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Grandparents Who Care: A Literature Review

Download Files Sep 7, 2017

By Kathy Kinsner, Sarah S. MacLaughlin, and Rebecca Parlakian

When grandparents provide child care to their young grandchildren, they are doing much more than babysitting: Grandparents are helping to build the brains of these young children, our country’s next generation of leaders and thinkers.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly one quarter of children under 5 years old are in the care of their grandparents for some period of time every week while mothers work (2013). The Grandparents Who Care project explores the benefits and challenges of such kinship care and provides guidance concerning grandparents’ needs and how best to address them. In preparation, we interviewed experts in the field, reviewed research on the grandparent-grandchild relationship, and examined studies on grandparents who have assumed a caregiving role. This document summarizes our key findings.

  • Author

    Kathy Kinsner

    Senior Manager, Parenting Resources

    2028572985

  • Author

    Sarah S. MacLaughlin

    Senior Writer, Parenting Resources

  • Author

    Rebecca Parlakian

    Senior Director of Programs

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