Population Health Research Brief Series

Grandparents play a vital role in providing care for their grandchildren in the United States. However, long-term sociodemographic changes, including lower fertility rates and changes in employment and technology, along with massive upheavals prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic are changing grandparenting in important ways.

This research brief describes these long-term sociodemographic changes and uses in-depth interviews conducted before the pandemic to illustrate nine specific ways grandparenting is shifting in the U.S. It concludes by calling for more supportive social welfare programs to support working families and reduce the reliance on grandparents for meeting childcare and financial needs.