ABSTRACT: Studies of aging and the life course have often documented great diversity in family structure and living arrangements among the elderly. This article examines historical and demographic trends in the ethnic and racial composition of older cohorts in the United States and their impact on family structure; identifies the demographic causes of these changes and projects future trends in the relative size and proportion of different racial and ethnic populations; and discusses the important policy implications of such compositional shifts for social policy and for the welfare of the minority elderly in the next century.
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