ABSTRACT
This chapter suggests that recent advancements in the use of information and communications technologies and the life course perspective can clarify these seemingly contradictory developments. Bengtson and Roberts presented the intergenerational solidarity model in the early 1990s. The model consists of six solidarity types, each representing a dialectic dimension. Associational solidarity refers to the frequency and patterns of interaction connecting members of a lineage to one another. Affectual solidarity alludes to sentiments exchanged in intergenerational family relationships, such as warmth, understanding, respect and trust. Functional solidarity refers to the idea of help exchange, covering a range of activities from financial assistance to immaterial help. Normative solidarity indicates the endorsement of familial obligations, while consensual solidarity refers to the degree of consensus in beliefs, values or life orientations. The last dimension of the model is structural solidarity which implies the existence of an opportunity structure such as availability of family members that is reliant on physical proximity, morbidity, mortality and fecundity.
