Intergenerational Spillover Effects of Welfare Expenditure on Perceived Social Support and Loneliness: Evidence from 22 Countries

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  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 4: Families and Aging

Abstract

Individuals’ opportunities to form and sustain social connections are shaped not only by personal characteristics but also by broader welfare institutions. Although welfare programs typically target specific age groups, interdependent family relationships allow their effects to spill over across generations. This study examines whether old-age, family and unemployment expenditures generate intergenerational spillovers in perceived social support and loneliness, whether such spillovers operate through reductions in middle-aged adults’ family burden, and whether these patterns differ when South Korea is included alongside European countries.

Using nationally representative survey data from 21 European countries and Korea, combined with harmonized welfare expenditure indicators, multilevel models were estimated separately for perceived social support and loneliness. Age-group interactions and stratified models were each used to assess spillover effects and the proposed mechanism.

Three findings emerged. First, in Europe, welfare expenditures generated intergenerational spillovers. Higher old-age expenditure, although primarily targeted at older populations, was associated with lower loneliness among young adults. Conversely, higher family and unemployment expenditures, typically directed toward working-age populations, were associated with lower loneliness among older adults. Additionally, higher family expenditure was linked to greater perceived social support among older adults. Second, these associations were attenuated after accounting for a country-level indicator of middle-aged adults’ family burden, suggesting that reductions in midlife responsibilities partially underpin spillover effects. Third, including Korea altered these pathways: the unemployment expenditure spillover to older adults’ loneliness disappeared.

By conceptualizing family processes as a meso-level bridge between macro-level welfare expenditures and micro-level social connectedness, this study demonstrates that welfare expenditures can reshape the allocation of intergenerational resources within families. The findings underscore the importance of examining institutional effects beyond target populations and reveal that intergenerational spillovers are context-dependent rather than universal.

Authors

• Jaeyoon Kim, Seoul National University

• Meejung Chin