Reunification in Custodial Grandfamilies: An Examination of Resilient Family Processes

Abstract

ObjectiveThis study examined how custodial grandmothers navigated the process of their grandchildren being reunified with a biological parent.BackgroundPrior research has focused on factors associated with unsuccessful reunification instead of resilient family processes that may support successful reunification. How custodial grandfamilies navigate reunification has not been examined, despite their unique relational configuration and grandparents' frequent involvement in raising their grandchildren.MethodGuided by Walsh's model of family resilience, semistructured, in‐depth qualitative interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of 17 grandmothers whose custodial grandchildren had been reunified with a biological parent. Data analysis was guided by grounded theory methodology.ResultsGrandmothers believed in parents fulfilling their obligations, prioritizing grandchildren's needs, and coping via their faith. Grandmothers supported reunified parents and children by providing emotional support and instrumental assistance, while maintaining clear role boundaries. Accessing resources and engaging in open family communication were helpful to the reunification, although there were still challenges in navigating family relationships.ConclusionWithin custodial grandfamilies, not all reunifications were a positive outcome for the grandchildren. Grandmothers remained heavily involved in supporting and monitoring the reunifications, with the quality of the grandmother–parent relationship being paramount.ImplicationsPractitioners should address family dynamics when working with custodial grandfamilies before, during, and after a reunification.

Toward an integrative framework of intergenerational coparenting within family systems: A scoping review

“…Despite daily childrearing problems, coparenting alliances develop capacity to cope with predictable family transitions and irregular critical events in the long run (Walsh, 2012). Normative transitions, such as a newborn's arrival or grandparental involvement in an immigrant family, prompt the whole family to reconsider its role distribution, thus forcing individuals to adapt to the changing environment and reconfigure their roles to shoulder childcare responsibilities (Chiu & Ho, 2020; Dolbin‐MacNab et al, 2021; Xiao & Loke, 2021; Xie & Xia, 2011).…”

“…Grandparents can be viewed as too old and having limited knowledge of modern nurturing styles, which devalue their caregiving roles. Caregivers with greater socioeconomic resources typically have a stronger voice in the family (Dolbin‐MacNab et al, 2021; Sjöberg & Bertilsdotter‐Rosqvist, 2017). African American, Latino, and Asian families with grandparental involvement are often portrayed as primary caregivers owing to cultural expectation as well as family adversities or immigration.…”

Grandfamilies and the Opioid Epidemic: A Systemic Perspective and Future Priorities

“…For instance, Blakey's (2012) study revealed that greater support provided by grandparents decreased the likelihood of reunification among African American women with histories of substance misuse. In contrast, Dolbin-MacNab et al (2020) found that grandmother involvement was critical to a successful reunification, especially when grandmothers provided their adult children with instrumental and emotional support.…”

“…Reunifications are more likely to be successful when parents have adequately addressed their substance misuse and any related challenges such as mental illness (for a detailed discussion, see Kimberlin et al 2009). That said, reunification may be difficult due to grandparent-parent conflict and grandparent reluctance to return the grandchild to the parents' care (Barnard 2003;Dolbin-MacNab et al 2020;Taylor et al 2017). The degree of grandparent involvement in the reunification may be relevant to its success as well.…”

How Grandparents Inform Our Lives: A Mixed Methods Investigation of Intergenerational Influence on Young Adults

“…These findings contradict previous hypotheses that individuals with grandparent caregivers would have lower well-being than those with non-caregiving grandparents. In general, children raised by grandparent caregivers are at a higher risk of developing depressive symptoms due to the potentially greater number of adverse childhood experiences that may lead them to be in their grandparent’s care (Dolbin-MacNab et al, 2021 ; Hayslip et al, 2019 ). The lack of large differences in life satisfaction across the two groups may suggest grandparent caregivers actually act as a buffer for their grandchildren, though the small and uneven subsamples limit anything more than speculating on this trend.…”