Grandparent

A grandparent is a genetic relative who is a parent of a person's mother or father. Each person has four genetic grandparents. Some people also have step-grandparents. Every animal that reproduces sexually also has grandparents; however, humans are among the few species where these relatives tend to remain an active part of the grandchild's life. In many cultures, grandparents play a significant role in the life of a grandchild. In some areas, grandparents even have legal rights to see and spend time with their grandchildren.

Background

Female grandparents are known as grandmothers and male grandparents are known as grandfathers. Maternal grandparents are the parents of a person's mother, while paternal grandparents are the father's parents. Some people also have step-grandparents. If a person's grandparents divorced at some point, then they may have step-grandparents who are part of the family. Some people also have living great-grandparents, who are the parents of a person's grandparents.

Overview

In the twenty-first century, the average life expectancy has reached around eighty years of age. This means that more grandparents are alive and healthy enough to live until their grandchildren reach young adulthood. In the early 1900s, less than half of all American teens had at least two living grandparents. By the end of the century, nearly 90 percent of American teens still had two living grandparents. As a result, grandparents can have a significant impact on the lives of their grandchildren.

Not all grandparents are present in the lives of their grandchildren. Those who are present may have different levels of involvement. Some attend important events in the child's life, give gifts, babysit occasionally, and maintain great interest in the child's life but are not a constant presence. Others are only occasionally involved, present only for holidays or very significant events. This can be by choice or by circumstance. For instance, some grandparents may live a significant distance away from their grandchildren and cannot be around all the time.

Some grandparents are involved in their grandchildren's lives on a very regular basis. Some serve as the family matriarch or patriarch, respected—or sometimes feared—so much that no major decisions are made without their input, and all family members, including their children and grandchildren, come to them for advice and guidance. Other grandparents indulge in all the fun aspects of the role, taking the grandchild places and providing many entertaining experiences.

Before many families tended to be separated by divorce, relocation, and other causes, grandparents lived close to their grandchildren and were often a source of built-in childcare. That number dropped in the twentieth century but has shown signs of rising in the twenty-first century. No official count of the number of grandparents in America is available, but it is estimated to be in excess of fifty-six million. According to information provided by the Pew Research Center in 2015, about 7 million American grandparents lived with their grandchildren in 2013. This is a significant increase from the 5.8 million reported in 2000. About 83 percent of Americans over the age of sixty-five who lived with their grandchildren said they had at least one grandchild, with 67 percent claiming at least four. According to the American Society on Aging, these numbers stayed relatively steady in the mid-2020s, with 6.7 million grandparents living in a house with their grandchildren. Of those grandparents, 2.1 million were the primary caregivers. This was lower than the number reported in several other countries. Experts theorize this is because older Americans receive less government support than elders in other countries do, and more of them are still in the workforce. Grandparents who are primary caregivers often care for their grandchildren because the children's parents work. However, many are surrogate parents, caring for the child full-time and permanently or semi-permanently. This may be because the child's parents are deceased, have abandoned the child, or are unable to care for the child because of illness, addiction, military deployment, or incarceration.

Caregiving is not the only important role grandparents play in the lives of their grandchildren. Studies have shown that teen and adult grandchildren feel their grandparents have been beneficial influences on their values and behaviors. Some grandparents are also able to provide financial support for their grandchildren. Sometimes, this comes in the form of necessities such as childcare or better housing. Grandparents may also spend some of their discretionary income on private schools, sports and after-school activities, books, toys, and vacations for their grandchildren.

The caregiving relationships between children and their grandparents are sometimes different in other countries. In some countries, such as Korea, grandparents who babysit their grandchildren are usually paid for their time, while Spanish grandparents very often provide the same service for free. British grandparents are eligible for benefits from the government, including the legal ability to share in the parent's parental leave when grandchildren are born or adopted. Multi-generational families are very common in India, and many children live with both their parents and grandparents in one household. Multi-generational families are also the norm in China. In the Philippines, the role of grandparent is so highly respected that children often bow or kneel before their grandparents when they visit.

In addition to the increasing number of grandparents who are active parts of their grandchildren's lives, others want to have active roles but cannot. This may occur in cases of divorce or in situations where one of the grandchild's parents has died. In these cases, the custodial or remaining parent may move away from the grandparents or be unwilling to allow them to see their grandchild. Because of an increasing number of these cases, many states in the United States and several other countries have passed various laws that give grandparents visitation rights with their grandchildren.

Bibliography

Draper, Heather. "Grandparents Rights and Entitlements." Bioethics, vol. 27, no. 6, 27 July 2013, pp. 309–16.

Dunifon, Rachel, and Ashish Bajracharya. "The Role of Grandparents in the Lives of Youth." Journal of Family Issues, vol. 33, no. 9, 1 Sept. 2012, pp. 1168–1194.

Hughes, Meredith, et al. “Grandparents as Caregivers: A Changing Demographic with Unique Support Needs.” American Society on Aging, 16 Jan. 2024, generations.asaging.org/grandparent-caregivers-changing-unique-needs. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.

Krogstad, Jens Manuel. "5 Facts about American Grandparents." Pew Research Center, 13 Sept. 2015, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/09/13/5-facts-about-american-grandparents. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.

Schier-Akamelu, Rebecca. "The Best Intergenerational Activities for Seniors: How Engaging With Younger Generations Can Bring Meaning to a Senior’s Life." A Place for Mom, 17 Sept. 2024, www.aplaceformom.com/blog/10-22-13-reasons-grandparents-matter-more-than-ever. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.

Whitbourne, Susan Krauss. "Five Types of Grandparents and How They Shape Our Lives." Psychology Today, 16 Feb. 2010, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/fulfillment-any-age/201002/five-types-grandparents-and-how-they-shape-our-lives. Accessed 30 Dec. 2024.