Young female adults’ experiences of their relationships with older people: The Mmogo-method^®

Abstract

Most of the intergenerational research in South Africa has been undertaken on African cultures. This study aims to cast light on the experiences of Afrikaans-speaking young female adults in relation to older people, using the Mmogo-method®, a visual projective data collection method. Eighteen young female adults (aged 21–30), all students, were purposefully selected and willingly participated. The four phases of the Mmogo-method were applied, for which participants used unstructured materials, and based on an open-ended prompt constructed visual representations of their interactional experiences in relation to significant older people. Visual representations were discussed individually as well as in a group setting, thereby obtaining personal and group experiences simultaneously. Visual data were analyzed using Roos and Redelinghuys’s proposed six steps, and textual data (verbatim transcriptions of personal and group discussions) were thematically analyzed. All participants were related to significant older people as grandparents. The relational interactions between young female adults and their grandparents emerged on a continuum of emotional closeness and distance: extremely and uncomfortably close, comfortably close, reasonably distant and inaccessible, and extremely distant and totally inaccessible. From the young adults’ perspective, relational interactions at the extremes of the continuum (too close or too distant) are experienced as ineffective, while comfortably close, as effective. Empathy as a relational characteristic created reciprocal feelings of closeness. Awarenessmaking of an empathic stance in intergenerational relationships might increase the support and care rendered through intergenerational relationships.

A Scoping Review of the Factors That Influence Families’ Ability or Capacity to Provide Young People With Emotional Support Over the Transition to Adulthood

“…Gozu (2017) found that young adults who scored highly in terms of openness, conscientiousness and agreeableness, and low on neuroticism, were more likely to report having better relationships with their siblings. Finally, in a qualitative study, Roos et al (2019) found that perceptions of grandparents' personality (e.g., empathetic vs. rigid) influenced whether young adult women desired closeness with, or distance from, their grandparents.…”

“…Relatively few studies have examined grandchild-grandparent relationship quality in the context of familial emotional support provision over the transition to adulthood. Studies have found that the level of closeness in grandparents' relationships with their young adult grandchildren is associated with: the closeness of parents' (particularly mothers) relationships with both the grandparents and the young adults (Monserud, 2008); physical proximity to grandparents (Roos et al, 2019;Wise and Onol, 2020); grandparent gender -with closer relationships typically found with grandmothers (Wise and Onol, 2020); contact frequency, medium, and quality (Wise and Onol, 2020); and the level of affectionate communication by grandparents (Mansson et al, 2017).…”

“…Therefore, the three studies captured in relation to the 'physical health' factor referred to non-specific physical health conditions. These studies found that poor physical healthwhether of the young person or another family member -was associated with less relational closeness in family relationships (Bertogg and Szydlik, 2016;Roos et al, 2019;Kim et al, 2020).…”

Direct observation as data-collection method: Application in a commercial forensic interview

“…An interviewee or FP who sits too close, asks personal questions, or provides inappropriate information, indicates an emotional distance which is uncomfortably close. Conversely, adopting a closed posture, avoiding eye contact and providing short answers or questions would indicate a lack of trust (Roos et al, 2019).…”