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Previous research has generally found that no relationship exists between the morale or life satisfaction of the elderly and their interaction with kin, including adult offspring. This may be due to the fact that most studies have measured interaction in terms of quantity and/or frequency, ignoring other dimensions of these relationships. This study focuses on the exchange of aid between older persons and their children. Hypotheses regarding relationships between mutual aid and the morale of the elderly are developed and tested on a sample of 403 parents aged 60 and over. No relationships between morale and the exchange of aid are found. These results, while not conclusive in themselves, add to the growing body of evidence which suggests that interaction with kin has no demonstrable consequences for the emotional well-being of the elderly.
Lee et al. (Mon,) studied this question.