Intergenerational Assistance in Middle- and Old-Age in Mexico: Life Cycle Stages in a Developing Economy

Monica Espinoza, University of Pennsylvania
Rebeca Wong, University of Maryland

Using data from the newly released Mexican Health and Aging Study 2001 (MHAS/ENASEM), we describe the patterns of private inter-vivos transfers of population aged 50+ in Mexico, a country characterized by scarce or inactive financial markets and lacking institutional support for old age. The paper describes the patterns in the following dimensions: a) the currency, monetary and in-time; b) the direction of the flows, that is the target population as donor and recipient; and c) the vertical generations involved in the flow of transfers, that is parents and children of the target population. In addition, the role of coresidence will be examined in the context of these inter-generational flows. We examine the age-specific patterns of inter-vivos transfers to document the hypothesis of a changing role of the population with the life-cycle. Given the multiple dimensions involved, we propose the presentation of results in a poster.