SOCIOEMOTIONAL ENGAGEMENT WITH GRANDCHILDREN IS ASSOCIATED WITH BENEFITS FOR GRANDPARENTS

Sep 29, 2026

The study investigates how the amount and type of engagement grandparents have with grandchildren relates to well-being in later life. Using SPIN participants aged 66–79 (N=1,002), researchers compare grandparents (n=533) with non-grandparents on physical health, health practices, loneliness, and subjective memory. While group differences are minimal, among grandparents, greater socioemotional and social-emotional engagement predicts less loneliness, more healthful behavior engagement, better subjective memory, and more positive emotional experience.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Study design and participants

Key findings on engagement and well-being

Emotional experience and quality of life

466 Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 memory, or emotional experiences. Social and emotional ties to grandchildren are associated with cognitive, physical, social functioning among older adults, highlighting the importance of considering potential benefits and costs of grandparental involvement. We suggest that socioemotional engagement with grandchildren represents a particularly meaningful social connection, fostering a sense of purpose. Abstract citation ID: igaf122.1592 SOCIOEMOTIONAL ENGAGEMENT WITH GRANDCHILDREN IS ASSOCIATED WITH BENEFITS FOR GRANDPARENTS Claire Growney1, Thomas Oltmanns2, Patrick Hill3, Ryan Bogdan2, and Laura Carstensen1, 1. Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States, 2. Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, United States, 3. Washington University in St. Louis, Saint Louis, Missouri, United States As life expectancy has increased, grandparenting has become a normative social role, yet its implications for older adults’well-being remain understudied. The present study examined well-being as a function of the amount and type of engagement grandparents have with their grandchildren. Participants (N = 1,002) aged 66–79 in the St. Louis Personality and Intergenerational Network (SPIN) study completed questionnaires about physical health, health practices, loneliness, and subjective memory and indicated whether they were grandparents. The 533 who identified as grandparents also answered questions about their involvement with grandchildren and related emotional experiences. There were minimal differences between grandparents and non-grandparents. However, among grandparents, those who were relatively more engaged socially and emotionally with their grandchildren reported less loneliness, more engagement in healthful behaviors, and better subjective memory. Socioemotional engagement with grandchildren was also associated with more positive and less negative emotional experience. Grandparents who reported providing relatively high levels of both instrumental support and socioemotional engagement reported better overall physical health-related quality of life. In contrast, providing relatively more instrumental support for grandchildren was associated with higher levels of loneliness and unrelated to healthful behavior engagement, subjective

FAQs

What did the study examine about grandparenting?

It assessed how the amount and type of engagement grandparents have with grandchildren relate to well-being outcomes such as physical health, health practices, loneliness, and subjective memory.

How were participants grouped in the analysis?

Participants aged 66–79 completed questionnaires and indicated whether they were grandparents. Analyses compared those identified as grandparents (n=533) with non-grandparents and then focused on engagement patterns among grandparents.

What associations were found for socioemotional engagement?

Among grandparents, relatively higher socioemotional and social-emotional engagement with grandchildren was linked to less loneliness, more engagement in healthful behaviors, better subjective memory, and more positive emotional experience.

Sep 29, 2026

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