Upstream or downstream transfer behind patrilocal coresidence? Evidence from three-generational panel data

This paper investigates the determinants of intergenerational patrilocal coresidence in Taiwan. We hypothesize that the function of coresidence can be either upstream transfer, where children care for old-age parents, or downstream transfer, where parents care for adult children. We explore these possibilities by controlling for the characteristics of husbands, wives, parents, and children across three generations in a family. We apply panel data methods to control for unobserved, time-invariant characteristics within family. We find that parents’ and children’s education and homeownership are important factors related to patrilocal coresidence. Using three-generational data, we show that parents who lived with the grandparents are 7% more likely to live with their adult children in Taiwan. We argue that this identifies upstream transfer as a more important function behind patrilocal coresidence in Taiwan, which leads to the observed steady patrilocal coresidence rate across generations.