Generational and Intergenerational Care and Mobility Networks in Kosovo

Generational and intergenerational relations are established according to family patterns, sociocultural, economic, and institutional backgrounds. In the case of Kosovo, where welfare is poor, and economic activity rates are low, kinship ties are very strong. Under these conditions, the state and the market are failing to provide social security to Kosovo's citizens. In such a situation, solidarity and intergenerational relations play a vital role in keeping families intact and maintaining social cohesion. In this article, however, I point out that strong kinship ties may also have a negative effect-creating a form of distrust of state institutions, and thus weakening the state and the market. Or this could make the state 'lazy'. The research outlined here is mainly based on data collected during fieldwork conducted in the years 2011-2015 in a village in western Kosovo.