A sample of 203 grandparents, 103 of whom were surrogate parents for their grandchildren, were assessed to construct a model of their psychological functioning. Four measures of psychological functioning (i.e., well-being, satisfaction with grandparenting, meaning of grandparenthood, and perceived relationships with grandchildren) were evaluated. Path analysis of data suggested that the resumption of the parental role negatively impacted all measures except the meaning of grandparenthood. Data also suggested a sense of isolation among those raising grandchildren, as well as a sense of role confusion. These factors may have been exacerbated by behavior difficulties of many grandchildren as a result of family conflict preceding the loss of their parents, and by a lack of parenting skills of grandparents who assumed parental responsibilities. These results reinforce other work that found a preference for fulfilling voluntary, nonparental relationships with grandchildren among grandparents.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc332390 |
| Date | 08 1900 |
| Creators | Shore, R. Jerald (Robert Jerald) |
| Contributors | Hayslip, Bert, Hresko, Wayne P., Martin, Sander, 1939-, Brick, Harry J., Burke, Angela J., Hardy, Clifford A. |
| Publisher | University of North Texas |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | v, 164 leaves: ill., Text |
| Rights | Public, Shore, R. Jerald (Robert Jerald), Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. |
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