The Utility of Solution-Oriented Strategies to Support Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this article is to evaluate the effectiveness of a psychosocial intervention program to improve the health and social psychological outcomes for grandparents raising grandchildren using the theory of Selection, Optimization, and Compensation (Baltes, P. B., & Baltes, M. M. (1990). Psychological perspectives on successful aging: The model of selective optimization with compensation. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 1-34). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511665684.003). Methods: Fifty-two grandparents were randomly assigned either to a 6-session solution-oriented goal-setting program or to a waiting list control condition who subsequently received the intervention. Results: Grandparents in the intervention group, in comparison to the waiting list control group, reduced their level of depression, improved their parental efficacy, overall psychosocial adjustment, and increased their ability to choose effective goals. For the most part, findings were replicated in the waiting list control analyses. Discussion: While these findings are consistent with previous studies using psychosocial interventions with parents and grandparent caregivers, they also provide support for strength-based proactive behavioral approaches to improve the quality of life of grandparent caregivers.

Translating Discovery Science. Improving self‐efficacy in grandparents raising grandchildren: Results from a strengths‐based education intervention

“…Working with unique and potentially vulnerable populations creates challenges to recruitment. However, our results are consistent with another recent grandfamily intervention study (Montoro‐Rodriguez et al, 2021), and these data are suggestive of the efficacy of interventions to increase grandparent self‐efficacy.…”

Process-Outcome Relationships and Solution-Based Goal-Setting Interventions With Grandparent Caregivers

“…Though program effects were modest (p < .09) for positive affect (see Montoro-Rodriguez et al, 2021), we report process-outcome relationships for this measure because of its salience in being sensitive to productive grandparent-grandchild dynamics, and due to the negative and complimentary relationship of negative and positive affect (see Thomas et al, 2000). Such relationships in this case were quite extensive, where in 13 cases, process-outcome relationships were found.…”

A Systematic Review of Program Outcomes for the National Family Caregiver Support Program Using a Theoretical Approach

“…Grandparents assume guardianship roles to grandchildren when the middle generation is unavailable due to death, illness, divorce, unemployment, incarceration, and adolescent childbearing [1][2][3][4]. Additionally, grandparents become caregivers to children due to maltreatment and abandonment.…”