‘It's rewarding because I get the love’: Grandparents raising grandchildren with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder

The aim of this study was to explore the lived experiences of grandparents raising their grandchildren with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Specifically, we sought to identify how caregivers make meaning of their experience, what challenges are faced by grandparents while raising a second generation and what positive experiences are encountered. Ten grandparents raising a child with FASD in Ontario, Canada, participated in semi-structured interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse the interviews to determine reoccurring themes. Three main themes were identified: (i) challenges when raising a grandchild with FASD, including kinship adoption struggles and intergenerational issues; (ii) worries about the future, including financial planning and health concerns; and (iii) rewards, such as shifts in priorities and the opportunity to raise a second generation. Grandparents raising their grandchildren with FASD face challenges and thus require specific supports so that they may adequately provide a safe and nurturing home environment for children with often challenging learning and social needs.     

多代流动效应：来自中国的证据

多代流动是社会流动中的重要议题。本文利用中国劳动力调查2012年数据,检验了不同世代社会流动的多代效应模式。研究发现,1980年以前出生的世代累积性的优势或劣势主要表现在两代之间,多代的效应并不明显;但随着市场经济的确立,累积性不平等的效应从两代之间扩展到三代之间,即在控制了父代的阶层地位后,祖代-孙代的影响效应仍显著存在,祖代职业阶层越高,孙代进入高职业阶层的可能性越大。此外,研究发现教育是个体实现向上流动的重要变量,但教育获得本身受家庭背景的影响。文章从实证和理论两方面的论述有助于加深对中国社会流动与代际不平等的理解。     

Grandparents raising grandchildren: negotiating the complexities of role‐identity conflict

The purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the experience of grandparents who are raising their grandchildren in New South Wales, Australia. In‐depth interviews were conducted with 34 grandparents and their narratives transcribed and studied using paradigmatic analysis to reveal common themes among the stories told. Identity theory further informed the discussion of these findings. Woven throughout the grandparent narratives is a story of paradox – of experience simultaneously made up of pain/pleasure, myth/reality, inclusion/exclusion, being deserving/undeserving, visible/invisible and voiced/silenced. The findings signal a significant role‐identity conflict for grandparents who are parenting grandchildren. This study points to the need for policy and practice that more closely reflects the complexity of experience associated with the grandparent‐as‐parent role.     

Grandparents Raising Children With and Without a Developmental Disability

Abstract

This study compared two groups of grandparents, those who were raising grandchildren with a developmental disability, and those raising grandchildren without a developmental disability. Service use, depressive symptoms among grandparents and the impact of welfare reform are considered among other variables. Recommendations are made for the various service systems which impact upon these families. Issues for future research are also identified.     

Family Well-Being Concerns of Grandparents in Skipped Generation Families

This study examined the family well-being concerns of grandparents in skipped-generation families. Co-resident grandparents who are responsible for raising their grandchildren completed surveys, focus groups, or individual interviews. Service providers to skipped-generation families also participated in individual interviews to provide an additional perspective to grandparents' concerns. Results indicated 5 levels of concerns: intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational or institutional, policy, and societal. Concerns at different levels were interrelated and pointed to the need for multilevel interventions to help these families. Implications of the findings for future interventions with skipped-generation families are discussed.     

Family well-being concerns of grandparents in skipped generation families

This study examined the family well-being concerns of grandparents in skipped-generation families. Co-resident grandparents who are responsible for raising their grandchildren completed surveys, focus groups, or individual interviews. Service providers to skipped-generation families also participated in individual interviews to provide an additional perspective to grandparents' concerns. Results indicated 5 levels of concerns: intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational or institutional, policy, and societal. Concerns at different levels were interrelated and pointed to the need for multilevel interventions to help these families. Implications of the findings for future interventions with skipped-generation families are discussed.     

与祖辈同住:当前中国家庭的三代居住安排与青少年的学业表现

通过分析具有全国代表性的初中学生样本数据，本研究考察了影响当前中国家庭三代共同居住的决定因素、三代居住安排与青少年学业表现之间的关系及其中间机制。首先，家庭社会经济地位较低、母亲在职或单亲家庭的青少年更可能与祖辈同住。其次，代际居住安排会显著影响青少年的学业表现，控制了其他因素之后，三代共同居住（与祖辈同住）家庭的学生的学业表现要优于两代核心家庭的学生。第三，与祖辈同住的效应受到家庭社会经济地位和家庭结构的调节，来自较低阶层或非双亲家庭的学生从与祖辈同住中获益更多。最后，与祖辈同住在一定程度上通过加强亲子间的家庭社会资本这一机制作用于学生的学业表现。本文表明，在现代社会，家庭亲属网络仍然对个体的地位获得或社会流动具有十分重要的作用。     

‘My daughter is a drug addict’: grandparents caring for the children of addicted parents

This article reports on one aspect of a large multi-method survey of grandparents raising grandchildren, carried out in 2016. The research report [Gordon L. (2016). The empty nest is refilled: the joys and tribulations of grandparents raising grandchildren in New Zealand. Auckland: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust (NZ)] notes that the most commonly cited reason for children coming into care was parental drug addiction. This article reports on the circumstances and well-being of families where parental drug addiction was cited as a reason for the children living with grandparents. Common causes of grandparents struggling to care for their grandchildren were personal health issues, housing, financial problems and dealing with traumatised or unwell children. Contact with parents was often random, with non-contact caused by parental death, imprisonment, parents moving away or re-forming families, children not wanting to see the parent or parents not turning up for scheduled visits. As noted in another article [Gordon L. (2017). Experiences of grandparents raising grandchildren in getting income support from Work and Income offices in New Zealand. Kotuitui. 12(2):134–145], many of the families had difficulty getting income support from Work and Income. Many of the children suffer from a range of emotional and behavioural problems, leading to concerns about their future. The conclusion considers the policy and service implications of these findings, in the context of the growing ‘epidemic’ of methamphetamines and other drug use in Aotearoa.     

“孙子比老人大”：阿卡礼中的祖孙关系及其扩展的亲属世界

本文通过考察云南哈尼族阿卡人家庭内部的祖孙关系及其在治疗祈福仪式“拴线礼”中的呈现,探索其建构社会的方式和过程。研究发现,阿卡父系家庭在强调丰产和家族延续的福气观念下,突出“老人大”和“孙子比老人大”的双向式等级结构。该结构经由辈分、性别、居住地、血亲、姻亲等差别变量的叠加互动,从家庭仪礼中扩展出卷动多个家系和村寨的人群等级关系,构建出更广大的社会世界,既体现了男/女性后代和姻亲对于家族延续的不同重要性,也表达了多姓村寨共同体内部的互助团结与整合精神。本文为等级、礼物和家庭研究拓宽了讨论空间。     

Contributors to well-being of Chinese left-behind families: A dyadic perspective from family resilience and grandparent–grandchild relationship

There is evidence that grandchildren and grandparents in Chinese left-behind families (CLBF) suffer from immense life stressors. The well-being of both generations is of great concern. Guided by the family adjustment and adaptation response model and ecological model of well-being, the present study aimed to investigate the dyadic associations between family resilience and subjective well-being (SWB) of left-behind grandchildren and grandparents. Furthermore, we explored the extent to which relationship quality accounts for such reciprocal associations. A sample of 130 left-behind grandparent–grandchild (GP–GC) pairs completed self-reported questionnaires. Actor–partner interdependence model (APIM) revealed that both grandchildren's and grandparents' reported family resilience positively associated with their own SWB but not the other's SWB. Grandchildren's and grandparents' perceived relationship quality mediated the association between their perceived family resilience and their own SWB. Moreover, grandchildren-perceived relationship quality mediated the association between grandchildren-perceived family resilience and grandparents' SWB. Meanwhile, grandparent-perceived relationship quality mediated the association between grandparent-perceived family resilience and grandchildren's SWB. The findings highlighted the significance of family resilience and relationship quality in boosting the two generations' SWB in CLBF. The results also suggested that left-behind grandchildren and their grandparents depend on each other. Future intervention programs could be benefitted from integrating the enhancement of family resilience and improvement of grandparent–grandchild relationship quality to promote the well-being of left-behind family members.     

Perceptions of grandparents who provide auxiliary care: value transmission and child‐rearing practices

A grounded theory qualitative study was developed to explore how grandparents perceive their role as socializing agents. Forty‐two grandparents with grandchildren aged from 6 to 12 years old participated in this study. Data were collected through focus groups, which were conducted until reaching data saturation and analyzed using the constant comparative method. Four general conclusions emerged from the study: (i) grandparents recognized the importance of getting involved in the socialization of grandchildren as supporters of parents' socializing role, and the need to adapt to social changes; (ii) they emphasized traditional value that were perceived in decline, and combination of warmth and involvement were considered the best way to help grandchildren internalize values; (iii) interaction with grandchildren helped grandparents to feel active and useful, increased their life purpose and gave them a second chance to enjoy what they could not with their own children; and (iv) grandparents also accused burden and role ambiguity. These results show the importance of developing family policies that recognize grandparents' socializing role. Also, interventions that promote strategies that enable grandparents to perform their role more successfully and to cope with possible family conflicts should be developed.     

Relationships with Grandparents and the Emotional Well-Being of Late Adolescent and Young Adult Grandchildren

We investigated whether and under what family conditions young adult grandchildren psychologically benefit from having close and supportive grandparent relations. Relying on parental absence and family systems perspectives, we hypothesized that grandparents will be most effective in reducing depressive symptoms and increasing self-esteem of grandchildren who were raised in single-parent and step-parent families, as well as those with poorer quality relations with their parents. We analyzed data from a sample of grandchildren aged 18–23 years who were surveyed in the 1992–1994 wave of the National Survey of Families and Households (n = 925). Hierarchical multiple regressions with interaction terms found that greater cohesion with grandparents decreased depressive symptoms, particularly among grandchildren raised in single-parent families. However, cohesive grandparent relations reduced depressive symptoms more in the presence of stronger ties to parents. The model partially supports the long reach of grandparents as compensatory resources for mature grandchildren whose families of origin were absent a parent. Implications for future research on the role of grandparents in family systems are discussed.     

WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A GRANDPARENT IN A NEW COUNTRY: THE LIVED EXPERIENCE AND EMOTIONAL WELL‐BEING OF AUSTRALIAN‐VIETNAMESE GRANDPARENTS

This study attempts to understand the lived experience and emotional well‐being of Australian‐Vietnamese grandparenthood. Thirty‐six grandparents participated in four focus group interviews while three grandparents took part in individual in‐depth interviews where the experiences of the grandparents were further clarified. The findings reveal that Vietnamese grandparents encounter many changes in their lives and their relationships with their children and grandchildren in their new homeland. However, many still seem to play important roles in the family, creating a vital bridge to grandchildren. According to our participants, the grandparents' most important roles are the maintenance of good emotional relationships and support, and the construction of harmony and continuity in their modified extended families. To be able to assume these roles, grandparents need to actively explore and consider accepting new values. For many, a successful grandparenthood brings happiness to the family, positively influences grandparents' life satisfaction and emotional well‐being, and this in turn enhances their quality of life.     

Experiences of grandparents raising grandchildren in getting income support from work and income offices in New Zealand

Grandparents raising grandchildren in New Zealand are entitled to the unsupported child benefit (UCB) if they meet the conditions for eligibility. To access the support, they are required to attend the offices of Work and Income. In a large survey of such grandparents undertaken in 2016, participants articulated a wide range of qualitative comments around their experiences in accessing this important form of income support. While a proportion had positive experiences, most were critical of the operation of the offices. Between the policy of providing financial support for children unable to live with their own parents, and the practice of being a grandparent looking after such children, lies a complex set of systems of which grandparents were often extremely critical, for a range of reasons which are explored in this paper.     

Parenting a 6-Year Old Is Not What I Planned in Retirement: Trauma and Stress among Grandparents Due to the Opioid Crisis

ABSTRACT

There is little research about trauma, financial stress, and social service needs emanating from the experience of parenting grandchildren caused by the opioid crisis in the United States. We conducted a qualitative study with 15 grandparents who currently or in the past had custodial care of their grandchildren. We also interviewed nine issue-related stakeholders in Eastern Massachusetts. Specific inquiries centered on events leading up to a change in guardianship, stressors related to legal, financial, and family issues, and system-wide response to the grandparents’ needs. Results indicate that the opioid crisis presents distinct challenges for the grandparent-led families and for the systems that serve the new family arrangement. Crisis triggers a change in guardianship and continues throughout the years. The continued crises stem from events related to the parent’s opioid use disorder (OUD) and from expenses related to raising a young family, especially when the grandchild has adverse childhood experiences. Our analysis shows that systems break down on a number of levels, and the fluidity of custodial arrangements due to parents’ OUD status does not map onto existing support or benefit systems. Policy responses must focus on the immediate and long-term needs of grandparent caretakers, especially since the opioid crisis is likely to continue.     

Being there for my grandchild – grandparents' responses to their grandchildren's exposure to domestic violence

Grandparents whose grandchildren are exposed to domestic violence are faced with some unique challenges in their grandparenting, which have thus far been little discussed in research. This paper discusses the narratives of 10 Swedish grandparents whose grandchildren have been exposed to violence towards their mother. The aim was to explore grandparents' narrations of their responses in the face of violence, and their understanding of the role they play in their grandchildren's social networks. Two significant responses are discussed: ‘being there’ and ‘acknowledging the independence and self‐determination of the adult children’. Grandparents experienced these responses as contradictory and felt powerless when it came to their possibilities to protect their grandchildren. The paper suggests that grandparents could be a resource for domestic violence services, and social work practice needs to assess the roles of grandparents of children exposed to domestic violence. Social workers should consider the challenges these grandparents are facing and what support they may need in order to support their grandchildren.     

“Roll back the years”: A study of grandparent special guardians' experiences and implications for social work policy and practice in England

Growing numbers of grandparent special guardians (GSGs) are assuming responsibility for increasing numbers of children in the care system in England. Special guardianship arrangements are increasingly used as a permanency option as they allow children to remain in their kinship networks rather than in local authority care or be adopted; yet there is a scarcity of research on GSG carers' experiences. This paper reports a small qualitative research study where 10 sets of grandparents were interviewed to explore their journey to becoming GSGs and to theorize their subsequent experiences. Two themes emerge. First, experiences of the assessment process are elaborated, decisions often being made at a time of family crisis, impacting on GSGs: financial, employment, and relational. Second, GSGs' experiences of managing often challenging relationships and contact arrangements between the grandchildren and the parents reveal three main relationship management approaches emerging: containing‐flexible, containing‐controlled, and uncontained/defeated approaches. Anthropological concepts of affinity help theorize the GSGs' ambivalent responses to becoming carers in later life, enabling reconfigured kinship relationships in new family forms. Family policy and social work practice is critiqued as GSGs appear often left alone to “roll back the years,” to heal previous harms done to the grandchildren who end up in their care.     

Housing needs of grandparent caregivers: grandparent,youth, and professional perspectives

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study examined the housing needs of grandparent caregivers and the youth in their care in New York State. Nine focus groups were conducted separately with grandparent caregivers (n = 46) and youth (n = 34), and interviews were conducted with key informants (n = 17) knowledgeable about housing and issues. Housing needs of greatest priority, contextual differences, and potential barriers to securing housing and social services were identified. Key themes indicated that housing challenges stem from four problem domains: the experience of poverty, which creates affordability challenges that trap grandparent caregivers and their grandchildren in unsuitable homes and unsafe neighborhoods; physical challenges of aging grandparents, which require specific housing accommodations; changes in family composition when taking in grandchildren, which necessitate moving out of prior accommodations or changing housing plans due to regulatory issues; and obstacles to obtaining needed benefits, including a lack of information, burdensome application processes, ineligibility, and a shortage of resources. These issues are discussed with implications for policy and practice.     

Using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) to Predict Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties on Positive and Negative Affect Among Adolescents in Disadvantaged Communities

The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to predict the positive and negative affects of emotional and behavioral difficulties among adolescent boys and girls aged between 14 and 21 years living in disadvantaged communities. A total of 316 adolescents—181 boys and 135 girls—living in the Seri Pantai and Pantai Ria Public Housing Projects in Kuala Lumpur were invited to complete the questionnaire. The results showed that conduct and peer problems were the most prevalent emotional and behavioral difficulties experienced by these adolescents. As expected, the emotional symptoms were more common among the girls than the boys. A further analysis showed that emotional symptoms, peer problems, and low prosocial behavior were predictors of the negative affect of emotional and behavioral difficulties while negative emotional symptoms and high hyperactivity were predictors of a positive affect. The findings suggested that three subscales of SDQ are required to produce a negative affect, and two subscales of SDQ for a positive affect.