Relationships between grandparents and grandchildren provide an excellent framework for integrating family theory and family methodology. Systematic differences as a function of age, gender, life expectancy, and health as played out through generations suggest some topics are best studied by disentangling variability between and within families.…

The objective of this study was to explore what adolescent grandchildren have learned from having a grandparent who suffers dementia and what coping strategies they might recommend for other adolescents in similar situations. We also present information on background factors influencing lessons learned and coping strategies. Adolescent…

As a result of the increase in life expectancy in Western societies, the need for elderly people to live with their families (coresidence) is on the rise. The main objectives of this study were to determine the social perception of the advantages and drawbacks of coresidence with elderly people and establish the differences in this perception…

Nothing can compare with the boundless love that a grandparent feels for their grandchild. The gift of grandchildren is one of life's greatest blessings. But life does not always deliver its blessings in the package one expects. The diagnosis of autism is for many a jolt into a new world. For parents, the diagnosis tears their hearts and brings…

This study explores the relationship between the life satisfaction of older adults and the social support from grandchildren in Hong Kong. Two hundred and fifteen older people (from the ages of 64 to 101, mean age 79.3), whose youngest grandchild was aged 12 or older, were recruited from elderly service agencies to participate in the study.…

In May 2009, the MetLife Mature Market Institute conducted a nationwide survey of grandparents age 45 and older with grandchildren under the age of 25. This survey examined their attitudes and behaviors toward providing financial assistance and advice to their grandchildren and what effect the current economy is having on the assistance they are…

An adaptation of the Family Stress Model (FSM) with hypothesized linkages between family contextual factors, custodial grandmothers' psychological distress, parenting practices, and grandchildren's adjustment was tested with structural equation modeling. Interview data from 733 custodial grandmothers of grandchildren between ages 4-17 revealed…

Introducing findings from the 2004 Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), this research complements the large number of recent U.S. studies on the role of grandparents in caring for their grandchildren. For 10 continental European countries, the authors investigate cross-national variations in grandparent-provided child care…

The growing social phenomenon of grandparents caring for their grandchildren has implications for educational psychology practice, since children who are wards of their grandparents frequently experience problematic school functioning. In this paper, the literature regarding children cared for by grandparents is reviewed. Issues concerning…

Grandmothers often play an important role in low-income minority families through providing support to their adult children as well as care to their grandchildren. However, little is known about how varying types of grandmother involvement may influence their grandchildren's functioning. This paper uses data from Welfare, Children, and Families: A…

Grandparents of children with disabilities have an expanded grandparental role that can include performance of child care, raising the grandchildren, and in some instances taking legal custody of the grandchildren. Grandparents in the extended family of a child with a disability have needs that must be identified in order to facilitate the…

This study investigates maternal grandmother-grandchild relationship quality as a predictor of psychological adjustment among youth from divorced families. Three hundred twenty-four adolescents aged between 17 and 20 report on the quality of their relationships with their maternal grandmothers and their relational competence, self-efficacy, and…

A qualitative study of eight grand family dyads was conducted to gain the perspective of the grandparents and grandchildren regarding the kinship care relationship. A phenomenological approach of the "lived experience" developed by P.A. Gibson (2002) was incorporated in the design of the study. Several major themes emerged from data analysis using…

Using cross-sectional data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (N = 1,231), this study examines the relationship between grandchildren and their grandparents across early adulthood. Age is used as a proxy for change during the grandchild's life course and the influence of major life course characteristics is examined. Results indicate that…

For many grandchildren their grandparents are "special" people, and the time they spend together often generates memorable experiences and conversations that are educational. Yet society underestimates the impact that grandparents have as mentors and role models for children. Through spontaneous, shared activities grandparents support the science…