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Currently, two thirds of older women receive Social Security spouse and widow benefits, which are distributed on the basis of marital rather than employment status. But marriage rates are down, particularly among Black women. This study used June 1985, 1990, and 1995 Current Population Survey data to trace trends in marriage for women from five birth cohorts and to predict marital patterns for the latter three cohorts. The authors found that the proportion of women who will reach age 62 without 10-year marriages, and thus be ineligible for spouse and widow benefits, is increasing modestly for Whites and Hispanics but dramatically for African Americans. When women who were born in the 1960s reach age 62, 82% of Whites, 85% of Hispanics, and just 50% of Blacks will be eligible. The authors discuss alternative mechanisms for distributing benefits. Keywords: Social Security; women; race

This article investigates the patterns and correlates of currently married adult children's coresidence with their parents in Turkey using data from the 1993 Turkish Demographic and Health Survey. The authors are particularly interested in traditional patterns of coresidence (i.e., coresidence with one or both of the husband's parents) and the effect of variables measuring traditionality at the individual and contextual levels on coresidence with any parent and with the husband's parents. The results indicate that coresidence among currently married children is not the norm. However, the odds of coresidence with the husband's parents, given that a couple coresides with any parent, are very high. In addition, the authors find substantial effects of traditionality measures on coresidence, especially with the husband's parents. Continued economic development, and the social changes that accompany it, can be expected to reduce the prevalence of parent-child coresidence in Turkey.

By 1983, Taiwan had reached the final stage of its population transition, with both mortality and fertility at low rates. Such demographic change will increasingly affect the capacity of families to maintain their caregiving role. Due to reduced fertility, by the 21st century, many elderly persons may have few or no children available to care for them in old age. This article focuses on the family network as a potential source of support for Taiwanese elderly, using microsimulation techniques. The results indicate that the proportion of aged parents without working-age children can be expected to rise substantially. The decline in fertility that has already occurred will reduce the extent of children available to share parental support obligations and increase the support burden on individual offspring. As a result, continued dependence on children as the major form of support will leave a substantial proportion of elderly without resources and a large proportion of the younger generation with difficult financial burdens.

Comparative analyses based on aggregate data have shown that the percentage of older women living alone has risen dramatically during recent decades, a pattern repeated in many European and North American countries. This article investigates the correlates of the decision to live alone, using individual-level data from five countries and a parallel analytic approach. The major categories of factors analyzed here are kin availability, financial resources, and disability and health status. Several common patterns of findings emerge for the group of countries considered: Larger kin networks and the presence of severe disabilities reduce the probability of living alone, whereas higher income increases the probability of living alone. Despite these similarities in individual-level correlates, there remain some differences across countries in the levels of single-person households, and these might be attributable to macrolevel forces such as housing and social welfare policies.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of serious mental illness and dementia among Medicare beneficiaries in the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Methods: This study utilizes HRS-linked Medicare claims data sets and inverse probability weighting to estimate overall and age-specific cumulative prevalence rates of dementia and serious mental illnesses among 18,740 Medicare beneficiaries. Two-way tabulations determine conditional probabilities of dementia diagnoses among beneficiaries diagnosed with specific mental illnesses, and binary logistic regressions determine conditional probabilities of dementia diagnoses among beneficiaries diagnosed with specific mental illnesses, controlling for covariates. Results: Weighted prevalence estimates for dementia, schizophrenia (SZP), bipolar disorder (BPD), and major depressive disorder (MDD) are similar to previous studies. Odds of dementia diagnosis are significantly greater for beneficiaries diagnosed with SZP, BPD, or MDD. Conclusions: Co-occurring mental disabilities require further investigation, as in the near future increasing numbers of mentally ill older adults will need appropriate and affordable community-based services and supports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]