Does Adult Children Migration Lower the Level of Intergenerational Solidarity? Evidence from Lithuanian Transnational Families

Within the context of high filial norms and a limited formal care system for the elderly in Lithuania the paper examines the effects of adult children migration on intergenerational solidarity from elderly parents left behind perspective. More specifically, we analyze if changed geographic proximity as a result of adult children migration has crucial effects on the associational, affectual and functional dimensions of solidarity or it is (also) being predicted by other individual and familial factors. The analysis is based on a quantitative survey of elderly parents (N=305) with at least one migrant child. The results suggest that even if adult children migration has some negative impact for associational solidarity (and to a certain extent, for affectual one), in a way it is being compensated with positive impact on functional solidarity in terms of financial support. While greater geographic proximity as a result of adult children migration is the crucial factor of associational solidarity and determines some forms of functional solidarity, the affectual dimension of solidarity is being shaped by other familial and individual predictors.