Sources of support and quality of life of 50 grandmother-headed families raising grandchildren with and without disabilities were examined. Comparative analyses revealed significant differences between grandmothers raising grandchildren with and without disabilities in regard to sources of support and family quality of life. Informal support was significantly higher for grandmothers raising grandchildren without disabilities. In addition, grandmothers raising grandchildren without disabilities rated satisfaction with all aspects of family quality of life except parenting as significantly higher than grandmothers raising grandchildren with disabilities. Correlational analyses showed a moderate correlation between sources of support and family quality of life for both groups of grandmothers. While total informal social support was significantly correlated with satisfaction ratings of family quality of life for both groups of grandmothers, total formal support was significantly correlated with satisfaction ratings of family quality of life only for grandmothers raising grandchildren with disabilities. Multiple regression analyses revealed a significant relationship between presence of child disability and satisfaction ratings of family quality of life.
Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. ~ 12101 et seq. (1990).
2.
BaileyD. B.BruderM. B.HebbelerK.CartaJ.deFossetM.GreenwoodC.. . . BartonL. (2006). Recommended outcomes for families of young children with disabilities. Journal of Early Intervention, 28, 227-251.
3.
BaileyD. B.McWilliamR. A.DarkesL. A.HebbelerK.SimeonssonR. J.SpikerD.WagnerM. (1998). Family outcomes in early intervention: A framework for program evaluation and efficacy research. Exceptional Children, 64, 313-328.
BronfenbrennerU. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
6.
CampbellL.MilesM. S. (2008). Implementing parenting programs for custodial grandparents. In HayslipB.KaminskiP (Eds.), Parenting the custodial grandchild: Implications for clinical practice (pp. 115-130). New York, NY: Springer.
7.
CohenJ. (1977). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (Rev. ed.). New York, NY: Academic Press.
8.
ConwayF.JonesS.Speakes-LewisA. (2011). Emotional strain in caregiving among African American grandmothers raising their grandchildren. Journal of Women & Aging, 23, 113-128.
9.
CoxC. (2003). Designing interventions for grandparent caregivers: The need for an ecological perspective for practice. Families in Society, 84, 127-134.
10.
CrnicK.StormshakE. (1997). The effectiveness of providing social support for families of children at risk. In GuralnickM (Ed.), The effectiveness of early intervention (pp. 209-226). Baltimore, MD: Brooks.
11.
CrowtherM.RodriguezR. (2003). A stress and coping model of custodial grandparents among African-Americans. In HayslipB.Hicks PatrickJ. (Eds.), Working with custodial grandparents (pp. 145-162). New York, NY: Springer.
12.
DavisK.Gavidia-PayneS. (2009). The impact of child, family, and professional support characteristics on the quality of life in families of young children with disabilities. Australian Society for the Study of Intellectual Disability, 34, 153-162.
13.
DunstC. J. (2000). Revisiting “Rethinking early intervention.”Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 20, 95-104.
14.
DunstC. J.BruderM. B. (2002).Valued outcomes of service coordination, early intervention, and natural environments. Exceptional Children, 68, 361-375.
15.
DunstC. J.JenkinsB.TrivetteC. M. (1984). Family Support Scale: Reliability and validity. Journal of Individual, Family, and Community Wellness, 1, 45-52.
16.
DunstC. J.JenkinsV.TrivetteC. M. (1986). Family Support Scale. In DunstC. J.TrivetteC. M.DealA. G (Eds.), Enabling and empowering families: Principles and guidelines for practice (p. 157). Cambridge, MA: Brookline Books.
17.
DunstC. J.TrivetteC.DealA. (1988). Enabling and empowering families: Principles and guidelines for practice. Cambridge, MA: Brookline Books.
18.
EmickM.HayslipB. (1999). Custodial grandparenting: Stresses, coping skills, and relationships with grandchildren. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 48, 35-62.
19.
ForceL. T.BotsfordA.PisanoP. A.HolbertA. (2000). Grandparents raising grandchildren with and without a developmental disability. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 33, 5-21.
20.
Fuller-ThomsonE.MinklerM. (2000). The mental and physical health of grandmothers who are raising their grandchildren. Journal of Mental Health & Aging, 6, 311-323.
21.
GallagherP. A.KresakK.RhodesC. A. (2010). Perceived needs of grandmothers of children with disabilities. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 30, 56-64.
22.
GerardJ. M.Landry-MeyerL.RoeJ. G. (2006). Grandparents raising grandchildren: The role of social support in coping with caregiving challenges. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 62, 359-383.
23.
GrantR. (2000). The special needs of children in kinship care. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 33, 17-38.
24.
HayslipB.KaminskiP. L. (2005a). Grandparents raising their grandchildren. In CaputoR. K. (Ed.), Challenges of aging on U.S. families: Policy and practice implications (pp. 147-169). Binghamton, NY: Hayworth Press.
25.
HayslipB.KaminskiP. L. (2005b). Grandparents raising their grandchildren: A review of the literature and suggestions for practice. The Gerontologist, 45, 262-269.
26.
HoffmanL.MarquisJ.PostonD.SummersJ. A.TurnbullA. (2006). Assessing family outcomes: Psychometric evaluation of the Beach Center Family Quality of Life Scale. Journal of Marriage and Family, 68, 1069-1083.
27.
Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, 20 U.S.C. ~ 1400 et seq. (2004) (reauthorization of the Individuals With Disabilities Act of 1990).
28.
JanickiM. P.McCallionP.Grant-GriffinL.KolomerS. R. (2000). Grandparent caregivers I: Characteristics of the grandparents and the children with disabilities they care for. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 33, 41-62.
29.
KelleyS. J.WhitleyD. M.CamposP. E. (2010). Grandmothers raising grandchildren: Results of an intervention to improve health outcomes. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 42, 379-386.
30.
KelleyS. J.WhitleyD. M.CamposP. E. (2011). Behavior problems in children raised by grandmothers: The role of caregiver distress, family resources, and the home environment. Children and Youth Services Review, 33, 2138-2145.
31.
KelleyS. J.WhitleyD. M.CamposP. E. (2013a). African American caregiving grandmothers: Results of an intervention to improve health indicators and health promotion behaviors. Journal of Family Nursing, 19, 53-73.
32.
KelleyS. J.WhitleyD. M.CamposP. E. (2013b). Psychological distress in African American grandmothers raising grandchildren: The contribution of child behavior problems, physical health, and family resources. Research in Nursing & Health, 36, 373-385.
33.
KelleyS. J.WhitleyD. M.SipeT. A. (2007). Results of an interdisciplinary intervention to improve the psychosocial well-being and physical functioning of African American grandmothers raising grandchildren. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 5, 45-64.
34.
KelleyS. J.WhitleyD. M.SipeT. A.YorkerB. C. (2000). Psychological distress in grandmother kinship care providers: The role of resources, social support, and physical health. Child Abuse & Neglect, 24, 311-321.
35.
KingG.KingS.RosenbaumP.GoffinR. (1999). Family-centered caregiving and well-being of parents of children with disabilities: Linking process to outcome. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 24, 41-53.
36.
KolomerS.McCallionP.JanickiM. P. (2002). African-American grandmother carers of children with disabilities: Preliminary comparisons. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 33, 45-63.
37.
Landry-MeyerL.GerardJ. M.GuzellJ. R. (2005). Caregiver stress among grandparents raising grandchildren: The functional role of social support. Marriage & Family Review, 37, 171-190.
38.
LecavalierL.LeoneS.WiltzJ. (2006). The impact of behavior problems on caregiver stress in young children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 50, 172-183.
39.
McCallionP.JanickiM.Grant-GriffinL.KolomerS. R. (2000). Grandparent caregivers II: Service needs and service provision issues. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 33, 63-90.
40.
McCallionP.JanickiM.KolomerS. R. (2004). Controlled evaluation of support groups for grandparent caregivers of children with developmental disabilities and delays. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 109, 352-361.
41.
MinklerM.Fuller-ThomsonE.MillerD.DriverD. (1997). Depression in grandparents raising grandchildren. Archives of Family Medicine, 6, 445-452.
42.
MinklerM.RoeK. M. (1993). Grandmothers as caregivers: Raising children of the crack cocaine epidemic. Newbury Park, CA: SAGE.
43.
MusilC. M.GordonN. L.WarnerC. B.ZauszniewskiJ. A.StandingT.WykleM. (2011). Grandmothers and caregiving to grandchildren: Continuity, change, and outcomes over 24 months. The Gerontologist, 51, 86-100.
44.
Neely-BarnesS. L.GraffJ. C.WashingtonG. (2010).The health-related quality of life of custodial grandparents. Health & Social Work, 35, 87-97.
45.
PostonD.TurnbullA.ParkJ.MannanH.MarquisJ.WangM. (2003). Family quality of life: A qualitative study. Mental Retardation, 41, 313-328.
46.
PurcellM. L.TurnbullA. P.JacksonC. W. (2006). Linking early childhood inclusion and family quality of life: Current literature and future directions. Young Exceptional Children, 9, 11-19.
47.
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Pub. L. No. 93-112 ~ 104 et seq. (1973).
48.
RossM. E.AdayL. (2006). Stress and coping in African American grandparents who are raising their grandchildren. Journal of Family Issues, 27, 912-932.
49.
SandsR. G.Goldberg-GlenR. S. (2000). Factors associated with stress among grandparents raising their grandchildren. Family Relations, 49, 97-105.
50.
SchalockR. L.AlonsoM. A. V. (2002). Handbook on quality of life for human service practitioners. Washington, DC: American Association on Mental Retardation.
51.
SeligmanM.DarlingR. B. (2007). Ordinary families, special children: A systems approach to childhood disability. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
52.
ShakyaH. B.UsitaP. M.EisenbergC.WestonJ.LilesS. (2012). Family well-being concerns of grandparents in skipped generation families. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 55, 38-54.
53.
SilversteinN.VehvilainenL. (2000). Grandparents and schools: Issues and potential challenges. In CoxC. (Ed.), To grandmother’s house we go and stay: Perspectives on custodial grandparents (pp. 268-282). New York, NY: Springer.
54.
SmithA. B.DannisonL. L. (2008). Preschool children and caregiving grandparents: Enhancing family strengths. In HayslipB.KaminskiP. (Eds.), Parenting the custodial grandchild: Implications for clinical practice (pp. 237-250). New York, NY: Springer.
55.
SmithG. C.PalmieriP. A. (2007). Risk of psychological difficulties among children raised by custodial grandparents. Psychiatric Services, 58, 1303-1310.
56.
SummersJ. A.PostonD. J.TurnbullA. P.MarquisJ.HoffmanL.MannanH.WangM. (2005). Conceptualizing and measuring family quality of life. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 49, 777-783.
57.
TurnbullA. B.Blue-BanningM.TurbivilleV.ParkJ. (1999). From parent education to partnership education: A call for a transformed focus. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 19, 164-172.
58.
U.S. Bureau of the Census. (2010). Table C4: Children with grandparents by presence of parents, sex, race, and Hispanic origins for selected characteristics (2010 Current Population Survey, 2010 Annual and Economic Supplement). Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam/cps2010.html
59.
WhitleyD. M.KelleyS. (2008). Developmental screening and evaluation results of young African American grandchildren raised by grandparents: Thoughts for research and practice, Arete, 32, 38-57.
60.
YlvenR.Bjorck-AkessonE.GranlundM. (2006). Literature review of positive functioning in families with children with a disability. Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, 3, 253-270.
61.
ZunaN.SeligJ. P.SummersJ. A.TurnbullA. P. (2009). Confirmation factor analysis of a FQOL scale for families of kindergarten children without disabilities. Journal of Early Intervention, 31, 111-125.
62.
ZunaN.TurnbullA.SummersJ. A. (2009). Family quality of life: Moving from measurement to application. Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, 6, 25-31.
