Family Wealth and Wellbeing: The Unequal Distribution of Security Across the Life Course.

Abstract

Wealth inequality is rising in Australia just as the country enters a period of substantial intergenerational wealth transfer. While wealth is known to be linked to health and wellbeing, we know less about whether parents' wealth continues to matter for wellbeing across adulthood, and through which mechanisms it operates. Using data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, this article examines associations between parental wealth and four domains of wellbeing (general health, mental health, life satisfaction, and financial wellbeing) among adults aged 25 to 50 (n = 1039). Linear regression models show that higher parental wealth is associated with better ge..