Intergenerational ties: what can be gained from an international perspective?

In this chapter, we argue for the importance of adopting an interna-tional comparative perspective in the study of intergenerational ties. The first section of this chapter comments on theoretical approaches to understand intergenerational ties. The second section reflects on the types of ties to be distinguished. The third, and longest section, takes up the importance of contexts in understanding intergenerational ties and focuses heavily on the gains to be made from taking an international comparative perspective. A short discussion of the implications for future research is provided in the fourth section.