Offspring’s Migration, Intergenerational Support, and the Emotional Wellbeing of Non-migrant Elderly in Indonesia

• In Event: 4151 - International Migration Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 min): Table 5: Health, Wellness, and Migration

Abstract

Population ageing and the massive out-migration of young adults to urban areas for work have fundamentally transformed family life in parts of Asia. While much of the existing literature looks at the material effects of labor out-migration for migrant-sending families, less is known about (i) how family disruption caused by labor migration affects the psychological well-being of family members, particularly elderly parents, who are left-behind, and (ii) how variations in intergenerational support conditions moderate or amplify observed psychological impacts on elderly left-behind. This paper addresses these gaps using panel data from 2,062 older parents aged 50 or more in the 2007 and 2014 Indonesia Family Life Survey and fixed-effect models. Results suggest that offspring’s labor migration is associated with increased depression for older parents, net of corresponding improvements in economic and physical health status and changes in other covariates. This positive association, however, is moderated if non-migrant older parents have support from other offspring in the form of co-residence or quasi-co-residence. There is less evidence to suggest that greater non-financial support from migrant children modify the net psychological effect of migration. Broadly, this paper challenges frameworks that posit labor migration as an economically beneficial strategy for households in developing countries, highlighting how it can heighten the vulnerability of non-migrant elderly parents, especially those who are isolated from traditional family structures.

Author

• Sneha Kumar, Cornell University