How Do Grandparents Influence Child Health and Development? A Systematic Review
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Grandparents are often a key source of care provision for their grandchildren, yet sidelined in caregiving research and policy decisions, despite their likely influence on child health and development. We conducted a global, systematic review of the literature to examine the scope and quality of studies to-date (PROSPERO database CRD42019133894). We screened 12,698 abstracts across 7 databases, and identified 205 studies that examined how grandparents influence child health and development. Indicators of grandparent involvement were contact, caregiving behaviors, and financial support. Our two research questions focused on how do grandparents influence child health and development outcomes, and what range of child outcomes is reported globally. We tabulated study characteristics and the range of physical health, socio-emotional and behavioral health, and cognitive and educational development outcomes. We then examined, for descriptive and interpretive analysis, studies of grandparent custodial care (n = 35) in skipped-generation families, multigenerational care (n = 154) where grandparents and parents are both caregivers, and both types of care (n = 16). The evidence base has skewed geographical representation, with close to half of studies based in the U.S. We identified two important issues - with respect to operationalizing indicators of grandparent involvement and conceptualizing the mechanisms potentially involved - leading to research gaps in the evidence base. Our understanding of the pathways through which grandparents exert their influence is constrained, to date, by limited data on what grandparents actually do and insufficient attention given to interpersonal and structural contexts. We present a conceptual framework to better conceptualize and measure pathways of care, with a view to inform policy decisions affecting grandparents and the children under their care. We draw attention to the need for more robust data on three indicators of caregiver involvement - contact, behavior, and support - and a careful description of socio-demographic contexts in caregiving research.
JOUR
Sadruddin, Aalyia F.
Ponguta, Liliana A.
Zonderman, Anna L.
Wiley, Kyle S.
Grimshaw, Alyssa
Panter-Brick, Catherine
2019
Social Science & Medicine
239
112476
2977