We used community-based participatory research with four tiers of governance and grounded theory methods to examine the lives of Alaska Native grandparents rearing grandchildren in a rural community. We explored the reasons Native grandparents reared or are rearing their grandchildren, challenges rearing grandchildren, and the joys of grandparenthood. We used their words to broaden the grandparenting research by focusing solely on Native People living in a rural, arctic climate. Culture, values, and traditions explain the unique reasons grandparents cared for their grandchildren; values and common concerns of all grandparents describe the challenges of grandparenthood; pride and joy, the value of love, and traditional ways of living made clear the joys of Alaska Native grandparents rearing their grandchildren. After the discussion, we offer considerations for future research.
AllenK. R.FineM. A.DemoD. H. (2000). An overview of family diversity: Controversies, questions, and values. In DemoD. H.AllenK. R.FineM. A. (Eds.), Handbook of family diversity (pp. 1-4). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
3.
AllenW. (1978). The search for applicable theories of Black family life. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 40, 117-129.
4.
Arctic Research Consortium of the United States. (1999, June). Arctic social sciences opportunities in Arctic Research. Fairbanks, AK: Author.
5.
BachmanH. J.Chase-LansdaleP. L. (2005). Custodial grandmothers’ physical, mental, an economic well–being: Comparisons of primary caregiver from low-income neighborhood. Family Relations, 51, 475-487.
6.
BahrK. S. (1994). The strengths of Apache grandmothers: Observations on commitment, culture, and caretaking. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 25, 233-248.
7.
BaileyS. J.LetiecqB. L.EricksonM.KoltzR. (2013). Resilient grandparent caregivers: Pathways to positive adaptation. In HayslipB.SmithG. C. (Eds.), Resilient grandparent caregivers: A strength-based perspective (pp. 71-87). New York, NY: Springer.
8.
BaileyS. J.LetiecqB. L.PorterfieldF. (2009). Family coping and adaptation among grandparents rearing grandchildren. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 7, 144-158.
9.
BarbaránF. R. (2011). Cultural preservations program of Alaska. Interchange, 42, 205-214.
10.
BarnhardtR.KawagleyA. O. (2005). Indigenous knowledge systems: Alaska Native ways of knowing. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 36, 8-23.
11.
BassettD.BuchwaldD.MansonS. (2014). Posttraumatic stress disorder and symptoms among American Indians and Alaska Native: A review of the literature. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 49, 417-433.
12.
BengstonV. L.RobertsonJ. F. (1985). Grandparenthood. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
13.
BullockK. (2004). The changing role of grandparents in rural families: The results of an exploratory study in southeastern North Carolina. Families in Society, 85, 45-54.
14.
BurtonL. (1992). Black grandparents rearing children of drug-addicted parents: Stressors, outcomes, and social service needs. The Gerontologist, 32, 741-755.
15.
CoxC. (2000). Why grandchildren are going to and staying at grandmother’s house and what happens when they get there. In CoxC. (Ed.), To grandmother’s house we go and stay: Perspectives on custodial grandparents (1st ed., pp. 3-19). New York, NY: Springer.
16.
CreswellJ. W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
17.
CrossS. L.DayA. G.ByersL. G. (2010). American Indian grand families: A qualitative study conducted with grandmothers and grandfathers who provide sole care for their grandchildren. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, 25, 371-383. doi:10.1007/s10823-010-9127-5
18.
DavisS. M.ReidR. (1999). Practicing participatory research in American Indian communities. American Society for Clinical Nutrition, 69, 755s-759s.
19.
DombrowskiK. (2007). Subsistence livelihood, native identity and internal differentiation in Southeast Alaska. Anthropologica, 49, 211-229.
20.
EhrleJ.GeenR.ClarkR. (2001). Children cared for by relatives: Who are they and how are they faring? (New Federalism National Survey of America’s Families, Series B., n. B-28). Washington, DC: Urban Institute.
21.
EmickM. A.HayslipB. (1996). Custodial grandparenting: New roles for middle-age and older adults. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 43, 135-154.
22.
EriksonE. H.EriksonJ. M. (1998). The life cycle completed. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.
23.
FeldmanK. D. (1980). Anthropological study of aging among Alaska urban natives: Methodological considerations. Anchorage: University of Alaska Anchorage.
24.
Fienup-RiordanA. (2005a). Wise words of the Yup’ik people: We talk to you because we love you. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
25.
Fienup-RiordanA. (2005b). Yupiit Qanruyutait: Yup’ik words of wisdom. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
26.
FisherP. A.BallT. J. (2003). Tribal participatory research: Mechanisms of a collaborative model. American Journal of Community Psychology, 32, 207-216.
27.
Fuller-ThomsonE. (2005). Canadian First Nations grandparents rearing grandchildren: A portrait in resilience. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 60, 331-342.
28.
Fuller-ThomsonE.MinklerM. (2005). American Indian/Alaskan Native grandparents raising grandchildren: Findings from the Census 2000 Supplemental Survey. Social Work, 50, 131-139.
29.
GiarrussoR.FengD.WangQ.SilversteinM. (1996). Parenting and co-parenting of grandchildren: Effects on grandparents’ well-being and family solidarity. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 16, 124-154.
30.
GiarrussoR.SilversteinM.FengD. (2000). Psychological costs and benefits of raising grandchildren: Evidence from a national survey of grandparents. In CoxC. B. (Ed.), To grandmother’s house we go and stay: Perspectives on custodial grandparents (pp. 71-90). New York, NY: Springer.
HardingA.HarperB.StoneD.O’NeillC.BergerP.HarrisS.DonatutoJ. (2011). Conducting research with tribal communities: Sovereignty, ethics, and data-sharing ideas. Environmental Health Perspectives, 120, 6-10.
33.
HayslipB.BairdA. H.ToledoJ. R.ToledoC.EmickA. M. (2006). Cross-cultural differences in traditional and custodial grandparenting: A qualitative approach. In HayslipB.Jr.PatrickJ. H. (Eds.), Custodial grandparenting: Individual, cultural, and ethnic diversity (pp. 169-182). New York, NY: Springer.
34.
HendersonT. L. (2005). Empirical reality and vision: Studying people of color. In BengtsonV.AcockA. C.AllenK.Dilworth-AndersonP.KleinD. M. (Eds.), Sourcebook of family theory and research (pp. 194-198). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
35.
HendersonT. L.CookJ. L. (2005). Grandma’s hands: Black grandmothers speak about their experience rearing grandchildren on TANF. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 61(1), 1-19.
36.
HendersonT. L.CookJ. L. (2006). The voices of Black grandmothers parenting grandchildren with TANF assistance. In HayslipB.Jr.PatrickJ. H. (Eds.), Custodial grandparenting: Individual, cultural, and ethnic diversity (pp. 303-320). New York, NY: Springer.
37.
Hill CollinsP. (2000). Black feminist thought. New York, NY: Routledge.
38.
HopkinsS.KwachkaP.LardonC.MohattG. V. (2007). Keeping busy: A Yup’ik/Cup’ik perspective on health and aging. International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 66(1), 42-50.
39.
IsraelB. A.EngE.SchulzA. J.ParkerE. A. (2013). Methods for community-based participatory research for health. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
40.
JantzA.GeenR.BessR.AndrewsC.RussellV. (2002). The continuing evolution of state kinship care policies (Assessing the New Federalism Discussion Paper No. 02-11). Washington, DC: Urban Institute.
41.
JendrekM. (1993). Grandparents who parent their grandchildren: Effects in lifestyle. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 55, 609-621.
42.
JendrekM. P. (1994). Grandparents who parent their grandchildren: Circumstances and decisions. The Gerontologist, 34, 206-216.
43.
KofinasG. P.ChapinF. S.IIIBurnSilverS.SchmidtJ. I.FrescoN. L.KiellandK.. . . RuppT. S. (2010). Resilience of Athabascan subsistence systems to interior Alaska’s changing climate. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 40, 1347-1359. doi:10.1139/X10-108
44.
KropfN.BurnetteD. (2003). Grandparents as family caregivers: Lessons for intergenerational education. Educational Gerontology, 29, 361-372.
45.
KuokkanenR. (2011). Indigenous economies, theories of subsistence, and women: Exploring the social economy model. American Indian Quarterly, 35, 215-240. doi:10.1353/aiq.2011.0027
46.
LetiecqB. L.BaileyS. J.DahlenP. (2008). Ambivalence and coping among custodial grandparents. In HayslipB.KaminskiP. (Eds.), Parenting the custodial grandchild: Implications for clinical practice (pp. 3-16). New York, NY: Springer.
47.
MaguireP. (1987). Doing participatory research. Amherst, MA: Center for International Education.
48.
MohattG. V.HazelK. L.AllenJ.StachelrodtM.HenselC.FathR. (2004). Unheard Alaska: Culturally anchored participatory action research on sobriety with Alaska Natives. American Journal of Psychology, 33, 263-273.
49.
MullenF. (2000). Grandparents and welfare reform. In CoxC. B. (Ed.). To grandmother’s house we go and stay: Perspectives on custodial grandparents (pp. 113-131). New York, NY: Springer.
50.
MusilC. M.SchraderS.MitikaniJ. (2000). Social support, stress, and special coping tasks of grandmother caregivers. In CoxC. B. (Ed.), To grandmother’s house we go and stay: Perspectives on custodial grandparents (pp. 56-70). New York, NY: Springer.
51.
MutchlerJ. E.BakerL. A.LeeS. (2007). Grandparents responsible for grandchildren in Native-American families. Social Science Quarterly, 88, 990-1009.
52.
NelsonR. (1986a). Hunters of the Northern Forest. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
53.
NelsonR. (1986b). Make prayers to the raven: A Koyukon view of the Northern Forest. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
54.
PoppelB.KruseJ.DuhaimeG.AbryutinaL. (2007). Survey of living conditions in the Arctic: Inuit, Saami, and the indigenous peoples of Chukotka. Anchorage: Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Alaska Anchorage.
55.
ReardenA.JacobsonA. (Eds.). (2009). Oanruyuteput Iinruugut: Our teachings are medicine. Bethel, AK: Association of Village Councils.
56.
RobertoK.StroesJ. (1992). Grandchildren and grandparents: Roles, influences, and relationships. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 34, 227-239.
57.
RoderickL. (Ed.). (2011). Alaska Native cultures and issues: Responses to frequently asked questions. Fairbanks: University of Alaska Press.
58.
RosenthalC.GladstoneJ. (2007). Grandparenthood in Canada. The Vanier Institute of the Family. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Vanier Institute of the Family.
59.
SchaeferC. (Ed.). (2006). Grandmothers counsel the world. Boston, MA: Trumpeter.
60.
SchweitzerM. M. (1999). American Indian grandmothers: Traditions and transitions. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
61.
SeponskiD. M.LewisD. C. (2009). Caring for and learning from each other: A grounded theory study of grandmothers and adult grandchildren. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 7, 394-410.
62.
ShoemakerD. J. (1989). Transfer of children and the importance of grandmothers among the Navajo Indians. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, 4, 1-18.
63.
StraussA.CorbinJ. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Weibel-OrlandoJ. (1997). Grandparenting styles: The contemporary American Indian experience. In SokolovskyJ. (Ed.), The cultural context of aging: Worldwide perspectives (2nd ed., pp. 139-155). Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.
