The Rise and Prominence of Skip-Generation Households in Lower- and Middle-Income Countries
Corresponding Author
Zachary Zimmer
Correspondence
Zachary Zimmer
Email: zachary.zimmer@msvu.ca
Emily Treleaven
Email: treleav@umich.edu
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Emily Treleaven
Correspondence
Zachary Zimmer
Email: zachary.zimmer@msvu.ca
Emily Treleaven
Email: treleav@umich.edu
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Zachary Zimmer
Correspondence
Zachary Zimmer
Email: zachary.zimmer@msvu.ca
Emily Treleaven
Email: treleav@umich.edu
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Emily Treleaven
Correspondence
Zachary Zimmer
Email: zachary.zimmer@msvu.ca
Emily Treleaven
Email: treleav@umich.edu
Search for more papers by this authorZachary Zimmer is Professor of Family Studies and Gerontology, Mount Saint Vincent University, 166 Bedford Highway, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3M 2J6, Canada. Email: zachary.zimmer@msvu.ca. Emily Treleaven is a Research Fellow, Population Studies Center, University of Michigan, 426 Thompson Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48104, USA. Email: treleav@umich.edu.
Abstract
Investigations into changes in household formations across lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs) rarely consider skip-generation households. Yet, demographic, social, and economic forces increasingly encourage skip-generation household formations. We examine trends and changes in the prevalence of skip-generation households from 1990 to 2016, examining households, adults aged 60+, and children under 15, across 49 countries using household roster data from Demographic and Health Surveys. Analysis takes place in stages, first describing trends in skip-generation households across countries and next providing explanatory analyses using multilevel modeling to assess whether, and the degree to which, country-level characteristics like AIDS mortality and female labor force participation explain trends in the probability that a household is, or that an individual resides in, a skip-generation household. Results indicate extensive increases in skip-generation households in many LMICs, although there is also variation. The increases and variations are not well-explained by the country-level characteristics in our models, suggesting other underlying reasons for the rise and prominence of skip-generation households across LMICs.
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