Navigating custodial grandparenting stress in rural China with self-initiated coping strategies: a qualitative study

ABSTRACT

Given the widespread prevalence of grandparenting in rural China, along with its associated challenges, such as the frequent absence of the middle generation and scarce external resources, there is a pressing need for research focused on grandparents’ coping strategies from their own perspectives. This study explores the self-initiated coping strategies employed by grandparents in rural China to manage grandparenting stress. Based on in-depth interviews with 38 grandparents in three distinct Chinese villages, this study finds that grandparents use beliefs in fatalism, a sense of contentment, and informal social support to cope with grandparenting stress. However, this study also contends that these self-initiated strategies, while beneficial, cannot fully alleviate grandparenting stress, particularly when considered within the intricate social and policy milieu of rural China. This accentuates the need for more supportive interventions involving both the state and society.

KEYWORDS:

• Self-initiated coping strategy
• grandparenting
• rural China
• caregiving stress
• qualitative study

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Notes on contributors

Ye Wang

Ye Wang is a postdoctoral researcher at Peking University Law School. She received her Ph.D. in Social Work from the University of Edinburgh and a Master’s degree in Social Work from Columbia University. With previous working experience in rural China, her doctoral research primarily focuses on grandparenting in rural China. Her research interests include the protection of rights for elderly individuals in rural areas, the transformation of rural Chinese families, and intergenerational relationships.