Out of the shadows?: Grandfatherhood, age and masculinities

Grandfathering as spatio-temporal practice: conceptualizing performances of ageing masculinities in contemporary familial carescapes

“…Increasingly grandparents are playing significant caring roles in contemporary families and are responding to care demand, created by diverse societies that are being shaped in distinctive ways by global trends, welfare state policies and socio-cultural norms and expectations (Arber and Timonen 2012). Grandmothers have typically been defined as key family kin keepers (Harper 2005) but only recently have men's roles as grandfathers begun to be recognized (Mann 2007); their situated practices of care in the family have rarely been acknowledged or critically examined and there is limited understanding of the caring spaces in which grandfather care and intergenerational relationships take place. Some studies do indicate that grandfather roles in family care are underestimated and that men express desire to engage in emotional and caring roles alongside the more instrumental tasks that have typically depicted their involvement (Mann 2007;Waldrop et al 1999).…”

“…Grandmothers have typically been defined as key family kin keepers (Harper 2005) but only recently have men's roles as grandfathers begun to be recognized (Mann 2007); their situated practices of care in the family have rarely been acknowledged or critically examined and there is limited understanding of the caring spaces in which grandfather care and intergenerational relationships take place. Some studies do indicate that grandfather roles in family care are underestimated and that men express desire to engage in emotional and caring roles alongside the more instrumental tasks that have typically depicted their involvement (Mann 2007;Waldrop et al 1999). It is therefore important that grandparent involvement and care work, including that of men, is recognized.…”

Gender Differences in Grandparent Attachment Among Chinese Students

“…The first hypothesis may be derived from the premise of gender similarity theory (Box 1), which postulates that due to role similarities, same-sex grandparents may be more willing to invest their personal resources including time, money, and affection on same-sex grandchildren (9). The investment of personal resources in turn may result in closer relationship with the respective grandchildren.…”

“…However, with a steady increase in women's joining the labor force, there has been a growing interest in men's involvement in childcare. Researchers note that fathers tend to display a different style of parenting or interaction with children than mothers and that this difference may reflect traditional gender role with men focusing on socializing children in conformity with masculinity (i.e., engaging in outdoor activities and physical play) whereas women focusing on children's femininity (9,12). Due to role similarities, fathers may find it easier or feel more obliged to interact with sons more in developing their masculinity (13) whereas girls may feel more comfortable spending time and engaging in activities with mothers (14).…”

“…Due to role similarities, fathers may find it easier or feel more obliged to interact with sons more in developing their masculinity (13) whereas girls may feel more comfortable spending time and engaging in activities with mothers (14). Similarly, scholars note that the interactional styles and relationships of parents with children may last into old age with similar same-sex patterns of interaction and relationship of grandparents with grandchildren (9). However, findings on grandparent-grandchild relationship in western settings are somewhat mixed.…”