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Ψ Being the “generation in the middle”, middle age adults are the cohort bridge between their children & their parents.
Ψ Contemporary family members are more supportive of each other, with less trouble & tension, when they live apart.
Ψ Kinkeeper: the person who celebrates family achievements, gathers the family together and keeps in touch with family members who no longer live nearby; they maintain the links between the generations.
Ψ Familism: the idea that family members should support each other because family unity is more important than individual freedom and success; stronger among ethnic minority groups than among the white majority.
Ψ Generally, ongoing grandparent-grandchild relationships take one of three forms:
- Remote: typical of American grandparents a century ago, grandparents who are distant but who are honored, respected and obeyed by the younger generations in their families.
- Involved: grandparents who remain active in the everyday activities of their grandchildren, typically living in or nearby the grandchildren’s household.
- Companionate: grandparents whose relationships with their children & grandchildren are characterized by independence and friendship, with visits occurring by the grandparents’ choice; most grandparents today – they can maintain autonomy and independence.
Notes:
Ψ Surrogate parents: the role some grandparents play for their grandchildren due to their children’s extreme social problems; grandparents take over the work of raising their children’s children; if the relationship is the result of a legal decision that the parents were abusive or neglectful, it becomes kinship care.
Ψ Throughout adulthood, marriage is the family relationship that seems most closely linked to personal happiness, health & companionship.
Ψ After a dip in the first decade or so, marital happiness gradually increases. Several reasons have been suggested for this improvement: the greater financial security of families at the empty-nest stage, the increasing sense of equity in the relationship, and increased time for shared activities once the children have left home.
Ψ Most divorced people remarry within 5 years of being divorced.
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