Meeting the challenge of raising grandchildren

Factors associated with the depression status of Chinese parents who have lost their only child

Aim

This study aimed to assess the risk factors for depression among parents who have lost their only child (PLOCs).

Methods

We used a cross-sectional survey to reveal the risk factors of depression among PLOCs. Multi-stage, stratified, cluster sampling was used to recruit the participants. The cluster sampling method was used to select PLOCs in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, and Wuhu, Anhui Province, while the stratified cluster sampling method was used in Anshun, Guizhou Province. A total of 651 PLOCs were recruited in this study. Participants completed the Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS) and the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15). Socio-demographics were also collected, including age, sex, monthly income, education level, marital status, self-reported health, and a number of diseases were collected as well. Chi-square tests and binary logistic regression were conducted to analyze the influence of these factors on PLOCs' mental status.

Results

Two hundred and fifty-eight PLOCs (39.56%) reported depression. Compared to PLOCs living in Wuhu, those living in Hangzhou (OR = 3.374, CI = 2.337-4.870) had a higher risk of depression. Being single (OR = 1.449, CI = 1.019-2.061) and the presence/absence of grandchildren (OR = 0.430, CI = 0.274-0.676)were significantly associated with the depression status of PLOCs.

Conclusion

The sampled Chinese PLOCs reported a high prevalence of depression that was influenced by their place of residence, marital status, and presence/absence of grandchildren. This may highlight the need for routine assessment and help of this group by the relevant stakeholders (including government, non-profit social organizations, and professional psychologists) with more attention paid to single and low-income PLOCs that have no grandchildren. It is imperative to build a comprehensive care system of "extended family-community-society-government" for this vulnerable group.

Coping resources:effects on the psychological well-being of african american grandparents raising grandchildren

The impact that parenting responsibilities have on the psychological well-being of African American grandparents raising grandchildren is an increasing concern in American society. Contemporary research studies indicate that African American grandparents who encounter a variety of challenges in raising their grandchildren are able to cope successfully with these situations if they derive a sufficient amount of psychological rewards from raising grandchildren (Giarrusso, Silverstein, & DuFeng, 2000). These rewards include increased gratification, feelings of usefulness, and increasing pride in their own abilities to meet new challenges (Fuller-Thomason & Minkler, 2000). This article will investigate how the coping resource factors of intergenerational solidarity, informal social support and spirituality enhance the psychological well-being of African American grandparents who are raising their grandchildren. doi:10.1300/J045v22n03_09.

Preparing social work students to work with grandparents in kinship care: an approach to infusion of content materials into selected core social work courses

Grandparents in kinship care represent an expanding population of older adults assuming primary parenting responsibilities for their grandchildren at a time when many grandparents may also be experiencing developmental changes accompanying their own aging process. Research documents a lack of social workers prepared to respond to the needs of an aging population in general, and grandparents in kinship care in particular, as curricular content on this population has been limited in undergraduate and graduate social work programs. This article describes an infusion model proposed for an undergraduate social work program's GeroRich Project designed to introduce content on an aging population in four foundation courses to expand students' knowledge of older adults and grandparents as kinship care providers.