Purpose: We designed this study to examine the end-of-life (EOL) experience in long-term care (LTC) based on input from key stakeholders. Design and Methods: The study consisted of 10 homogeneous focus groups drawn from a purposive sample of LTC residents (2 groups; total n = 11), family caregivers (2 groups; total n = 19), paraprofessional staff…

Examined proximity and relationship between aging parents (N=224) and adult children. Found no difference in quality of relationships between parents whose children lived near and those whose children lived over 60 miles away. Significant predictors for proximate group were personal sense of control and education; for distant group, child gender…

Describes Family Lifeline program which provides geographically dispersed families support and assistance needed to enhance and maintain independent functioning of elderly family members while strengthening family linkages and cohesiveness. Describes program's theoretical framework, organizational structure, and client data. (Author)

Discusses the role of geographic distance in the quality of parent-child relationships. Reviews research findings, presents exploratory analyses of two research projects, and organizes key concepts (structure, association, affection, value consensus, functional assistance, and the normative base of each) regarding the relationship of distant child…

Analyzed in-person contact between elderly parents (N=486) and their children in rural and urban areas. Found physical proximity to the child was the significant predictor of interaction and did not find support for greater interaction between elderly parents and their children in rural than in urban areas. (Author/ABL)

Questioned 80 grandmothers about interaction with grandchildren before and after the divorce of a child. Found that following divorce, grandmothers thought that their contact with grandchildren increased, as did time spent babysitting, teaching family history, and offering advice on personal problems. Geographic proximity and custodial status of…

Geographic distance and contacts between adults and their aging parents in Sweden vary by social class as well as by social mobility of the offspring. Middle class adults live further from their parents and have less contact with them. Degree of contact is quite similar between social classes for those who live near their parents. (Author/ABB)

Presents utilization profiles for 15 community services among 989 elderly residents of 18 small Kansas towns. Distance estimates to most services used were greater than estimates to nearest service, frequency of use was inversely correlated with distance to services, and most elderly walked or drove themselves to services. (Author/JAC)

Estimates the effects of various parent and child characteristics on the choice of care arrangement of the parent, taking into account the potential endogeneity of some of the child characteristics. Three equations are estimated: care choice, child location, and child work. Results suggest a hierarchy of family decision making; child locations…