Divorce and Intergenerational Support: Comparing the Perceptions of Divorced Adults and Their Parents Elena Moore* Virpi Timonen" Ciara O'Dwyer** Martha Doyle** ENTRODUCnON With changing marriage, birth, and parenthood pattems and increasing life expectancies, the multigenerational family has become ever more influential in supporting the family (Bengston, 2001; Pillemer and Luescher, 2004). As many studies have highlighted, intergenerational support may be required when adults separate or divorce (Finch, 1989; Smart; 2004; Thompson, 1999). The purpose of this article is to explore a central issue of intergenerational relations within families: comparing perceptions of intergenerational support when an adult child divorces between the "younger" generation (i.e., the couple going through the divorce) and the "older" generation (their parents). INTERGENERATIONAL RELATIONS: THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES Two theoretical perspectives have dominated the study of intergenerational relations, hence yielding what Pillemer and Luescher (2004:3) have described as a "dualistic" approach to the subject. Early research on intergenerational relationships was dominated by the solidarity perspective (Bengston, 2001). This stmctural-functionalist perspective emphasised the idea of a common value system across generations, a normative obligation to provide help, and asserted that individuals seek to maintain unity in the family system (Luescher and Pillemer, 1998). The second major theoretical perspective explored aspects of intergenerational relations with a focus on, inter alia, family problems, conflict and caregiver stress. Such theorists were unwilling to accept that intergenerational relationships were characterised solely by a common value system and argued that intergenerational relations were also orientated by conflict (Connidis, 2001). This would suggest that while parents give some level of support at the time of their adult child's divorce, support is sometimes provided with reservations on the parents' side. In other words, parents may want to assist their adult children at this time, but they may also want to retain a certain distance. The phrase "intimacy at a distance," coined by Rosenmayr (1968:677), refers to this desire to maintain close family relations while retaining some distance. Lye (1994: 81) outlines other theoretical contributions to our understanding of intergenerational relations, but research until recently focused predominantly on the solidarity and conflict perspectives. * R5.85 Leslie Social Science Building, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701 South Africa. " School of Social Work and Social Policy, Arts Building, Trinity College-Dublin, Dublin 2 Ireland.