title: Doubling up: A gift or a shame? Intergenerational households and parental depression of older Europeans.
abstract: The Great Recession has brought along a rearrangement of living patterns both in the U.S. and in Europe. This study seeks to identify the consequences of a change in intergenerational coresidence on the depression level of the elderly. Using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and a difference-in-difference propensity score matching approach, this study finds robust evidence of a positive effect of coresidence on the mental health of the older generation in those European countries historically marked by a Catholic tradition. In contrast with previous literature, the present program evaluation setup accounts for non-random selection bias and heterogeneous treatment effects. Though heterogeneous across Europe, the results highlight that, in a time marked by increasing demographic aging, intergenerational living arrangements can lead to significant improvements in the quality of life of older individuals.
authors: University of Venice, Cannaregio 873, 30121 Venice, Italy. Electronic address: luis.aranda@unive.it.
authors: Luis
authors: L
authors: Aranda
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005060:Europe; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D016901:Intergenerational Relations; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents; D057216:Propensity Score; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012752:Shame
keywords: Aging; DID; Doubling up; Europe; Matching; Mental health; Wellbeing