Early and continuing grandparental care and middle school students' educational and mental health outcomes in China

Hong, Yanbi; Zeng, Diyang

doi:10.1002/jcop.22911

Cited by 6 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…Children cared for by healthy parents were healthier than those cared for by healthy grandparents. Role conflict and negative sociodemographic factors (such as lower education level and the aging state) may negatively influence the capacity of grandparents to participate in caretaking behaviours and thus impact children's health (Booys et al, 2016; Hong & Zeng, 2022; Joshi & Lebrun‐Harris, 2022). However, good health status enables grandparents to meet children's physiological demands efficiently.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A lack of effective communication may further intensify conflicts and their consequences (Hoang et al, 2020). Most studies have found that children raised mainly by grandparents tend to report deteriorating health compared with those cared for by parents (Fan et al, 2010; Hong & Zeng, 2022; Joshi & Lebrun‐Harris, 2022; Liu et al, 2018; Pilkauskas & Dunifon, 2016; Ruiz & Silverstein, 2007; Xu et al, 2022), but exceptions have also been documented (Fruhauf et al, 2022; Pong & Chen, 2010; Tanskanen & Danielsbacka, 2017). For example, a cross‐sectional study conducted in Taiwan reported that children mainly cared for by grandparents achieved higher cognitive scores (Pong & Chen, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Grandparents with different health statuses as primary caregivers: Are they bad for children's health?

Zong

Wang

et al. 2023

Child & Family Social Work

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The prevalence and intensity of grandparenting have continued to increase in the era of rapid aging. However, little is known about grandparents with different health statuses as primary caregivers and their implications for children's health. A nationally representative cohort of over 8990 Chinese children interviewed from 2010 to 2018 was used. Random effects logit models were constructed to assess the association of the primary caregiver type (grandparents vs. parents) and caregiver health with child health. Subsequently, additive interactions between the primary caregiver type and caregiver health were estimated to determine whether children cared for by grandparents with poor health were the most vulnerable children in terms of health. Deterioration of health status was found among children cared for mainly by grandparents, manifested as a higher likelihood of illness, depressive symptoms and unmet health care needs. However, children looked after by healthy grandparents tended to exhibit better health than their counterparts who were cared for by unhealthy parents. Grandparents as primary caregivers might not have a universally detrimental effect on child health. Thus, interventions to prompt child health could consider grandparents as caregivers, especially healthy grandparents.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grandparents with different health statuses as primary caregivers: Are they bad for children's health?

Zong

Wang

et al. 2023

Child & Family Social Work

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“…Instead of focusing on parenting, Hong and Zeng (2022) place a higher value on grandparental care and have examined the effect of early and continuing grandparental care on adolescents' educational and mental health outcomes in contemporary China. They show that grandparental care has been shown to have complex effects on children's outcomes; it varies according to different life stages and by places of residence.…”

Section: Papers In This Special Issuementioning

confidence: 99%

Discovering childhood in contemporary China: Toward a multisystems perspective

2022

Journal Community Psychology

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Despite the remarkable improvements that have been achieved in the field of child development in contemporary China, there remain daunting challenges. To explore and address these issues, we organize this special issue "Child development in contemporary China: Toward a multisystems perspective." In this collection, we introduce theoretically-informed empirical research conducted by scholars worldwide and organize these research articles into four general themes: policy/program intervention regarding child development, migration status and child development, parenting/grandparenting and child development, and school/after-school engagement and child development. These articles keep abreast of theoretical, methodological, and practical innovations in the field, aiming to provide new evidence to enrich the understanding of the patterns and potential mechanisms that would lead to a (dis)advantaged childhood in China.

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“…For example, the associations between family characteristics and child externalizing problems were more likely to appear in middle school age and onwards (Zeratsion et al, 2015). In terms of living areas, a Chinese study of children receiving grandparental care showed that urban children reported better mental health status than their rural counterparts (Hong & Zeng, 2022). Additionally, regional and cultural contexts are important determinants for grandparental care.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Research Review: Grandparental care and child mental health – a systematic review and meta‐analysis

Wang,

Chen,

Wang

et al. 2024

Child Psychology Psychiatry

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BackgroundThe number of children residing in grandfamilies is growing worldwide, leading to more research attention on grandparental care over the past decades. Grandparental care can influence child well‐being in various forms and the effects vary across contexts. In this systematic review and meta‐analysis, we synthesize the evidence on the relation between grandparental care and children's mental health status.MethodsWe identified 5,745 records from seven databases, among which 38 articles were included for review. Random effects meta‐analyses were used to synthesize evidence from eligible studies. We also examined the variability across study and participant characteristics, including study design, recruitment method, child age, child gender, study region, family type, comparison group, and outcome rater.ResultsThe meta‐analysis consisted of 344,860 children from the included studies, whose average age was 10.29, and of which 51.39% were female. Compared with their counterparts, children being cared for by their grandparents had worse mental health status, including more internalizing problems (d = −0.20, 95% CI [−0.31, −0.09], p = .001), externalizing problems (d = −0.11, 95% CI [−0.21, −0.01], p = .03), overall mental problems (d = −0.37, 95% CI [−0.70, −0.04], p = .03), and poorer socioemotional well‐being (d = −0.26, 95% CI [−0.49, −0.03], p = .03). The effects varied by study design and child gender.ConclusionsThe findings highlight that grandparental care is negatively associated with child mental health outcomes with trivial‐to‐small effect sizes. More supportive programs and interventions should be delivered to grandfamilies, especially in disadvantaged communities.

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Early and continuing grandparental care and middle school students' educational and mental health outcomes in China

Cited by 6 publications

References 64 publications

Grandparents with different health statuses as primary caregivers: Are they bad for children's health?

Grandparents with different health statuses as primary caregivers: Are they bad for children's health?

Discovering childhood in contemporary China: Toward a multisystems perspective

Research Review: Grandparental care and child mental health – a systematic review and meta‐analysis

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