Date of Award
6-26-2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Educational Leadership, Ed.D.
First Advisor
Ibrahim Duyar
Second Advisor
Andrea Liston
Committee Members
Pamela DeGravelles
Call Number
LD 251 .A566d 2024 R36
Abstract
Skipped-generation households are not traditional, as the typical guardians do not include the mother, father, or foster parents. They are the households of grandparents who have accepted the responsibility to provide care for their grandchildren. Recent literature demonstrates that grandfamilies, inclusive of grandparents and grandchildren, experience many stress-related challenges. The problem is that grandparents responsible for raising their grandchildren are required to adopt new parental roles. This can become very stressful, as many may not have the knowledge of, or access to, contemporary supports and resources to effectively adopt and raise their grandchildren. The purpose of this study was to examine the role challenges that grandparents face when raising their grandchildren, and the implications that this family structure may have for education. A qualitative methodology was employed to gather data using one-on-one interviews. Seventeen grandparents who are raising their grandchildren were interviewed, and all 17 grandparents participated in the Likert survey. The demographics included eleven Black grandmothers, one White grandmother, and three Black grandfathers. The research indicated that almost half (47%) of the participants have increased financial struggles due to the extra expenses of raising their grandchildren, and that 41% were most concerned about their grandchildren’s health when addressing health insurance and payments needed for medication. One hundred percent of the participants alleged that they were concerned and stressed about their grandchildren’s misbehavior at home and in the school environment. Fourteen (82%) of the participants strongly agreed. They were having a communication issue with their children’s schools. And 41% strongly agreed that their grandchild had been diagnosed with a medical condition or special need that required their attention. Dr. Robert Merton’s Role Theory and Dr. Rubin Hill’s Family Resilience Theory were the two guiding theories that informed this study. The results of this study indicate that the role-changing that grandparents have to undergo while raising their grandchildren can be challenging. Role overload and resilience are seen as two predominant themes resulting from the research. The study results may contribute to future research in providing additional assistance to custodial grandparents in the areas of finance, health, discipline, education, and time.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Randolph, Myra ann, "Education of Grandchildren within Skipped-Generation Households: Challenges and Experiences Influencing Grandparents Raising Grandchildren" (2024). Student Theses and Dissertations. 91.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/91
