GRANDPARENTS CARING FOR GRANDCHILDREN IN THE UNITED STATES AND CHINA

Abstract

The United States and China have very different social norms and expectations regarding providing care to grandchildren. This study is interested in how providing grandchild care is shaped by these two cultures. Using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (wave 2013) and data from the Health and Retirement Study (Wave 2012), we compared the prevalence and characteristics of grandparents caring for grandchildren in the United States and China. The sample comprises of 9,676 American grandparents (Mage = 64) and 6,527 Chinese grandparents (Mage = 60) aged 45 and over. Providing grandchild care is more prevalent in China (50%) than in the U.S. (31%). The US grandparent caregivers are disproportional females (78% verses 52% in China), whereas Chinese grandparent caregivers are disproportional married (78% verses 57% in the US). The U.S. and China share some determinants in providing grandchild care, such as age, gender, education level, mobility, household size, and numbers of dependent children grandparents have. However, there are significant differences. The US grandparents who are married and healthier are more likely to provide care, whereas Chinese grandparents who are in better economic status and have fewer adult children are more likely to provide care. Findings of this study suggest that grandparents’ availability and abilities to provide care are two important aspects in determining care provision in both countries, although these two aspects may be manifested by different factors in each country. Future study may explore more characteristics of grandparent caregivers and differentiate types of grandchild care.