Changes in the living arrangements of older women: an international study.

This study analyzes trends in the percentage of older women living alone in 21 European and North American countries over the period of 1960-1992. The general pattern is one of substantial annual increases in the percentage of elderly women living alone. This trend is shown to result mainly from demographic changes, with little evidence of a role for economic variables. The analysis suggests a reversal of the current trend in coming years, as mothers of postwar baby booms reach old age.