The Effect of Parent-Child Geographic Proximity on Widowed Parents’ Psychological Adjustment and Social Integration

The authors examine the ways that parent-child geographic proximity affects widowed older parents’ psychological well-being and social integration. Analyses are based on the Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) study, a prospective study of 1,532 married individuals aged 65 and older. Compared with those who live more than one hour away from a child, widowed older adults who live with or live within an hour’s drive of their child(ren) report significantly lower levels of psychological distress, after controlling for parent-child relationship quality. However, parents who live with their children are less likely to be integrated into informal networks of friends, neighbors, and relatives. The findings reveal the complex ways that living arrangements and geographic proximity between generations affect bereaved parents’ psychosocial adjustment. This study also suggests ways that bereaved older adults may optimize their support networks during an era marked by high levels of geographic mobility and low fertility.