Receipt of Support from Family among Black Americans: Demographic and Familial Differences

The impact of familial and demographic factors on the receipt of support from family members was examined among a sample of blacks (National Survey of Black Americans). The findings indicated that income, age, family contact, subjective family closeness, and proximity of relatives were determinants of receiving support. In addition, an interaction was revealed between age and the presence of a child in determining support from family members. The findings substantiate the importance of adult children in the informal social support networks of elderly blacks. The use of multivariate analyses extends previous work in this area and suggests that these relationships are more complex than originally thought.