Private intergenerational transfers

In contrast to the generational relations which find expression in the stat e ''intergenerational contract," research on private intergenerational tran sfers has long been neglected. Yet private transfers of money and goads bet ween family members play a significant role within the family itself, in te rms of social inequality and social policy as well as from a gerontological perspective. The paper is about the extent of private intergenerational tr ansfers and the factors influencing them. In the theoretical part of the st udy sociological and economic approaches are discussed. The empirical analy ses are based on the "German Aging Survey," a representative sample of 40 t o 85 year-olds, which was carried out in 1996. Private transfers of money a nd goods between family members are very common and occur most frequently b etween generations. Allocation patterns correspond to a cascade model: in c ontrast to public transfers, private transfers of money and goods are mainl y given in reverse, namely from the older family generations to the younger ones. Three factors are especially important: first, the resources of the persons giving the transfers; second, the needs of the recipients; and, thi rd, the frequency of contact and the emotional closeness between the family generations.