Demographic trends such as population aging and increasing racial/ethnic diversity are having a significant impact on the nature of age relations. How will the longevity revolution influence expectations between generations, perceptions of aging, and the way we care for each other over the life course? As the dependency ratio falls and caregiving demands increase, can we find new ways to strengthen the social compact and foster generational interdependence in families and communities? This issue of the Journal of Intergenerational Relationships (JIR) includes research articles related to the grandparent-grandchild relationship, community-based intergenerational care models, and perceptions of generational identity; profiles of intergenerational service learning, literacy, and oral history projects; and a review of three films by grandchildren about their grandparents. Spanning three continents, these articles contribute to our understanding of the constraints and opportunities related to the development of intergenerational bonds in a variety of contexts.
The first two articles highlight various roles noncustodial grandparents play in their families, the continuum of activities in which they engage, and the impact of the grandparent role on well-being. Hillman, Marvin, and Anderson, in their article “The Experience, Contributions, and Resilience of Grandparents of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder” (ASD), examine ways in which noncustodial grandparents of children with autism spectrum disorders provide support to their families. Findings indicated that many of the grandparents (particularly maternal grandmothers) provided significant instrumental support such as child care and financial contributions to the cost of therapeutic interventions. Over half of the grandparents who responded to the survey reported that they worried “a great deal” about their adult child but that their grandchild’s ASD brought them closer. This research points to the ability of grandparents to fulfill unique roles in families who are experiencing significant challenges.
In “Positive Affect and Depressive Symptoms: What Dimensions of Grandfather Involvement Matter?” Bates and Taylor explore how grandparent involvement with grandchildren is associated with specific aspects of men’s mental health. Using both the generative grandfathering framework and the grandfather involvement framework, the researchers investigate whether grandfather-grandchild activities, grandfather commitment, and frequency of contact predict depressive symptoms and positive affect. Results indicated that recreational activities and commitment were negatively related to depressive symptoms while activities that related to spiritual work and commitment were positively associated with positive affect. Interestingly the frequency of contact was negatively related to positive affect, suggesting that some grandfathers may become overwhelmed with too much contact and may experience a feeling of intergenerational ambivalence. These findings can be valuable to mental health professionals who seek to promote positive emotional well-being among older men.
The research article by Dow, Joosten, Biggs, and Kimberley, “Age Encounters: Exploring Age and Intergenerational Perceptions,” explores the perceptions of older and younger Australians toward each other. Age Encounters, a video documentary project, involved interviewing 10 younger and 10 older people from a range of socioeconomic groups about age discrimination, advantages and disadvantages of being their own age and the age of the other generation, and life priorities/values. While none of the participants identified personal experiences of age prejudice or intergenerational conflict, the authors indicate that this may be due to limited interaction between generations in the public sphere. They suggest the need to develop public spaces and opportunities for people of different ages to interact outside of the family in order to foster intergenerational solidarity.
The concept of intergenerational care outside the family system is examined by Radford, Oxlade, Fitzgerald, and Vecchio in “Making Intergenerational Care a Possibility in Australia: A Review of the Australian Legislation.” This article reviews legislative and regulatory opportunities and constraints for developing an integrated approach to the care of the very young and the very old. Challenges include differences in program governance; program emphasis (age-related education and care for children versus social support and respite for older adults); regulatory standards pertaining to the built environment and workforce issues such as staff knowledge/skills related to working with diverse age groups; workplace design; and staff ratios. The authors conclude that despite these challenges, many opportunities exist to develop cost-effective intergenerational models that meet the national quality frameworks for early childhood education and community care.
The nature of interaction between grandparents and grandchildren is also examined by Mansson in “The Joy of Grandparenting: A Qualitative Analysis of Grandparents.” Using an open-ended survey, Mansson explores what aspects of the grandparent-grandchild relationship grandparents find most important and rewarding. A thematic analysis resulted in five themes (in order of prominence): mutual affection, shared activities, pride, maturation, and teaching and learning. A comparison of grandmothers and grandfathers revealed that grandmothers placed greater emphasis on mutual affection while grandfathers valued shared activities. Mansson shares practical suggestions that can contribute to long-term relationships that positively impact the well-being of both grandchildren and grandparents.
The Program Profiles section highlights “Learn Together Cymru” (Walters), an intergenerational learning project in Wales, and “Active Living and Learning,” an intergenerational service learning program in Virginia. As part of Volunteering Matters UK, Learn Together Cymru is designed to improve the reading, communication, and numeracy skills of children; promote the well-being of the 50+ volunteers; and foster community cohesion. Lessons learned relate to managing expectations, collecting robust data, engaging a diverse pool of volunteers who reflect the pupil population, training volunteers to serve as organizers who can recruit and support other volunteers, and developing strategic partnerships.
In the Active Living and Learning program (King and Lauder), undergraduates at Shenandoah University built relationships with congregates of the Active Living Center through a variety of activities. Instead of a traditional research paper, students were asked to write their congregate partners a 1,000-word “keepsake letter” that reflected their learnings and relevant research from the course. The emotional connections that were made and the opportunity to apply academic concepts to real life situations make this project quite unique.
In Reflections From the Field, Miller, Kostka, and Brown describe an oral history program that involved international students at Northeastern University and low-income older adults at an affordable residential community in Boston, MA. The authors identified two major themes that contributed to the project’s success: (1) Generational connectedness was enhanced by the fact that students and older adults were in parallel developmental stages and undergoing shifts in identity; and (2) the project was mutually beneficial, providing an opportunity to highlight the voices of those who sometimes feel invisible and resulting in tangible biographies of the older adults.
Finally, in her article “Grandchildren Explore the Echoes of Their Prominent Forebears,” Berdes reviews three films by grandchildren about their grandparents or great-grandparents, who were professionally prominent but personally less successful. The films—The Bellman Equation, about the American applied mathematician Richard Bellman, who abandoned his family in favor of an intense work life; Without Gorky about Arshile Gorky, an Armenian-born American abstract expressionist painter who died by suicide; and Savage Memory, about Bronislaw Malinowski, the Polish-born founder of British anthropology who was often absent from his family—all reflect a desire of young directors to understand their grandparents’ inadequacies. Berdes identifies organizational and interpretation challenges faced by these directors and reflects on the long-term impact of parenting choices.
Thanks to all who contributed to this issue. Hopefully, the information shared will help policymakers, researchers, human service practitioners, and educators gain a deeper understanding of the complexity of cross-age relationships and effective strategies for fostering intergenerational solidarity.