Pacific Islands Families Study: Factors Associated with Living in Extended Families One Year on from the Birth of a Child

Using data from the "Pacific Islands Families: the first two years of life" (PIF) study, this paper explores the factors associated with the living arrangements of mothers with a one-year-old Pacific child. Three living arrangements are considered:

1. those children who live with immediate family members only;
2. children who live with extended family members including at least one of their grandparents; and
3. children who live with extended family members but do not live with any of their grandparents.

Findings of interest include:

• mothers who were born in New Zealand are much more likely to live in an extended family with the child's grandparent(s) compared to those who came to New Zealand as an adult; and
• mothers with high New Zealand identity and low Pacific identity being more likely to live with extended family members other than the child's grandparent(s) relative to those with low New Zealand and high Pacific identity.

Citation

Poland, Michelle; Janis Paterson, Sarnia Carter, Wanzhen Gao, Lana Perese and Steven Stillman. 2007. "Pacific Islands Families Study: Factors Associated with Living in Extended Families One Year on from the Birth of a Child," Kotuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online, 2:1.