Young African American Grandmothers: A Missed Developmental Stage

Abstract

In recent years the phenomenon of young black grand-motherhood is attracting the attention of social scientists in many disciplines. This problem stems from the fact that young unmarried teenage girls are giving birth and are thus making their young mothers grandmothers. The complexity of the problem mounts owing to the fact that many young grandmothers have not completed their own developmental tasks. This paper addresses some of the issues involved and provides strategies for social work intervention.

Keywords:

• Grandmother
• developmental tasks
• psychological development
• teen pregnancy