This research is written in light of the fact that under the present circumstance research on solidarity between aged parents and adult children is almost non-existent. This research intends to compare the city and country. The purpose of this research is to investigate the variables of the elderly problem and to provide useful suggestions on the direction of the establishment of policy relating to the elderly problem. In this research, a questionaire was used composed of a solidarity between aged and adult children index, a discord index, a self-respect index, and a self-control index. The subjects of the inquiry were elderly males and females over the aged of sixty who had one or more married children, and who lived in the rural or urban areas of Kyung Sang South Province. Finally, there were 450 questionaires used in the analysis : 225 in the city, and 225 in the country. The gathered materials were implemented using the SAS Program.
The results are as follows :
1) 70.9% of aged parents felt that solidarity was on the low side when asked if their perception of solidarity with their adult children was below average. Also, 67.6% of aged parents felt that discord was on the high side when asked if their perception of discord with their adult children was above average. In addition, aged parents´ discord with their adult children was higher in the country than in the city.
2) it was found that aged parents´ perception of the variables exerting influence on solidarity with their adult children depended on the age of parents, economic level, type of dependence, gender, region of domicile, and existence or non-existence of spouse.
3) it was found that aged parents´ perception of the variables exerting influence on discord with their adult children depended on educational level of parents, health, economic level, type of family, type of dependence, gender, and region of domicile.
4) the intermediary variables of self-respect and self-control were both found to be noticeable factors in aged parents´ perception of solidarity and discord with their adult children.
5) it was found that type of family was the factor exerting the greatest power of influence on aged parents´ perception of solidarity with their adult children. This was found to be the same both in the city and in the country.
6) it was found that aged parents´ perception of solidarity with their adult children had a positive effect on the alleviation of aged parents´ discord.
7) the results of the path analysis on aged parents perception of solidarity and discord with their children showed that the indirect path of the intermediary variable of the power.
We see from the above results that in order to increase solidarity between aged parents and their adult children and to alleviate discord between them, rather than having a unilateral govermental policy of aged parents´ dependence, a policy must be promulgated for elderly dependents which takes into account the differences in the actual situations found in rural and urban areas. In addition, the intermediary variables of self-respect and power of self-control are considerde to be important factors exerting influence on the alleviation of aged parents´ discord.
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