In France, the various studies that have examined the motivations of parents when giving money to their children do not support the altruistic hypothesis of transfer. This paper reconsiders this issue with a focus on the measurement of private transfers. Predictions of an altruistic model are tested using the Living Conditions of Students survey conducted in 2006. Econometric results show that transfers from parents are more important when students have little resources. For those not living with their parents, one additional euro of income decreases by about 30 cents the amount received from parents. These results suggest that parents indeed take into account the situation of their children when the latter are not wealthy.
