Abstract
One of the most dramatic changes in the life of the elderly in the United States in the twentieth century is the rise in the proportion of elderly widows living alone. This paper examines this transformation by comparing the determinants of elderly widows’ living alone at four points in time, in 1910, 1940, 1960, and 1990. Logistic regression models of the probability of living alone are estimated. The results of these models are used to calculate the expected proportion of elderly widows living alone in various hypothetical scenarios of social change. This analysis suggests that no single factor is responsible for the rise in living alone among the elderly. Value changes, as represented by a variable for time, are shown to have strong and direct effects on the increased probability of living alone in old age in the late twentieth century, independent of the effect of rising income levels. These results are discussed in light of previous research on living arrangements of the elderly, which articulates demographic, economic, and cultural explanations for change.
The text of this article is only available as a PDF.
References
Angel, R., & Tienda, M. (
1982
). Determinants of Extended Household Structure: Cultural Pattern or Economic Need?
. American Journal of Sociology
, 87
, 1360
–83
. 10.1086/227597Beresford, J.C., & Rivlin, A.M. (
1966
). Privacy, Poverty, and Old Age
. Demography
, 3
, 247
–58
. 10.2307/2060076Bodnar, J. (
1985
). The Transplanted: A History of Immigrants in Urban America
. Bloomington
: Indiana University Press
.Burch, T.K., & Matthews, B.J. (
1987
). Household Formation in Developed Societies
. Population and Development Review
, 13
, 495
–511
. 10.2307/1973136Burr, J.A., & Mutchler, J.E. (
1992
). The Living Arrangements of Unmarried Elderly Hispanic Females
. Demography
, 29
, 93
–112
. 10.2307/2061365Chevan, A., & Korson, J.H. (
1975
). Living Arrangements of Widows in the United States and Israel, 1960 and 1961
. Demography
, 12
, 505
–18
. 10.2307/2060832Epstein, A. (
1972
). Facing Old Age: A Study of Old Age Dependency in the United States and Old Age Pensions
. New York
: Arno
.Haines, M.R., & Goodman, A.C. (
1991
). A Home of One’s Own: Aging and Homeownership in the United States in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries
. Cambridge, MA
: National Bureau of Economic Research
.Hoffman, F.L. (
1908
). The Problem of Poverty and Pensions in Old Age
. American Journal of Sociology
, 14
, 182
–96
. 10.1086/211675Historical Demographic, Economic and Social Data: The United States, 1790–1970
. (1973
). Ann Arbor
: University of Michigan, Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research
.Kobrin, F.E. (
1973
). Household Headship and Its Changes in the United States, 1940–1960, 1970
. Journal of the American Statistical Association
, 68
, 793
–800
. 10.2307/2284502Kobrin, F.E. (
1976
). The Fall in Household Size and the Rise of the Primary Individual in the United States
. Demography
, 13
, 127
–38
. 10.2307/2060425Lesthaeghe, R. (
1983
). A Century of Demographic and Cultural Change in Western Europe: An Exploration of Underlying Dimensions
. Population and Development Review
, 9
, 411
–35
. 10.2307/1973316Massachusetts, S. t. a. t. e. (
1976
). Report of the Commission on Old Age Pensions, Annuities and Insurance
. New York
: Arno
.Michael, R.T., Fuchs, V.R., & Scott, S.R. (
1980
). Changes in the Propensity to Live Alone: 1950–1976
. Demography
, 17
, 39
–53
. 10.2307/2060962Nassau, M.L. (
1980
). Old Age Poverty in Greenwich Village A Neighborhood Study
. New York
: Arno
.Pampel, F.C. (
1983
). Changes in the Propensity to Live Alone: Evidence from Consecutive Cross-Sectional Surveys, 1960–1976
. Demography
, 20
, 433
–47
. 10.2307/2061112Pennsylvania, S. t. a. t. e. (
1919
). Report of the Pennsylvania Commission on Old Age Pensions
. Harrisburg
: Kuhn
.Preston, S.H., & Haines, M.R. (
1991
). Fatal Years: Child Mortality in Late Nineteenth-Century America
. Princeton
: Princeton University Press
.Rubinow, I.M. (
1913
). Social Insurance with Special Reference to American Conditions
. New York
: Henry Holt
.Ruggles, S. 1991a. “Living Arrangements of the Elderly in America, 1880–1980.” Presented to conference “Aging and Generational Relations” held in Newark, DE.
Ruggles, S. (
1991
). Comparability of the Public Use Files of the U.S. Census of Population, 1880–1980
. Social Science History
, 15
, 123
–58
. 10.2307/1171485Ruggles, S. (
1994
). The Transformation of American Family Structure
. American Historical Review
, 99
, 103
–28
. 10.2307/2166164Seager, H.R. (
1910
). Social Insurance: A Program of Social Reform
. New York
: Macmillan
.Smith, M.R. (
1896
). Almshouse Women: A Study of Two Hundred and Twenty-Eight Women in the City and County Almshouse of San Francisco
. Stanford
: Stanford University Press
.Spitze, G., & Logan, J. (
1990
). Sons, Daughters, and Intergenerational Social Support
. Journal of Marriage and the Family
, 52
, 420
–30
. 10.2307/353036Strong, M.A., Preston, S.H., Miller, A.R., Hereward, M., Lentzner, H.R., Seaman, J.R., & Williams, H.C. (
1989
). User’s Guide Public Use Sample: 19/0 United States Census of Population
. Philadelphia
: University of Pennsylvania, Population Studies Center
.Thomas, K., & Wister, A. (
1984
). Living Arrangements of Older Women: The Ethnic Dimension
. Journal of Marriage and the Family
, 46
, 301
–11
. 10.2307/352462Instructions to Enumerators. Thirteenth Census of the United States
. (1910
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Government Printing Office
.U.S. Census of Population: 1940. Vol. 3. The Labor Force
. (1943
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Government Printing Office
.U.S. Census of Population: 1960. Vol. 1. Characteristics of the Population
. (1964
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Government Printing Office
.Technical Documentation for the 1960 Public Use Sample
. (1973
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Bureau of the Census
.Historical Statistics of the United States. Colonial Times to 1970. Bicentennial edition, Part 2
. (1975
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Government Printing Office
.Census of Population. 1940: Public Use Microdata Sample Tape Technical Documentation
. (1983
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Bureau of the Census
.Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1992
. (1992
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Government Printing Office
.Census of Population and Housing. 1990: Public Use Microdata Samples: Technical Documentation
. (1992
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Bureau of the Census
.Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1993
. (1993
). Washington, DC
: U.S. Government Printing Office
.Wister, A.V. (
1985
). Living Arrangement Choices among the Elderly
. Canadian Journal on Aging
, 4
, 127
–44
. 10.1017/S0714980800015968Wister, A.V., & Burch, T.K. (
1983
). Fertility and Household Status of Older Women in Canada
. Canadian Studies in Population
, 10
, 1
–13
.Wolf, D.A. (
1984
). Kin Availability and the Living Arrangements of Older Women
. Social Science Research
, 13
, 72
–89
. 10.1016/0049-089X(84)90005-XWolf, D.A., & Soldo, B.J. (
1988
). Household Composition Choices of Older Unmarried Women
. Demography
, 25
, 387
–403
. 10.2307/2061539© Population Association of America 1995
1995
