ERIC Number: EJ887830
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Mar
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1070-5309
EISSN: N/A
Becoming a Grandmother: Maternal Grandmothers' Mental Health, Perceived Costs, and Personal Growth
Shlomo, Shirley Ben; Ben-Ari, Orit Taubman; Findler, Liora; Sivan, Eyal; Dolizki, Mordechay
Social Work Research, v34 n1 p45-57 Mar 2010
Although becoming a grandmother represents an important transition in a woman's life, it has received scant research attention. This study used the model of growth developed by Schaefer and Moos in an attempt to identify personal and environmental resources that may contribute to a first-time maternal grandmother's mental health and her perceptions of costs and sense of personal growth. One hundred and two Israeli women completed a series of questionnaires twice: (1) during their daughter's first pregnancy and (2) following the birth of their first grandchild. The independent variables included the personal resources of education, physical health, self-esteem, attachment style, and self-mastery and the environmental resources of grandmother's perception of level of intimacy with her daughter and active involvement with the grandchild. Findings reveal that education, attachment style, self-esteem, and self-mastery are associated with mental health, perception of costs, and experience of personal growth. The pattern of the correlations that emerged indicates that the transition to maternal grandmotherhood, a normative life event, may evoke both positive and negative cognitions and emotions.
Descriptors: Daughters, Physical Health, Pregnancy, Intimacy, Attachment Behavior, Grandparents, Costs, Individual Development, Females, Self Esteem, Individual Characteristics, Foreign Countries, Questionnaires, Predictor Variables, Correlation, Mental Health, Adult Development
National Association of Social Workers (NASW). 750 First Street NE Suite 700, Washington, DC 20002. Tel: 800-227-3590; e-mail: press@naswdc.org; Web site: http://www.naswpress.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Israel
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A