‘They’ve Always Been There for Me’: Grandparental Involvement and Child Well‐Being

Abstract

With diversifying families, increased life expectancy, growing numbers of dual-worker households and higher rates of family breakdown, grandparents are now playing an increasing role in their grandchildren's lives. Despite growing importance there has been little empirical research exploring how grandparental involvement impacts on young people's well-being. This national study, which includes a survey of 1596 children (aged 11-16) and in-depth interviews with 40 young people, aimed to address this deficit. Multivariate analyses demonstrate that grandparental involvement is significantly associated with child well-being results that are reinforced by qualitative evidence. Findings suggest grandparents may be under-recognised in the policy agenda.

Adolescent grandchildren’s perceptions of grandparents’ involvement in UK: an interpretation from life course and evolutionary theory perspective

“…The survey concentrates on adolescents views on their relationships with their grandparents (see also AttarSchwartz et al 2009a, b;Griggs et al 2010;Tanskanen et al 2011 who have used the same data). The sample was recruited by GfK National Opinion Polls.…”

“…Maternal grandmothers tend to be involved in their grandchild's life the most, following maternal grandfathers and paternal grandmothers and finally paternal grandfathers who are the least involved (e.g. Kahana and Kahana 1970;Eisenberg 1988;Euler and Weitzel 1996;Euler et al 2001;Mills et al 2001;Sear and Mace 2008;Griggs et al 2010;Danielsbacka et al 2011;Coall and Hertwig 2010;Euler 2011 for review).…”

Grandparental Involvement and South African Adolescents’ Psychological Well-Being

“…Geographic distance between grandparents and grandchildren is one of the key predictors of grandparental involvement (Barnett, Scaramella, Neppl, Ontai, & Conger, 2010;Dunifon & Bajracharya, 2012;Griggs et al, 2010). Grandmothers tend to be more involved with their grandchildren than grandfathers, and maternal grandparents tend to be more involved than paternal grandparents (Dunn, Fergusson, & Maughan, 2006;Hank & Buber, 2009;.…”

“…Grandparental involvement has traditionally been defined as occurring on a continuum ranging from no contact at one extreme to full-time custodial care of grandchildren at the other (Attar-Schwartz et al, 2009;Griggs et al, 2010). Frequent interactions with grandparents can be either helpful or harmful, however, depending on the characteristics of the individuals and the nature of the interactions between them (Chase-Lansdale, Brooks-Gunn, & Zamsky, 1994).…”

Design challenges and concept for intergenerational online learning

“…As in "the offline world" grandparents are often involved in their grandchildren's lives, they are also concerned with school activities [7]. However, if the children do not live near their grandparents, it is challenging to connect and engage with each other [11].…”