Intergenerational family solidarity in Lithuania: contexts and patterns

• straipsnio tekstas

ENThe presented chapter follows two aims. First, it is dedicated to the analysis of the variety of short and long term demographic, social and economic factors, which shape the intergenerational family solidarity in Lithuania. Second, it critically assesses the scientific knowledge in the research field and identifies the gaps and directions for further research. Lithuania represents a fast ageing society, and this is determined by very intense out­migration and fertility decline. Negative net migration, which is among the highest in the European Union (EU), brings distortions to the age structure of the population and raises additional pressure to the intergenerational family solidarity. Trends in migration, gender gap in mortality, high and long tradition of divorce result in a very high proportion of persons 65 years and over living alone and, on the other hand, high prevalence of single parent households. The radical economic neoliberalism, limited role of the welfare state in mitigating the life course and social risks place the intergenerational solidarity at the core of the family functioning in Lithuania. The downward flows of the intergenerational support are more intense in Lithuania than the upward flows. This trend holds true for the affectual, associational and some types of functional solidarity. Overall, the country follows the trends reported for other countries; however there are some country specific patterns. Transnational family context brings additional challenges to the intergenerational solidarity. However, even if adult child migration has some negative effect on the actual contacts and the relationship quality, it is conpensated by the positive inpact of the augmented level of functional solidarity in terms of financial support.Further research should focus on intergenerational value transmissions, on the well-being and solidarity in different intergenerational dyads, the use of information and communication technology. Additional efforts should be directed towards more comprehensive understanding of care flows and solidarity in the transnational families. Overall, new datasets based on the innovative methodologies are highly demanded in order to grasp the recent trends of the intergenerational family solidarity in the Lithuanian society. [Extract, p. 251-252]