Grandparent: Difference between revisions

[[File:The Favorite by Georgios Iakovidis.jpg| thumb| ''The Favorite'' – Grandfather and Grandson, by [[Georgios Jakobides]] (1890)]]

 

 

In cases where parents are unwilling or unable to provide adequate care for their children (e.g., financial obstacles, marriage problems, illness or death<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-human-experience/201510/8-reasons-parents-fail-love-their-kids|title=8 Reasons Parents Fail to Love Their Kids|website=Psychology Today|language=en-US|access-date=2018-08-23}}</ref>), grandparents often take on the role of [[primary caregiver]]s. Even when this is not the case, and particularly in [[traditional cultures]], grandparents often have a direct and clear role in relation to the [[Childrearing|raising, care and nurture of children]]. Grandparents are [[second-degree relative]]s to their grandchildren and share 25% genetic overlap.

In writing, ''Grandfather'' and ''Grandmother'' are most common, but very rare as a form of address. In speech, ''Grandpa'' and ''Grandma'' are commonly used in the United States, Canada, and Australia. In Britain, Ireland, United States, Australia, New Zealand and, particularly prevalent in the Canadian province of [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] and [[English-speaking Quebecers]], ''Nan'', ''Nana'', ''Nanna'', ''Nanny'', ''Gran'' and ''Granny'' and other variations are often used for grandmother in both writing and speech.

 

 

[[File:A grandmother takes nutrition classes (6765977597).jpg|thumb|A grandmother taking a nutrition class with her grandson.]]

Given that people may have two living sets of grandparents, some confusion arises from calling two people "grandma" or "grandpa", so often two of the other terms listed above are used for one set of grandparents. Another common solution is to call grandparents by their first names ("Grandpa George", "Grandma Anne", etc.) or by their family names ("Grandpa Jones", "Grandma Smith"). In North America, many families call one set of grandparents by their ethnic names (e.g., [[Hispanic]] grandparents might be called ''abuelo'' and ''abuela'' or "abuelito" and "abuelita", French grandparents might be called ''papi'' and ''mamie'', Italian grandparents might be called ''nonno'' and ''nonna'', or [[Dutch people|Dutch]] and German grandparents might be called ''Opa'' and ''Oma''. In [[Flanders]] pepee or petje and memee or metje are most used). In [[Friesland]], a common pair is pake and beppe. Northern Chinese people often use ''laolao'' and ''laoye'', while [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]]-speaking Southerners often use ''wài pó'' (外婆, mother's mother) and ''wài gōng'' (外公, mother's father), to refer to maternal grandparents; paternal grandparents usually are called ''nǎi nai'' (奶奶, father's mother) and ''yé yé'' (爷爷, father's father). In the [[Philippines]], grandparents are called ''lolo'' (grandfather) and ''lola'' (grandmother).

 

 

==Great-grandparents and beyond==

 

==== On grandparents ====

Since taking care of grandchildren could be a highly demanding job that requires constant energy and time devotion,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Winefield|first1=Helen|last2=Air|first2=Tracy|title=Grandparenting|journal=International Journal of Evidence-Based Healthcare|volume=8|issue=4|pages=277–283|doi=10.1111/j.1744-1609.2010.00187.x|year=2010|pmid=21140984}}</ref> grandparental involvement in child raising could have a negative impact on grandparents' physical and emotional health. For example, taking care of grandchildren can reduce grandparents' own time for self-care such as missing their medical appointments. Therefore, they are likely to have a higher chance to suffer from physical health issues.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Baker|first1=Lindsey A.|last2=Silverstein|first2=Merril|date=2008-09-08|title=Depressive Symptoms Among Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: The Impact of Participation in Multiple Roles|journal=Journal of Intergenerational Relationships|volume=6|issue=3|pages=285–304|doi=10.1080/15350770802157802|issn=1535-0770|pmid=19890447|pmc=2772115}}</ref> In the US, compared with those who do not take care of their grandchildren, grandparents who are involved in childcare are more likely to have poor physical conditions, such as heart disease, hypertension or body pain.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lee|first1=Sunmin|last2=Colditz|first2=Graham|last3=Berkman|first3=Lisa|last4=Kawachi|first4=Ichiro|date=2003-11-01|title=Caregiving to Children and Grandchildren and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Women|journal=American Journal of Public Health|volume=93|issue=11|pages=1939–1944|doi=10.2105/ajph.93.11.1939|pmid=14600070|issn=0090-0036|pmc=1448080}}</ref> Besides physical health issues, grandparents are also likely to have emotional issues. To be more specific, raising young children again could be a stressful and overwhelming experience and thus results in different kinds of [[negative emotion]]s such as anxiety or depression.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Musil|first1=Carol|last2=Warner|first2=Camille|last3=Zauszniewski|first3=Jaclene|last4=Wykle|first4=May|last5=Standing|first5=Theresa|date=2008-11-19|title=Grandmother Caregiving, Family Stress and Strain, and Depressive Symptoms|journal=Western Journal of Nursing Research|language=en|volume=31|issue=3|pages=389–408|doi=10.1177/0193945908328262|pmid=19261805|pmc=2883890}}</ref> In addition to physical and emotional issues, grandparents who are involved in caring for their grandchildren can also suffer socially. For instance, grandparents will be forced to limit their social activities so as to care for their grandchildren. By doing so, grandparents become more isolated from their social relations.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Ehrle|first1=Glenda M.|last2=Day|first2=H. D.|date=1994-02-01|title=Adjustment and family functioning of grandmothers rearing their grandchildren|journal=Contemporary Family Therapy|language=en|volume=16|issue=1|pages=67–82|doi=10.1007/bf02197603|s2cid=144923568|issn=0892-2764|doi-access=free}}</ref> Taking care of grandchildren also means more responsibilities, grandparents would fear for their grandchildren's future well-being because of their disability and death in the future.<ref name=":11"/> If grandparents cannot handle the caregiver role of their grandchildren well, this job can eventually become a burden or stressor and bring more severe physical health and emotional issues to grandparents.<ref name=":9"/>

 

 

=== In France ===

According to French parish registers and civil status records, at the end of the 18th century, a little more than half of the grandparents were alive at the birth of their grandchild, a third when the child was 10 years old, and still 10% at 20 years old.<ref name="Gourdon">{{cite book|author1=Vincent Gourdon|date=2001|isbn=978-2-262-01767-5|publisher=Perrin|title=Histoire des grands-parents}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref> In rural France at the end of the 18th century, the majority of family systems were of the nuclear family type (grandparents did not cohabit in the family home, they were only welcomed there at the end of their lives). However, in regions such as Alsace, the west of [[Brittany]], [[Occitania]], or the Savoy region, the systems were more complex, with the stem family in particular: the home housed a succession of family nuclei, the patriarch having authority over this home, which could lead to conflict. These cohabitations were therefore managed from the time of marriage by notarial acts that provided for "clauses of insupport" to share the domestic space and tasks in case of conflict.<ref>{{cite journal | author=[[André Burguière]] | title=Les transformations de la culture familiale et des structures domestiques autour de la Révolution | journal=Annales de Bretagne et des pays de l'Ouest | date=1993 | volume=100 | issue=4 | pages=405 | url= }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=France, Cour de cassation, Chambre civile 1, 28 février 2006, 05-14484 |date=2006-02-28 |url=https://juricaf.org/arret/FRANCE-COURDECASSATION-20060228-0514484 |issue=5–14484 |access-date=2023-10-14 |language=FR}}</ref>