This exciting collection presents an in-depth, up-to-date analysis of the unprecedented phenomenon of increasing numbers of grandparents worldwide, co-existing and interacting for longer periods of time with their grandchildren. The book contains analyses of topics that have so far received relatively little attention, such as transnational grandparenting and gender differences in grandparenting practices. It is the only collection that brings together theory-driven research on grandparenting from a wide variety of cultural and welfare state contexts - including chapters on Europe, North America, Africa, Asia and Australia - drawing broad lines of debate rather than focusing at a country level. Building on the success of ‘Contemporary grandparenting’, edited by Virpi Timonen and Sarah Arber, this book further deepens our understanding of how social structures continue to shape grandparenting across a wide range of cultural and economic contexts. The book is essential reading and reference for researchers, students and policy-makers who want to understand the growing influence of grandparents in ageing families and societies across the world.

Children are frequently cared for by relatives and friends when parents, for whatever reason, are unable to care for their children themselves. Yet there has been very little information about how well children do when placed with kin or how safe they are in these placements. This book compares formal kinship care to traditional foster placements in order to ascertain which children are placed with kin, in what circumstances, how well such children progress, and how often these placements disrupt. The authors explore whether children placed with family and friends fare better or worse than other foster children, what services are provided and needed, and how kin care is experienced by carers, children and social workers. This book will be essential reading for social workers, policy makers, students and all those working with looked-after children, and will enable local authorities to make informed decisions about where best to place children and the support needed by family and friend carers.

With people staying healthier for longer, grandparents are increasingly involved in raising their grandchildren. Grandparenting Grandchildren is the first guide of its kind written specifically for grandparents, and aims to help you raise well-rounded, ready-to-learn, happy grandchildren, even if you only look after them for a few hours a week. By explaining the latest neuro-developmental and neuro-educational research in accessible, applicable ways, it will reaffirm what you instinctively know, while providing new tools to build your grandchild’s imagination, creativity and curiosity. Combining the authors’ practical experience as childhood development professionals with international research, this book helps grandparents understand the key influences on healthy development in the first 5 years: movement, music, sleep and food. Grandparenting Grandchildren gives practical advice on how to integrate these ‘super brain foods’ best in your grandchild’s life. This has been proven to have many positive benefits, including improving the ability to think creatively, building speech and language skills, promoting social skills, and driving curiosity. Learn to build a loving, supportive relationship that helps grandchildren feel positive about their future, while constructing essential life skills that ensure they are well-rounded, happy and capable, confident learners.

Across the world, the role of grandparents is changing. This book highlights the changing roles, and the consequences of these changes, for both grandchildren and grandparents, by drawing together leading international authorities on grandparenting and intergenerational relations. The book includes scholarly summaries of research as well as new research findings. It should be an invaluable resource for other scholars and students investigating the role of grandparents today. This book was originally published as a special issue of Contemporary Social Science.

Grandparents in Cultural Context gives a long overdue global view of the changing roles of grandparents. The eleven main chapters are by experts in the Americas, Europe and Russia, Asia, and Africa and the Middle East, and the editors integrate their chapters with previous writings on grandparenthood. Rather than technical or statistical research reports, each chapter provides a thought-provoking and comprehensive review of research, real-life case stories, cultural influences, and applied implications for grandparenthood across and within societies. Calling special attention to the roles of grandfathers and grandparenthood in societies previously un-represented in the literature, it provides several hundred new citations of work previously unavailable in English-language publications. Accessible to both scholars and students, it has several pedagogical features (e.g. web links, discussion questions) that make it useful as a text for upper-division undergraduate or graduate level classes in behavioral, social, and family sciences. It is relevant to psychology, gerontology, family studies, anthropology, family/comparative sociology, education, social work, gender studies, ethnic studies, psychiatry, and diversity and international studies programs. Practitioners, service providers, policymakers, and internationally minded grandparents will also enjoy this book.

Chapter 10 Noncaregiving Grandparent Peers' Perceptions of Custodial Grandparents: Extent of Life Disruption, Needs for Social Support, and Needs for Social and Mental Health Services -- About the Authors -- Index