Custodial Grandmothers’ Physical, Mental, and Economic Well‐Being: Comparisons of Primary Caregivers from Low‐Income Neighborhoods*

• Author: Heather J. Bachman,P. Lindsay Chase‐Lansdale
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2005.00334.x
• Published date: 01 October 2005
• Date: 01 October 2005

Custodial Grandmothers’ Physical,

Mental, and Economic Well-Being:

Comparisons of Primary Caregivers

from Low-Income Neighborhoods*

Heather J. Bachman P. Lindsay Chase-Lansdale**

Abstract: To examine the implications of custodial grandparent care, we compared the material hardship, mental

health, and physical well-being of custodial grandmothers (n¼90) and biological mothers (n¼1,462) using data

from Welfare, Children, and Families: A Three-City Study. Custodial grandmothers reported significantly more

physical health problems but less psychological distress than mothers. Younger grandmothers and grandmothers

who sought out more social support were the most disabled and financially strained. Implications for policy and

practice addressing the needs of grandmothers raising grandchildren are discussed.

Key Words: caregiving, economic distress, grandmothers raising grandchildren, health, low-income families.

Over the past few decades, American families have

increasingly relied on grandparents to assume care-

giving responsibility for their grandchildren (Bryson

& Casper, 1999). In the 2000 Census, 2.4 million

‘‘grandparent caregivers’’ for grandchildren younger

than 18 years of age were identified, and approxi-

mately two thirds of these caregivers were women

(Simmons & Dye, 2003). These caregiving arrange-

ments are especially prevalent in low-income com-

munities as growing numbers of kin offer a safety

net for families in crisis (Kornhaber, 1985). Yet, per-

ceptions about grandmothers’ caregiving status have

differed in research and policy arenas. For example,

past research has generally compared custodial

grandmothers to other types of grandmothers, such

as coresiding or noncaregiving grandmothers (e.g.,

Caputo, 1999; Pebley & Rudkin, 1999; Szinovacz,

1998). In contrast, social welfare systems often treat

custodial grandmothers as primary caregivers or

‘‘mothers.’’ For example, just six states administer

formal exemptions from work requirements or time

limits to custodial grandmothers under the age of 60

if their families are receiving Temporary Assistance

for Needy Families (TANF) aid (Hutson, 2002).

*We gratefully acknowledge the support of the following organizations. Government agencies: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (RO1

HD36093 ‘‘Welfare Reform and the Well-Being of Children’’), Office of the Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation, Administration on Developmental Dis-

abilities, Administration for Children and Families, Social Security Administration, and National Institute of Mental Health. Foundations: The Boston Foundation,

The Annie E. Casey Foundation, The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, The Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, The Robert

Wood Johnson Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, The W. K. Kellogg Foundation, The Kronkosky Charitable Foundation,

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, The Searle Fund for Policy

Research, and The Woods Fund of Chicago. We are appreciative of the insights and comments of Linda M. Burton and Rachel Dunifon. A special thank-you is also

extended to the families who participated in Welfare, Children, and Families: A Three-City Study. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 24th annual

Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management research conference, Dallas, TX, November 2002.

**Heather Bachman is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Psychology in Education, University of Pittsburgh, 5938 Posvar Hall, School of Education,

Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (hbachman@pitt.edu). Lindsay Chase-Lansdale is a Professor at Northwestern University.

Family Relations, 54 (October 2005), 475–487. Blackwell Publishing. Printed in the USA.

Copyright 2005 by the National Council on Family Relations.