The Legacy of a Grandparent's Divorce: Consequences for Ties between Grandparents and Grandchildren

Valarie King, Pennsylvania State University

This study assesses the implications of divorce in the grandparent generation for grandparent-grandchild relationships. The sample of 538 grandparents comes from a study of rural families, the Iowa Youth and Families Project. Overall, the results indicate that many aspects of grand-parenting are negatively associated with having ever experienced a divorce. Some of the negative effects of divorce can be explained by the ever-divorced grandparent's greater distance from, and weaker bonds to, their adult children. The negative effects of divorce are stronger for grandfathers and paternal grandparents. Furthermore, a good grandparent-parent relationship can compensate for the negative effects of a grandparent's divorce on the relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of the rising levels of divorce in the population.