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Question: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
From social support and ecological perspectives, what are the factors within each level of the Bronfenbrenner ecological model that impact the economic, social, and emotional wellbeing of grandparents raising grandchildren? What are your top two recommendations for supporting these grandparents?
(I attached a copy of both video Transcripts)
(You must use at least two references fro the readings to support your answer)
unit reading: Aging Families and Grandparenting
INTRODUCTION
According to the World Bank, the population of people 65 and older has grown as a percentage of the U.S. population from 9.15 percent in 1960 to 14.8 percent in 2015 (World Bank, 2015). With medical advances increasing life expectancy, what does this mean for families and society in general? What kind of challenges or opportunities might this trend present?
The elderly population can be further categorized into different groups: the young-old, defined as 65–74 years of age; the middle-old, which is 75–84 years of age; and the oldest-old, referring to those who are 85 years and older (Schwartz & Scott, 2010). These periods have changed considerably, with many assumptions no longer holding true; for example, the middle years (age 40 to retirement) and even the young-old years (65–74) are no longer automatically assumed to be the post-parental period, with many couples delaying parenthood until after their careers are established. Nor can we say that the middle years or aging years are always an empty nest period, with more adult children returning home for a period of time post-divorce or unemployment or other financial crisis; for example, losing a home (Jordan & Cory, 2010).
Divorce among the baby boomer generation is also impacting the elder years. About a third of adults aged 46–64 years were divorced, separated, or had never been married in 2010, compared with 13 percent in 1970 (Lin & Brown, 2012). Susan L. Brown, co-director of the National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling Green State, says this would transform the lives of many older people. "The elderly, who have traditionally relied on spouses for their care, will increasingly struggle to fend for themselves. And federal and local governments will have to shoulder much of the cost of their care. Unmarried baby boomers are five times more likely to live in poverty than their married counterparts, statistics show. They are also three times as likely to receive food stamps, public assistance or disability payments" (Lin & Brown, 2012).
Grandparenthood for many older people is a joy and serves as a symbol of individual and intergenerational connectedness (Ashford, LeCroy & Lortie, 2010). Grandparents are often perceived as providers of emotional gratification and nurturance to their grandchildren. The grandparenting role in the later years is now as varied as families are, with step-grandparenting and grandparents raising grandchildren as two growing forms. This has even become a concern of the American Association of Retired People (AARP). Grandparents typically are called upon to take over parental responsibilities because of some crisis event involving the natural parents; grandparents are called in to provide emotional or material support. These crisis events can include drug use among parents, teen pregnancy, divorce, AIDS, and abuse (Eshleman & Bulcroft, 2010).
The issues for traditional grandparents have some similarities but even among this group, with divorces, stepfamily formation, relationships issues with in-laws and relationships with grandchildren may be jeopardized. And there are many differences in the needs and issues of grandparents raising grandchildren. Grandparents' rights are a key family policy issue that impacts not only the children and grandparents, but also the systems that serve them, such as the schools, insurance coverage, and medical care issues (Musil, Warner, Zauszniewski, Wykle & Standing, 2009; Eshleman & Bulcroft, 2010).
In this unit, you will see how family relationships are affected by increased life expectancies of people in late adulthood and the changing psychosocial demographics of our diverse society. Unique psychosocial stressors such as retirement, bereavement, transitions of social roles, and changes of financial status inevitably affect family dynamics and how each family responds to these dynamic forces.
References
American Association of Retired People. (n.d.). Friends & family. Retrieved from http://www.aarp.org/relationships/friends-family
Ashford, J. B., LeCroy, C. W., & Lortie, K. L. (2010). Human behavior in the social environment: A multidimensional perspective (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
Eshleman, J. R., & Bulcroft, R. A. (2010). The family (12th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Jordan, C., & Cory, D. (2010). Boomers, boomerangs, and bedpans. National Social Science Journal, 34(1), 79–84.
Lin, I., & Brown, S. J. (2012). Unmarried boomers confront old age: A national portrait. The Gerontologist, 0(0), 1–13. Retrieved from http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/322105-baby-boomers-confront-old-age.html
Musil, C., Warner, C., Zauszniewski, J., Wykle, M., & Standing, T. (2009). Grandmother caregiving, family stress and strain, and depressive symptoms. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 31(3), 389–408.
Neal, M. B., & Hammer, L. B. (2009). Dual-earner couples in the sandwiched generation: Effects of coping strategies over time. Psychologist-Manager Journal, 12(4), 205–234.
Schwartz, M. A., & Scott, B. M. (2010). Marriages and families: Diversity and change (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
World Bank. (2015). Population ages 65 and above (% of total). Retrieved from http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.65UP.TO.ZS?locations=US
