Outliving oneself through the next generations: (grand)parenthood and values in later life.

Abstract

The article explores personal values among older adults in relation to their "offspring status." Erikson's theory of psychosocial development and Schwartz's theory of human values suggest a positive relationship between having offspring and prosocial values. We tested this hypothesis by comparing older adults who have none, one, or two generations of descendants: childless (with no descendants), grandchildless (with adult children and no grandchildren), and grandparents. We conducted a hierarchical multilevel regression analysis using data from Round 9 of the European Social Survey on a subsample of 12,713 respondents older than 65 from 29 European countries. Our model predicted preferences for four of the Schwartz higher order value types (Self-Transcendence, Self-Enhancement, Openness to Change, and Conservation) among the three categories of older adults based on their offspring status, controlling for individual-level (gender, education level, general health) and macro-level variables (Human Development Index). All but Openness to Change values are significantly predicted by older adults' offspring status. Having grandchildren is positively associated with Self-Transcendence and Conservation values (socially oriented values) and negatively with Self-Enhancement (values with self-oriented focus). The article discusses the theoretical implications of the obtained findings, focusing on plausible mechanisms connecting the offspring status and value orientations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).