Parenting / Families
Emotional and Behavioral Problems in Grandparent-Headed Households: Prevalence and Risk Factors
Acacia R. Lopez, M.S.
Clinical Psychology Doctoral Student
Mississippi State University
Mississippi State, Mississippi
Danielle K. Nadorff, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Mississippi State University
Mississippi State, Mississippi
Grandparent-headed households have burgeoned over the last decade, with more than 6.2 million custodial grandchildren (“CGC”), or grandchildren residing in a grandparent-headed household, in the United States. Literature on clinical implications and national prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems for CGC is scant despite both the large population and increased risk for emotional and behavioral difficulties when compared to their same-aged peers raised by biological parents. The difficulties faced by CGC may in part be explained by the increased number of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) faced by CGC given that the primary reason for children residing with a grandparent are traumatic stressors. Literature has demonstrated that strength-based approaches may serve as a resiliency factor in decreasing the number of behavioral and emotional problems, however, this has not been evaluated specific to CGC in a national sample within the United States. Thus, the present study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems in CGC in a national sample and to understand the role of resiliency in moderating the relation between ACEs and current emotional or behavioral problems in CGC.
The current study used the 2019-2020 National Survey of Children’s Health. Grandparents (n = 1882; M age = 60.21, SD = 9.35) reported on one grandchild (M age = 9.69, SD = 4.87). in their care and identified if the child had current emotional or behavioral problems, past ACEs, and current resiliency factors.
Descriptive analyses assessed the prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems in CGC. Findings suggested that CGC exhibited a high prevalence for various emotional and behavioral problems, including Tourette Syndrome (5.7%), anxiety problems (4.3%), depression (5.9%), behavioral and conduct problems (7.1%), developmental delay (5.5%), intellectual disability (5.5%), speech or language disorders (4.3%), learning disability (5.8%), Autism Spectrum Disorder (5.3%), and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (6.2%).
A moderated binomial logistic regression analysis was conducted using SPSS 28.0 PROCESS v4.0 (Model 1) to assess the impacts of children who had experienced two or more ACEs on the likelihood that they had one or more behavioral or emotional problem, and the role of resiliency within the family on this relation. Results from the process analysis showed that both history of ACEs (b = -.44, p < .001) and resiliency (b = .31, p < .001) had a significant relation on the endorsement of a behavioral or emotional problem in the grandchildren who resided with their grandparents. The interaction effect was not significant.
Implications include CGC in clinical research and intervention. Study is limited by self-report and is not drawn from a clinical sample.