The Legacy of Grandparenting: Childhood Experiences with Grandparents and Current Involvement with Grandchildren

Abstract

VALARIE KING The Pennsylvania State University GLEN H. ELDER, JR. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill* Childhood experiences with grandparents are an important factor in the current involvement of men and women with their own grandchildren. We test this proposition with data from two related longitudinal studies of rural families, the Iowa Youth and Families Project and the Iowa Single Parent Project. Consistent with the premise that family roles are learned through the culture and the interactions of family life, results show that the degree to which grandparents are involved in playing their role and the type of involvement they have with grandchildren are significantly influenced by having known their own grandparents and learned about them through multiple aspects of their intergenerational history. In contrast, sharing a household with a grandparent made little difference in their contemporary involvement with grandchildren. My grandmother was the radiant angel of my childhood, and, you know, now my grandchildren are just the same. They are the part of my life that is most joyous, that gives me most pleasure. Grandfather (Kivnick, 1982, p. 107) Key Words: grandchildren, grandparents, intergenerational relationships, intergenerational transmission. With increasing longevity and good health, grandparents have emerged as potentially significant figures in the lives of Americans at all life stages. This is particularly true in the wake of current trends and changes in family patterns, including teenage childbearing, single parenting, and divorce. For example, some of these changes have thrust ever larger numbers of grandparents into active caregiving roles (Robertson, 1995). However, little is known about how the life course experiences of these men and women affect their role as a grandparent. Individuals bring to the role of grandparent a unique set of historical and experiential events that shape the ways that this role is enacted (Hagestad, 1985). Yet most research is centered on current relationships and circumstances (Cherlin & Furstenberg, 1986; Peterson, 1989; Tinsley & Parke, 1984). We address this limitation by testing the proposition that the extent and nature of childhood experiences with grandparents are an important factor in the current social involvement of men and women with their own grandchildren. The impact of past childhood experiences with grandparents on the current involvement of individuals with their own grandchildren is largely unknown and a matter of speculation (Peterson, 1989). According to the role-theoretical tradition of life course theory, children learn grandparenting behaviors by observing their own grandparents in the role of grandparent (Cottrell, 1969). Particularly when grandparents become significant figures in the lives of young grandchildren, they establish a conducive environment for the reproduction of this role some years hence. This learned role pattern is activated when individuals become grandparents, themselves. When individuals experience new roles or transitions, they bring a life history of personal experiences and dispositions to bear on how they interpret their new circumstances and adapt to their new roles (Elder, 1997). If this is correct, orientations toward grandparenthood are likely to be different for individuals who grow up surrounded by grandparents who play a meaningful role in their lives than for people who lack such experiences. We hypothesize that early involvement with grandparents influences an individual's subsequent enactment of their own grandparental role, whether distant or close, engaged or not. However, a number of factors may define the nature of the enactment of the grandparent role. On the one hand, findings from several studies underscore the enduring relevance of past experiences with grandparents. On the other hand, compelling arguments can be made for why past experiences with grandparents might not matter very much. …