‘I Do Not Want to Depend Too Much on My Children’: Motivations and Challenges for Intergenerational Co-Residence Among Older Adults in Indonesia

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Abstract
In Indonesia, intergenerational co-residence in later life is widely regarded as a normative arrangement, yet older adults’ own motivations for and reservations about living with their adult children remain underexamined. This study explored how older Indonesian adults perceive co-residence with their adult children and what considerations shape their preferences. Using a vignette-based qualitative design, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 older adults (aged 60 to 78) who were themselves living in multigenerational households. Data were analysed using a hybrid inductive-deductive thematic analysis. When responding to the vignette, most participants (13 of 20) expressed a preference against prioritising co-residence, despite all currently living with an adult child. A recurring motivation was their wish not to become a burden on their children and to preserve their independence. Five factors shaped these perspectives: financial circumstances, relationship quality, filial responsibility, health-related housing suitability, and marital status. By showing that older adults embedded in a strongly pro-co-residence culture nonetheless voice reservations about it and prioritise not becoming a burden on their children, this study challenges the assumption that normative co-residence reflects older adults’ own preferences and suggests that concerns about autonomy and dependency shape later-life living arrangements beyond individualistic Western settings.

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