Aiming to uncover the socially integrating functions of parenthood, this study focused on differences in network size between older adults with and without children, using survey data from Amsterdam (n = 661) and Berlin (n = 516). Explicit attention was paid to diversity among the childless and to their biographical pasts. The pattern of results was similar for both countries. Those who never had children had smaller networks in old age than parents, a finding partially attributable to a more limited supply of kin. There was no evidence for a competing hypothesis, namely, that childlessness is a means for greater sociability. Contrary to expectations, those who had outlived their children were not more socially isolated than those who had never had children. Neither was there support for the expectation that parenthood-history differences would be greater among women than men. Last, the findings showed that parenthood contributes to social integration independently of marriage and employment.
Arber, Sara and Jay Ginn. 1991. Gender and Later Life: A Sociological Analysis of Resources and Constraints. London: Sage Ltd.
2.
Baltes, Paul B. and Karl Ulrich Mayer, eds. 1999. The Berlin Aging Study: Aging From 70 to 100. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
3.
Bateson, Mary C.1989. Composing a Life. New York: North Atlantic Monthly Press.
4.
Berkman, Lisa, F. Thomas Glass, Ian Brissette, and Teresa E. Seeman. 2000. “From Social Integration to Health: Durkheim in the New Millennium.”Social Science and Medicine51: 843-857.
5.
Broese van Groenou, Marjolein, Theo van Tilburg, Edith de Leeuw, and Aart C. Liefbroer. 1995. “Appendix: Data Collection.” Pp. 185-197 in Living Arrangements and Social Networks of Older Adults, edited by C. P. M Knipscheer, J. de Jong Gierveld, T. G. van Tilburg, and P. A. Dykstra. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: VU University Press.
6.
Campbell, Lori D., Ingrid A. Connidis, and Lorraine Davies. 1999. “Sibling Ties in Later Life: A Social Network Analysis.”Journal of Family Issues20: 114-148.
7.
Choi, Namkee G.1994. “Patterns and Determinants of Social Service Utilization: Comparison of the Childless Elderly and Elderly Parents Living With or Apart From Their Children.”The Gerontologist34: 353-362.
8.
Connidis, Ingrid A. and Lorraine Davies. 1990. “Confidants and Companions in Later Life: The Place of Family and Friends.”Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences45: S141-S149.
9.
Connidis, Ingrid A. and Julie A. McMullin. 1994. “Social Support in Older Age: Assessing the Impact of Marital and Parent Status.”Canadian Journal in Aging/La Revue Canadienne du Vieillissement13: 510-527.
10.
Crow, Graham. 2004. “Social Networks and Social Exclusion: An Overview of the Debate.” Pp. 7-19 in Social Networks and Social Exclusion: Sociological and Policy Perspectives, edited by C. Phillipson, G. Allan, and D. Morgan. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.
11.
Dorbritz, Jürgen and Karl Schwarz. 1996. “Kinderlosigkeit in Deutschland—Ein Massenphänomen? Analysen zu Erscheinungsformen und Ursachen” [Childlessness in Germany—A Mass Phenomenon? Analyses of Manifestations and Causes]. Zeitschrift für Bevölkerungswissenschaft21: 231-261.
12.
Dykstra, Pearl A.1995. “Network Composition.” Pp. 97-114 in Living Arrangements and Social Networks of Older Adults, edited by C. P. M. Knipscheer, J. de Jong Gierveld, T. G. van Tilburg, and P. A. Dykstra. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: VU University Press.
13.
Dykstra, Pearl A.2004. “Diversity in Partnership Histories: Implications for Older Adults’ Social Integration.” Pp. 117-141 in Social Networks and Social Exclusion: Sociological and Policy Perspectives, edited by C. Phillipson, G. Allan, and D. Morgan. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.
14.
Dykstra, Pearl A. Forthcoming. “Aging and Social Support.” In The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, edited by G. Ritzer. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
15.
Dykstra, Pearl A. and Gunhild O. Hagestad, eds. Forthcoming. “Aging Without Children: A Cross-National Perspective on Childlessness in Late Life” [Special issue]. Journal of Family Issues.
16.
Eggebeen, David and Peter Uhlenberg. 1985. “Changes in the Organization of Men’s Lives: 1960-1980.”Family Relations34: 251-257.
17.
Furstenberg, Frank F.2005. “Banking on Families: How Families Generate and Distribute Social Capital.”Journal of Marriage and Family67: 809-821.
18.
Gerson, Kathleen. 1985. Hard Choices: How Women Decide About Work, Career and Motherhood. Berkeley: University of California Press.
19.
Hagestad, Gunhild O.2000. “Adults’ Intergenerational Relationships.” Pp. 125-143 in Generations and Gender Programme: Exploring Future Research and Data Collection Options. New York: United Nations.
20.
Hagestad, Gunhild O. Forthcoming. “Life Pathways Into Childlessness.”Journal of Family Issues.
21.
Hagestad, Gunhild O. and Bernice L. Neugarten. 1985. “Age and the Life Course.” Pp. 35-61 in Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences, edited by R. H. Binstock and E. Shanas. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
22.
Hakim, Catherine. 2000. Work-Lifestyle Choices in the 21st Century: Preference Theory. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
23.
Heinz, Walter R.1991. “Status Passages, Social Risks and the Life Course: A Conceptual Framework.” Pp. 9-22 in Theoretical Advances in Life Course Research, edited by R. W. Heinz. Weinheim, Germany: Deutscher Studien Verlag.
24.
Henkens, Kène and Frits Tazelaar. 1994. “Early Retirement of Civil Servants in the Netherlands.”Journal of Applied Social Psychology24: 1927-1943.
25.
Hird, Myra and Kimberly Abshoff. 2000. “Women Without Children: A Contradiction in Terms?”Journal of Comparative Family Studies31: 347-366.
26.
House, J. S., D. Umberson, and K. Landis. 1988. “Structures and Processes of Social Support.”Annual Review of Sociology14: 293-318.
27.
Houser, Betsy B., Sherry L. Berkman, and Linda J. Beckman. 1984. “The Relative Rewards and Costs of Childlessness for Older Women.”Psychology of Women Quarterly8: 395-398.
28.
Kahn, Robert L. and Toni C. Antonucci. 1980. “Convoys Over the Life Course: Attachment, Roles and Social Support.” Pp. 253-286 in Life-Span Development and Behavior, edited by P. B. Baltes and O. Brim. New York: Academic Press.
29.
Kendig, Hal L., Ruth Coles, Yvonne Pittelkow, and Susan Wilson. 1988. “Confidants and Family Structure in Old Age.”Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences43: S32-S40.
30.
Kohli, Martin, Martin Rein, Anne-Marie Guillemard, and Herman Van Gunsteren, eds. 1991. Time for Retirement: Comparative Studies on Early Exit From the Labor Force. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
31.
Koller, Barbara. 2001. “Das Rentenalter Wurde Angehoben: Zieht der Arbeidsmarkt Mit?” [Raising the Pension Age: Will the Labor Market Respond?]. IAB Werkstattbericht. Diskussionsbeiträge des Instituts fur Arbeit 7.
32.
Koropeckyj-Cox, Tanya. 1998. “Loneliness and Depression in Middle and Old Age: Are the Childless More Vulnerable?”Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences53B: S303-S312.
33.
Lang, Frieder R.1994. Die Gestaltung Informeller Hilfebeziehungen im Hohen Alter: Die Rolle von Elternschaft und Kinderlosigkeit [The Management of Informal Help in Old Age: The Influence of Parenthood and Childlessness]. Berlin, Germany: Edition Sigma.
34.
Lang, Frieder R.2004. “The Availability and Supportive Functions of Extended Kinship Ties in Later Life: Evidence From the Berlin Ageing Study.” Pp. 64-81 in Families in Ageing Societies, edited by S. Harper. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
35.
Letherby, Gayle. 2002. “Childless and Bereft? Stereotypes and Realities in Relation to ‘Voluntary’ and ‘Involuntary’ Childlessness and Womanhood.”Sociological Inquiry72: 7-20.
36.
Liefbroer, Aart C. and Pearl A. Dykstra. 2000. Levenslopen in Verandering: Een Studie Naar Ontwikkelingen in de Levenslopen van Nederlanders Geboren Tussen 1900 en 1970 [Changing Lives: An Analysis of Changes in the Life Courses of the Dutch 1900 to 1970 Birth Cohorts]. The Hague, the Netherlands: Sdu Uitgevers.
37.
Lin, Nan. 2001. Social Capital: A Theory of Social Structure and Action. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
38.
Lubben, James and Melanie Gironda. 2004. “Measuring Social Networks and Assessing Their Benefits.” Pp. 20-34 in Social Networks and Social Exclusion: Sociological and Policy Perspectives, edited by C. Phillipson, G. Allan, and D. Morgan. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.
39.
Maas, Ineke, Markus Borchelt, and Karl Ulrich Mayer. 1999. “Generational Experiences of Old People in Berlin.” Pp. 83-110 in The Berlin Aging Study: Aging From 70 to 100, edited by P. B. Baltes and K. U. Mayer. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
40.
Margolis, Otto S., Austin H. Kutscher, and Eric R. Marcus. 1988. Grief and the Loss of an Adult Child. New York: Praeger.
41.
Mugford, Stephan, and Hal L. Kendig. 1986. “Social Relations: Networks and Ties.” Pp. 38-59 in Ageing and Families: A Social Networks Perspective, edited by H. L. Kendig. Boston: Allen & Unwin.
42.
Müller, Walter. 1983. “Frauenerwerbstätigkeit im Lebenslauf” [Women’s Labor Force Participation Over the Life Course]. Pp. 55-106 in Strukturwandel der Frauenarbeit 1880-1980, edited by W. Müller, A. Wilms, and J. Handl. Frankfurt, Germany: Campus.
43.
Neugarten, Bernice L. and Nancy Datan. 1973. “Sociological Perspectives on the Life Cycle.” Pp. 53-69 in Life-Span Developmental Psychology: Personality and Socialization, edited by P. B. Baltes and K. W. Schaie. Orlando, FL: Academic Press.
44.
Neugarten, Bernice L. and Dail A. Neugarten. 1986. “Age in the Aging Society.”Daedalus115: 31-49.
45.
Portes, Alejandro. 2000. “The Two Meanings of Social Capital.”Sociological Forum15: 1-11.
46.
Pott-Buter, Hetty. 1993. Facts and Fairy Tales About Female Labor, Family and Fertility: A Seven-Country Comparison, 1850-1990. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Amsterdam University Press.
47.
Putnam, Robert. 2000. Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
48.
Rossi, Alice S. and Peter H. Rossi. 1990. Of Human Bonding: Parent-Child Relations Across the Life Course. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
49.
Rubin, Simon S.1993. “The Death of a Child Is Forever: The Life Course Impact of Child Loss.” Pp. 285-299 in Handbook of Bereavement: Theory, Research, and Intervention, edited by M. S. Stroebe, W. Stroebe, and R. O. Hansson. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
50.
Sixma, Herman and Wout C. Ultee. 1983. “Een Beroepsprestigeschaal Voor Nederland in de Jaren Tachtig” [An Occupational Prestige Scale for the Eighties in the Netherlands]. Mens en Maatschappij58: 360-382.
51.
Uchino, Bert N.2004. Social Support and Physical Health: Understanding the Health Consequences of Relationships. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
52.
Van Tilburg, Theo. 1995. “Delineation of the Social Network and Differences in Network Size.” Pp. 83-96 in Living Arrangements and Social Networks of Older Adults, edited by C. P. M. Knipscheer, J. de Jong Gierveld, T. G. van Tilburg, and P. A. Dykstra. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: VU University Press.
53.
Veevers, Jean E.1980. Childless by Choice. Toronto, Canada: Butterworth.
54.
Wagner, Michael, Yvonne Schütze, and Frieder R. Lang. 1999. “Social Relationships in Old Age.” Pp. 282-301 in The Berlin Aging Study: Aging From 70 to 100, edited by P. B. Baltes and K. U. Mayer. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
55.
Wagner, Michael, and Christof Wolf. 2001. “Altern, Familie und Soziales Netwerk” [Aging, Family and Social Network]. Zeitschrift für Erziehungswissenschaft4: 529-554.
Woollett, Anne. 1991. “Having Children: Accounts of Childless Women and Women With Reproductive Problems.” Pp. 47-65 in Motherhood: Meanings, Practices and Ideologies, edited by A. Phoenix, A. Woollet, and E. Lloyd. London: Sage Ltd.
58.
Wu, Zheng and Michael S. Pollard. 1998. “Social Support Among Unmarried Childless Elderly Persons.”Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences53B: S324-S335.
