Life Course Transitions, the Generational Stake, and Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships

Drawing on past research and prominent theoretical orientations, this research note suggests new approaches to intergenerational dynamics. For 316 grandparent-grandchild pairs, we found that the transition of grandchildren to higher education, controlling for other transitions, improves the quality...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of marriage and family 2002-11, Vol.64 (4), p.1089-1096
Main Authors: Crosnoe, Robert, Elder, Glen H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescents
Children
College Bound Students
Colleges
Development
Education
Educational Attainment
Families & family life
Family
Family Life
Family relations
Family studies
family system
Generations
Grandchildren
Grandparent Grandchild Relationship
grandparenting
Grandparents
Higher Education
Intergenerational Programs
Intergenerational Relations
life course
Life Stage Transitions
Mentoring
Mentors
Of General Interest
Older adults
Parenthood
Parents
Sexuality. Marriage. Family relations
Sociology
Sociology of the family. Age groups
Student Adjustment
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Summary:Drawing on past research and prominent theoretical orientations, this research note suggests new approaches to intergenerational dynamics. For 316 grandparent-grandchild pairs, we found that the transition of grandchildren to higher education, controlling for other transitions, improves the quality of the grandparent-grandchild relationship. For grandparent mentoring, however, we see evidence of a generational stake, with grandparents overestimating their mentoring role, compared to grandchildren, during this transition. This generational stake reflects the importance of grandparent education, with increased mentoring for the college-going grandchildren of college-educated grandparents. These findings indicate that the intergenerational literature can be significantly advanced by taking a long-term perspective, incorporating multiple points of view, and examining contextual variation. Moreover, greater understanding of these intergenerational ties will benefit research on families and individual development.
ISSN:0022-2445
1741-3737
DOI:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2002.01089.x