Abstract:

With the development of society and economy, the change of ideas and the improvement of social security system, the intergenerational relationship in China has undergone great changes. An in-depth study of the association between the number and quality of children and parents’ well-being is of great theoretical and practical significance to clarifying intergenerational relationships at different life stages. To this end, using the 2015 China Health and Aging Tracking Data for the Elderly （CHARLS）, we examine the effects of the number of children and the quality of children （measured by children’s annual income and education level） on the subjective well-being （measured by life satisfaction and depression） of middle-aged and elderly parents. It shows that the higher the number of children, the lower the life satisfaction and the higher the depression of parents. The higher the children’s income level, the higher the life satisfaction and lower the depression of parents. The higher the children’s education level, the lower the life satisfaction of middle-aged parents, but the lower the depression of older parents. The resource advantage at the individual level and the family level can offset the effects of the number of children, but not the effects of the quality of children on parental well-being. The effects of the quality of children are more robust and significant to parental well-being. Based on this, it is recommended to enhance the development capacity of individuals and families, create more and more equitable educational opportunities, give more support to families whose children are at the stage of education, and give education inclination policies to disadvantaged families.

Key words: children’s quantity, children’s quality, parental subjective well-being, annual income, education level, life satisfaction, depression