Grandmothers and Caregiving to Grandchildren
Purpose: Transitions in caregiving, such as becoming a primary caregiver to grandchildren or having adult children and grandchildren move in or out, may affect the well-being of the grandmother.
Design and Methods: This report describes caregiving patterns at 3 time points over 24 months in a sample of 485 Ohio grandmothers and examines the effects of stability and change in grandmother caregiving roles (raising a grandchild, living in a multigenerational home, or not caregiving to grandchildren). Drawing on the Resiliency Model of Family Stress, the study examined caregiving stress and reward, intrafamily strain, social support, resourcefulness, depressive symptoms, mental and physical health, and perceived family functioning. Caregiver group, time of measurement, switching between caregiver groups, and baseline age, race, education, work status, and marital status were considered as independent variables within the context of a one-way treatment structure in a mixed-model multivariate analysis.
Results: There were significant caregiver group effects for all variables, except mental health and resourcefulness. Grandmothers raising grandchildren reported the most stress, intrafamily strain, and perceived problems in family functioning, the worst physical health and more depressive symptoms, and the least reward and subjective support. Across groups, there were significant time effects, with worsening physical health and increased stress over time. Switching to higher levels of caregiving was associated with worsening physical health and increases in stress, intrafamily strain, and perceived problems in family functioning.
Implications: Recommendations for research and for practice, especially during times of caregiving transition or for grandmothers raising grandchildren, are discussed.
In the United States, there are 4.1 million households of grandparents living with grandchildren and 34% have no parents in the home; of the latter, 38.5% of grandparents have been responsible for grandchildren for 5 or more years and 23% for less than 1 year (Simmons & Dye, 2003). The remaining 2.8 million multigenerational households are of varying duration, and most are headed by grandmothers living alone or with a spouse. There is an incomplete understanding about the patterns of grandmothers' caregiving to grandchildren and the effects of continuity or change in these roles on the grandmother. Although a number of cross-sectional studies (Fuller-Thomson & Minkler, 2001; Goodman & Silverstein, 2006) and longitudinal secondary analyses (Blustein, Chan, & Guanais, 2004; Strawbridge, Wallhagen, Shema, & Kaplan, 1997; Szinovacz, DeViney, & Atkinson, 1999) have examined health effects, primarily depressive symptoms and general health, of grandmothers' caregiving to grandchildren, few studies have data that track grandmothers over time to examine caregiving patterns to grandchildren and the effects of stable caregiving roles compared with effects when caregiving roles change.
Such data are important because although many grandmothers remain as primary caregivers or live in a multigenerational home indefinitely, grandchildren move in and out of grandparents' homes with some frequency (Blustein et al., 2004). Several studies suggest that transitions in caregiving, such as becoming a primary caregiver to grandchildren or having adult children and grandchildren move in or out, affect the health or well-being of the grandmother (Blustein et al.; Standing, Musil, & Warner, 2007; Szinovacz et al., 1999). Therefore, the purpose of this report is to describe caregiving patterns across 24 months in a sample of Ohio grandmothers and to examine the effects of stability and change over that time in these caregiving roles. This work extends previous research by (a) the analysis of detailed prospective data about caregiving stress and reward, the support and resources that may be amenable to intervention, and the grandmother's perceptions of outcomes for herself and her family and (b) the examination of these at three points over 24-month time, relative to stability or change in grandmother caregiving roles.
Abstract and Introduction
Abstract
Purpose: Transitions in caregiving, such as becoming a primary caregiver to grandchildren or having adult children and grandchildren move in or out, may affect the well-being of the grandmother.
Design and Methods: This report describes caregiving patterns at 3 time points over 24 months in a sample of 485 Ohio grandmothers and examines the effects of stability and change in grandmother caregiving roles (raising a grandchild, living in a multigenerational home, or not caregiving to grandchildren). Drawing on the Resiliency Model of Family Stress, the study examined caregiving stress and reward, intrafamily strain, social support, resourcefulness, depressive symptoms, mental and physical health, and perceived family functioning. Caregiver group, time of measurement, switching between caregiver groups, and baseline age, race, education, work status, and marital status were considered as independent variables within the context of a one-way treatment structure in a mixed-model multivariate analysis.
Results: There were significant caregiver group effects for all variables, except mental health and resourcefulness. Grandmothers raising grandchildren reported the most stress, intrafamily strain, and perceived problems in family functioning, the worst physical health and more depressive symptoms, and the least reward and subjective support. Across groups, there were significant time effects, with worsening physical health and increased stress over time. Switching to higher levels of caregiving was associated with worsening physical health and increases in stress, intrafamily strain, and perceived problems in family functioning.
Implications: Recommendations for research and for practice, especially during times of caregiving transition or for grandmothers raising grandchildren, are discussed.
Introduction
In the United States, there are 4.1 million households of grandparents living with grandchildren and 34% have no parents in the home; of the latter, 38.5% of grandparents have been responsible for grandchildren for 5 or more years and 23% for less than 1 year (Simmons & Dye, 2003). The remaining 2.8 million multigenerational households are of varying duration, and most are headed by grandmothers living alone or with a spouse. There is an incomplete understanding about the patterns of grandmothers' caregiving to grandchildren and the effects of continuity or change in these roles on the grandmother. Although a number of cross-sectional studies (Fuller-Thomson & Minkler, 2001; Goodman & Silverstein, 2006) and longitudinal secondary analyses (Blustein, Chan, & Guanais, 2004; Strawbridge, Wallhagen, Shema, & Kaplan, 1997; Szinovacz, DeViney, & Atkinson, 1999) have examined health effects, primarily depressive symptoms and general health, of grandmothers' caregiving to grandchildren, few studies have data that track grandmothers over time to examine caregiving patterns to grandchildren and the effects of stable caregiving roles compared with effects when caregiving roles change.
Such data are important because although many grandmothers remain as primary caregivers or live in a multigenerational home indefinitely, grandchildren move in and out of grandparents' homes with some frequency (Blustein et al., 2004). Several studies suggest that transitions in caregiving, such as becoming a primary caregiver to grandchildren or having adult children and grandchildren move in or out, affect the health or well-being of the grandmother (Blustein et al.; Standing, Musil, & Warner, 2007; Szinovacz et al., 1999). Therefore, the purpose of this report is to describe caregiving patterns across 24 months in a sample of Ohio grandmothers and to examine the effects of stability and change over that time in these caregiving roles. This work extends previous research by (a) the analysis of detailed prospective data about caregiving stress and reward, the support and resources that may be amenable to intervention, and the grandmother's perceptions of outcomes for herself and her family and (b) the examination of these at three points over 24-month time, relative to stability or change in grandmother caregiving roles.
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