Grandparenting in the United States

The contributors to Grandparenting in the United States, edited by Madonna Harrington Meyer and Ynesse Abdul-Malak of Syracuse University, use a variety of quantitative and qualitative data sets to assess how grandparenting, and its impacts, vary by living arrangements, economic status, education, gender, race, ethnicity, and other stratifying variables. Some papers assess how the provision of financial assistance, particularly during economic downturns, may be easily absorbed or financially detrimental. Others demonstrate how immigrant grandparents navigate multiple sets of cultural expectations to provide childcare to their grandchildren. Some show how Hispanic grandparents acculturation level is linked to childcare and financial transfer across generations. Others emphasize the extent to which schoolchildren with disabilities are more likely to receive grandparent care, particularly if the mother is single. Some reveal how custodial grandmothers are significantly more likely to be poor, face social isolation, and report poorer health. Others enumerate the positive, and negative, impacts of frequent interaction for both generations. In total, the volume underscores the impact of evolving diversification of grandparenting across multiple generations.