Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: Formation, Disruption and Intergenerational Transmission of Attachment

“My Daughter Is a Drug Addict, and...”: A Clinical Perspective of Maternal Grandparents’ Assumption of Parental Roles for the Children of Their Drug Addicted Daughters

“…Despite grandparents' eager anticipation of being grandparents, when they must assume parental responsibility for their grandchildren the process tends to be unplanned and often sudden (Connor, 2006;Okagbue-Reaves, 2005). Okagbue-Reaves (2005), like Longoria (2010) go so far as to describe the process by which grandparents assume custody of their grandchildren in instances of the children's mothers' substance abuse as disruptive, with an elevated potential for psychological distress for both the children and the grandparents, alike.…”

“…In their new role as parents, grandparents must concern themselves with the daily survival of their grandchildren. They must attend to physical, psychological, educational, and medical needs, while also being the disciplinarian (Connor, 2006;Longoria, 2010;Okagbue-Reaves, 2005;Peterson, 2017).…”

Grandparenting

“…Many grandmothers admitted that this new feeling was even stronger than that felt for their own children 36 . Connor also noted that attachment between grandparents and their grandchildren can be affected by a diverse range of factors, including the grandparents' own lifestyle, in terms of employment, available social supports and socioeconomic stability, and the involvement of grandparents before children entering their care 58 . More frequent contact, greater grandparent involvement and better parent–grandparent relationships predicted adolescents' reports of higher levels of emotional closeness to their closest grandparent 59 …”

Grandparents matter: Optimizing grandparents' involvement after child safety concerns

“…Relevant literature identifies the growing, critical role of grandparents as formal or informal kin carers for their grandchildren (Backhouse & Graham, ; Boetto, ; Herlofson & Hagestad, ; Irizarry, Miller, & Bowden, ). This outcome often is due to family circumstances resulting from relationship breakdowns, substance abuse by adult children, poor parental mental health, poverty, housing instability, imprisonment of a parent, family violence, and/or where parents are unable or unwilling to care for children (Connor, ; Cox, ; Herlofson & Hagestad, ).…”

“…Extensive literature identifies that maintaining ongoing family relationships is important and that severed relationships can lead to lifelong experiences of grief and loss (Atkinson, ; Ehrenberg & Smith, ; Kruk, ). As noted, mounting literature identifies the role of grandparents as primary carers of their grandchildren often due to difficult family circumstances and living conditions (Backhouse & Graham, ; Connor, ; Council on the Ageing, ; Cox, ; Herlofson & Hagestad, ; Lonne, Harries, Featherstone, & Gray, ). In a study by Backhouse and Graham (, p. 309), grandparents described complex, interconnected reasons for their grandchildren being placed in their care … “with the most frequently cited being their adult child's addiction to drugs and alcohol.”…”