1. Grandparenting, Social Relations, and Mortality in Old Age.
- Author
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Jang, Heejung, Tang, Fengyan, Fusco, Rachel A., Engel, Rafael J., and Albert, Steven M.
- Subjects
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STRUCTURAL equation modeling , *CAREGIVERS , *SOCIAL support , *MORTALITY , *SOCIAL networks , *INTERVIEWING , *PARENTING , *INTERPERSONAL relations , *INDEPENDENT living , *SURVIVAL analysis (Biometry) , *DESCRIPTIVE statistics , *CUSTODY of children - Abstract
Guided by a convoy model of social relations, this study investigates the relationships between grandparenting status, social relations, and mortality among community-dwelling grandparents age 65 and older who are caring for their grandchildren. The data were drawn from the 2008 and 2016 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (N = 564). Latent class analysis was used to identify the social network structure based on six indicators of interpersonal relationships and activities. A series of hierarchical Weibull hazard models estimated the associations between grandparent caregiving, social relations, and mortality risk. Results of survival analyses indicate that co-parenting and custodial grandparents had higher all-cause mortality risk than grandparents who babysat occasionally; however, for custodial grandparents, the association was not significant once social relation variables were added to the model. This study suggests that community-based support may be beneficial to older grandparents and improved relationship quality is integral to the well-being of older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2022
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