hank and Buber2009), but as mothers they are also more likely to be helped by their parents since maternal grandmothers invest the most, followed by maternal grandfathers, paternal grandmothers and paternal grandfathers (Coall, Hilbrand and Hertwig Reference Coall, Hilbrand and Hertwig2014; Euler and Weitzel Reference Euler and Weitzel1996; Laham, Gonsalkorale and von Hippel Reference Laham, Gonsalkorale and von Hippel2005). There is also clear evidence about the influence of geographical proximity and contact between parents and children (Baydar and Brooks-Gunn Reference Baydar and Brooks-Gunn1998; Guzman Reference Guzman2004; Hank Reference Hank2007; Hank and Buber Reference Hank and Buber2009; Vandell et al. Reference Vandell, McCartney, Owen, Booth and Clarke-Stewart2003).

Working grandparents are generally willing to care as frequently as non-working grandparents, but with less intensity (Attias-Donfut, Ogg and Wolff Reference Attias-Donfut, Ogg and Wolff2005; Gray Reference Gray2005; Hank and Buber Reference Hank and Buber2009). Lakomý and Kreidl (Reference Lakomý and Kreidl2015) suggest that some grandparents tend to reduce their employment in order to provide care for their grandchildren and grandparents tend to retire earlier (Hochman and Lewin-Epstein Reference Hochman and Lewin-Epstein2013; Van Bavel and De Winter Reference Van Bavel and De Winter2013). Besides the position in the labour market, there is also the effect of education: highly educated grandparents tend to care for their grandchildren more than grandparents with a lower education (Baydar and Brooks-Gunn Reference Baydar and Brooks-Gunn1998; Silverstein and Marenco Reference Silverstein and Marenco2001).

The likelihood of the grandparents' care is, however, not formed only by the structure of grandparents' characteristics and opportunities, but also by parents' characteristics. Grandparents tend to care more regularly if the mother is employed (Del Boca Reference Del Boca2002; Del Boca, Locatelli and Vuri Reference Del Boca, Locatelli and Vuri2005). Women who are helped by grandparents are more likely employed, they work more hours and also earn more (Brewster and Rindfuss Reference Brewster and Rindfuss2000; Del Boca Reference Del Boca2002; Gray Reference Gray2005; Hank and Kreyenfeld Reference Hank and Kreyenfeld2003; Vandell et al. Reference Vandell, McCartney, Owen, Booth and Clarke-Stewart2003).

Both grandparents' and grandchildren's age are important factors. Younger grandparents tend to look after their grandchildren more than older ones and younger grandchildren receive more care from their grandparents (Coall, Hilbrand and Hertwig Reference Coall, Hilbrand and Hertwig2014; Luo, Hughes and Waite Reference Luo, Hughes and Waite2012; Silverstein and Marenco Reference Silverstein and Marenco2001). Regardless of age, the health limitations of grandparents decrease the propensity of care (Hank and Buber Reference Hank and Buber2009). Some authors also suggest that older grandparents may be less involved in the care of their grandchildren because they must deal with not only their own health issues, but a number of them also care for their dependent older parents (Minkler and Fuller-Thomson Reference Minkler and Fuller-Thomson2000).

According to the studies on the intergenerational care of older people, a significant proportion of the European and the American population provides some kind of help to the older generation (Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik Reference Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik2009; Grundy and Henretta Reference Grundy and Henretta2006). Individual determinants of older parents' care-givers are considerably similar to determinants of grandchildren's care. As in the case of grandchildren's care, significantly more women than men provide some support to parents, assistance is provided by children living nearby, without health limitations, with a higher education and the propensity for giving help decreases with the increasing age of the care provider (Bonsang Reference Bonsang2007). Apart from the opportunities of children, the needs of older parents strongly influence the propensity for receiving some assistance (Silverstein, Gans and Yang Reference Silverstein, Gans and Yang2006). Children in family-oriented countries tend to be more responsive to the needs of their parents (Kalmijn and Saraceno Reference Kalmijn and Saraceno2008).

In sum, the characteristics of people who provide care or help are shared both by people looking after grandchildren and assisting their older parents. They are usually middle-aged, women, without health limitations, with a rather high education and living near their relatives. Furthermore, normative solidarity and responsibility towards family members influence the support provided to both older parents and grandchildren. Several studies have shown the effect of filial responsibility on the provision of support to parents (e.g. Bromley and Blieszner Reference Bromley and Blieszner1997; Silverstein, Gans and Yang Reference Silverstein, Gans and Yang2006). Others show the positive effect of perceived family obligations on grandparents' engagement in grandchildren's care (Coall, Hilbrand and Hertwig Reference Coall, Hilbrand and Hertwig2014). These findings indicate that in some cases, it might be the same person who simultaneously provides help or care to both grandchildren and older parents. The term ‘sandwich generation’ can be extended to describe this group of people who are in a similar position as parents raising underage children and assisting their older parents. The next section provides information about previous findings on the sandwich generation.

The sandwich generation in the four-generation approach

The sandwich generation is usually defined as a middle-aged generation (or ‘pivot generation’) of people who simultaneously care for their older parents or parents-in-law and dependent children (Tebes and Irish Reference Tebes and Irish2000). This generation is involved not only in roles related to family, but they are usually also at the peak of their careers and, for that reason, they must balance competing demands inside and outside the family (Riley and Bowen Reference Riley and Bowen2005).

Investigation of the sandwich generation requires a multigenerational approach to analyse how different family roles interact with each other. Some authors (Fingerman et al. Reference Fingerman, Pitzer, Chan, Birditt, Franks and Zarit2011; Grundy and Henretta Reference Grundy and Henretta2006) employ a three-generation approach: a generation of children, a middle-aged generation of parents and a generation of grandparents. However, the contemporary family is characterised as multigenerational (Bengtson Reference Bengtson2001) and it might be desirable to include even more generations into the investigation of related concepts. Due to increasing life expectancy and healthy life years, people can spend a significant part of their life with their grandchildren. The following analysis, therefore, considers four generations: children, parents, grandparents and their older parents.

According to the research using the three-generation approach, recent findings suggest that downward care prevails: parents tend to help their children more than their parents but in the case of parental disability they support the parents more (Fingerman et al. Reference Fingerman, Pitzer, Chan, Birditt, Franks and Zarit2011). This could indicate that support provided to dependent older parents represents a burden, which discourages people of the middle-aged generation from supporting their children.

It is, however, necessary to distinguish different levels of a support, e.g. more demanding care of strongly dependent older parents and less-demanding help such as assistance in the household (Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik Reference Brandt, Haberkern and Szydlik2009), as well as various levels of frequency and intensity. Less-demanding support does not take much energy and time, and therefore does not necessarily constrain other activities and caring duties. In fact, there can even be a positive relationship because providing support can represent the expression of a general willingness to support other family members. On the other hand, the effect of highly intense and demanding care for the older can prevent grandparents from looking after their grandchildren, either due to a lack of energy or time. The literature shows extensive evidence on the negative effect of caring on the mental and physical health or general wellbeing of the care-giver (see e.g. Hiel et al. Reference Hiel, Beenackers, Renders, Robroek, Burdorf and Croezen2015; Marks, Lambert and Choi Reference Marks, Lambert and Choi2002; Pavalko and Woodbury Reference Pavalko and Woodbury2000).

The frequency and intensity of support can play an important role in the investigation of the conflict between caring roles. For that reason, the following analysis distinguishes regular and occasional help or care provided to grandchildren and parents.

Data and methods

The analysis is based on data from the SHARE. It collects information about people aged 50+, which is the age at which a substantial number of people already have adult children and they also have parents after or close to retirement age. So far, a module on intergenerational support has been included in all four regular waves (except for the retrospective survey SHARELIFE in 2008) in 2004–2012. The SHARE enables the use of panel data for respondents participating in at least two waves and its international approach gives access to comparative information. Data from 14 participating countries are available for analysis: Austria, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, France, Denmark, Greece, Switzerland, Belgium, Israel, the Czech Republic and Poland. Most of these countries participated in all four waves, with the exception of the Czech Republic and Poland (they joined SHARE in the second wave of the survey in 2006 and 2007) and Israel (joined SHARE in 2009–2010 for the data collection in the second wave).

As said above, the data were collected among people aged 50+. For that reason, the analysis takes the perspective of the second generation of parents but it will control also for characteristics of three other generations: generation of respondents' parents (generation 1), generation of respondents' children (generation 3) and generation of respondents' grandchildren (generation 4). Since the goal is to consider simultaneous care of both older parents and descendants, the sample will be limited to middle-aged people between 50 and 69 years. Furthermore, only those respondents who have at least one grandchild younger than 15 years and a living parent will be considered.

Macro-level analysis

As mentioned above, previous research has suggested a general pattern of private caring regimes in different countries. As Figure 1Footnote ⁴ shows, a clear south–north gradient exists for the probability of looking after grandchildren and any kind of assistance to older parents by people aged 50+. Recent investigations are extended here by adding more countries from Eastern Europe. These countries (Poland and the Czech Republic) are similar to countries in Southern Europe with a rather low proportion of people providing care to their older parents and low engagement in grandchildren's care. The macro-level analysis does not suggest a conflict between caring roles because countries with a relatively high proportion of people helping their older parents show also a high proportion of people looking after their grandchildren regularly or occasionally.

Figure 1.

Proportion of people who regularly or occasionally look after grandchildren and provide help to parents in European countries.

Source: Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, 2004–2012; data for one wave per respondent; author's own calculation.

Figure 1, however, does not take into consideration the frequency of provided care. As has been shown, southern countries (and as expected, eastern countries) demonstrate a rather low proportion of people caring for their family members, but with a higher frequency and intensity than people from northern countries. Figure 2, therefore, displays an association between older regular care of grandchildren (daily or at least once a week) and any assistance to ageing parents. The association is opposite in this case. Southern and eastern countries show a higher proportion of regularly caring grandparents in comparison with northern countries. However, the negative association between regular care of grandchildren and assistance to older parents does not necessarily indicate the conflict between caring responsibilities but rather different arrangements of family services in European countries. Scandinavian countries ensure services and financial benefits for both child care and the care of older people; southern countries, on the contrary, keep most of the caring responsibilities within the family. A higher proportion of people who occasionally look after their grandchildren suggests that due to high accessibility of child-care services, people in Scandinavian countries do not care for grandchildren because it is necessary but because it brings them joy. Since their engagement in child care is rather sporadic, they can devote their time also to other members of the family.

Figure 2.

Proportion of people who regularly look after grandchildren and provide support to parents in European countries.

Source: Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, 2004–2012; data for one wave per respondent; author's own calculation.

To sum up, according to the macro-level part of the analysis, there are substantial differences across European countries in terms of caring responsibilities. While any care of grandchildren is positively associated with helping parents, regular care of grandchildren is correlated negatively on the country level. The next part of the analysis investigates whether this pattern exists also on the individual level after controlling for country effects.

Individual-level analysis

A total number of 1,244 respondents was selected for the second part of the analysis. The number is quite small since the sample is limited to respondents aged 50–69 and to those who have at least one grandchild aged 14 or younger and a living parent. Table 1 shows that most of the respondents provided care or help either to grandchildren or parents or both. Only 23 per cent of middle-aged people provided no assistance to parents or grandchildren. The largest share of respondents cared just for their grandchildren. However, also caring for both grandchildren and parents is quite common, since 28 per cent of respondents provided assistance to both groups.

Table 1.

Descriptive statistics: grandparents' care and help to older parents

Note: N = 1,244.

Source: Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, 2004–2012.

To investigate the relationship between the help provided to parents and the care provided to grandchildren on the individual level, two mixed-effects models for binary responses have been created (see Table 2). The final models show that the variation on the individual level cannot be explained only by differences across countries caused by different social policies. Models control for country fixed effects and there is still a rather strong connection between caring responsibilities of grandchildren and helping older parents.

Table 2.

Odds ratios of grandchildren’ care regardless of the frequency and regular care of grandchildren

Notes: Mixed-effects models for binary responses: odds ratios. Ref.: reference category. ISCED: International Standard Classification of Education. km: kilometres.

Source: Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, 2004–2012.

Significance levels: * 5 per cent, ** 1 per cent, *** 0.1 per cent.

The direction of the association is the same as for the macro-level analysis. People who provide help to their parents also tend to look after their grandchildren more than their counterparts without helping responsibilities. In addition, those who help regularly have the highest tendency to look after grandchildren. The dependency is still present after controlling for age and subjective health of respondents.

The second model which distinguishes between regular and occasional care is less clear. However, there is still some indication that those who provide help to their parents tend to care for their grandchildren more regularly than those who do not provide any help to their ageing parents. People who never provide any help to their parents are the least prone to look after their grandchildren. However, the sample size is quite small in this case (947 respondents) and the results do not reach statistical significance.

The main conclusion based on the two presented models is that the assistance provided to one family member generally does not decrease the probability of help to other family members. Furthermore, the individual random effects show a very low variability over time (approaching zero), indicating a strong stability of the caring tendencies.

Other factors affecting the probability of looking after grandchildren are similar for both models and are in accordance with previous findings. The likelihood of providing care of grandchildren is negatively associated with age (both grandparents' and grandchildren's), poor health, lower education, and being employed or unemployed (however, it is significant only for regular care of grandchildren and being employed).Footnote ⁵ Furthermore, the employment status of children also has a significant effect. Children who are employed receive help from their parents more often than children currently unemployed or out of the labour market. The child's marital status does not affect significantly the probability of grandparents' involvement in the grandchildren's care. Furthermore, the effect of geographical proximity is remarkable. The probability that grandparents look after grandchildren is higher if grandparents share the same building with their children than if they share the same household. However, respondents were asked if they had looked after grandchildren without the presence of parents. Grandparents sharing the same household with their children and grandchildren probably spend a significant amount of time with their grandchildren, but usually the parents are also present. Furthermore, those people who share the same household with their grandchildren might not report the time spent with their grandchildren. In some countries, the co-residency of parents and adult children is widely acceptable and common (Albertini and Kohli Reference Albertini and Kohli2013; Albertini, Kohli and Vogel Reference Albertini, Kohli and Vogel2007). People in multigenerational households can feel that they do not look after their grandchildren but simply spend time with them.

One of the important factors is the indicator of normative attitudes towards grandparents' obligations. Respondents who tend to agree that grandparents are obligated to support their grandchildren tend to look after them considerably more often than grandparents who do not think that it is the grandparents' obligation. This effect is not surprising; however, the normative attitudes obviously do not explain the association between help provided to parents and care provided to grandchildren. The explanation might be therefore related to other factors such as emotional bonds between family members or to the saturation of respondent's social needs rather than normative obligations.

The country effects show persisting significant differences across countries, even after controlling for many individual factors. The Netherlands, France, Denmark and Belgium show the highest tendency to any care of grandchildren, but lower relative tendencies towards regular care. On the contrary, Italy and Greece have the highest probability of being involved in the regular care of grandchildren.