Intergenerational Ambivalence and Loneliness in Later Life

This brief report examined the relationship between intergenerational ambivalence and loneliness in later life among a group of older adults with at least one child.

Previous work has explored the links between intergenerational ambivalence and other indicators of well-being but has not examined loneliness. Although studies show an association between positive and negative relationship quality with children and loneliness, there are conflicting findings, and there is also insufficient exploration of the role of gender.

Utilizing pooled data from the 2012 and 2014 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) (n = 10,967) (https://hrs.isr.umich.edu/documentation), structural equation models were used to examine the hypothesized relationships, and multiple group analysis was utilized to assess potential gender differences.

The results indicated that greater intergenerational ambivalence was associated with increased loneliness in later life. However, there were no significant gender or marital status differences in the relationships.

This study adds to the existing literature on ambivalence and well-being by showing that ambivalent relationships are related to loneliness. Results underscore the emotional complexity of parent-child relationships and suggest the need for investigating the consequences of holding contradictory feelings.