Experiences with grandparents and attitudes toward custodial grandparenting

Authors

Julie Hicks Patrick, West Virginia UniversityFollow
Allyson Stella Graf, West Virginia UniversityFollow
Danielle K. Nadorff, Mississippi State UniversityFollow
Bert Hayslip Jr., University of North Texas, DentonFollow

Abstract

The goals of the current study were to examine attitudes about custodial grandparents and to examine whether personal experiences with grandparents influenced those attitudes. Data were provided by 730 younger adults (mean age about 20 years) who completed surveys regarding their experiences with their own grandparents, attitudes toward custodial grandparenting, and openness to becoming a custodial grandparent in the future. Mean differences in attitudes as a function of experience did emerge. In addition, a mixed structural model showed that young adults who felt their grandparents helped to raise them perceived custodial grandparenting as less distressing, and it was these perceptions of distress that related to being more open to accepting the role of custodial grandparent themselves. Results are discussed in terms of changing norms and their relevance to policies affecting families.

Recommended Citation

Hicks Patrick, J., Stella Graf, A., Nadorff, D. K., Hayslip, B. (2015). Experiences with grandparents and attitudes toward custodial grandparenting. GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy, 2 (2).
Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/grandfamilies/vol2/iss2/5