Introduction
Medical science and technology advancements have improved quality of life over the years, leading to an increased life span [
1]. As a result, people today are more likely than ever before to live longer and see their third and even fourth generations. This demographic shift not only increases the proportion of older individuals but also changes family structures and caregiving practices [
2,
3]. In China, where the older adult population constitutes about 17.8 percent [
3], intergenerational support, as influenced by Confucian ideology, means that grandparents often play the role of caregivers to their grandchildren. While several social and economic implications have been attributed to this [
4‐
6], a particular area of interest is how the arrangement tends to impact the life satisfaction of older adults in the context of active aging.
Active aging, which emphasizes maintaining physical, mental, and social activity as individuals age, constitutes a central policy framework for coping with aging across countries worldwide [
7]. Likewise, it is becoming a national priority in China as the population ages. The Chinese government's "Opinions on Strengthening Work for the Older People in the New Era" released in November 2021, called for integrating positive aging concepts and healthy aging into the economic and social development process [
8]. This strategy aims to enhance older adults' health, social participation, security, and improvement of quality of life as they age.
Quality of life is often measured by perceptions about life satisfaction [
9]. As China continues to address population aging, improving the life satisfaction of older people has garnered attention from academic and social circles [
10]. This arises from recognizing that various factors affecting older individual's life satisfaction and overall well-being can foster healthy aging, alleviate the strain on social security and familial caregiving, and contribute to both family development and social harmony [
11].
Grandchild caregiving involves actively investing time, energy, emotional, economic, and material resources in caring for underage grandchildren [
12,
13]. Caring for grandchildren is the most common life event in later life and may either constitute a source of satisfaction or stress for older people [
4,
14]. Hence, exploring how caring for grandchildren affects older people’s life satisfaction in the context of an aging population and active aging is crucial.
In Chinese culture, it is common for grandparents to assume the responsibility of caring for their grandchildren, which can effectively alleviate the anxiety associated with parenting and the burden of childrearing [
5,
15]. This arrangement can also ease the financial strain on adult children [
6]. Despite a significant decrease in families with multiple generations, the proportion of three-generation families (grandparents with adult children and grandchildren) remains significant, highlighting the crucial role of older people in caregiving, families, and society [
16]. While previous research underscores the advantage of grandchild care, there is a growing concern regarding its potential adverse effect on the well-being of grandparents [
17]. The current body of domestic and international research lacks a consensus regarding the influence of grandchild care on the life satisfaction of older individuals. Additionally, there is a dearth of systematic examinations of the underlying mechanisms that contribute to this impact.
This paper employs data from a comprehensive social survey conducted in China to investigate the association between different forms of caregiving and the life satisfaction of older individuals. Considering the mediating effects of individual characteristics such as aging attitudes and situational factors such as support in grandchild care, the paper investigates the impact of grandparenting on life satisfaction among older Chinese adults.
Discussion
Using 2014 CLASS data, this study found that caring for grandchildren positively impacts older people's life satisfaction, even after controlling for various factors. The study’s findings provide substantial evidence of the full mediating role of aging attitude and intergenerational support in the said association. The study’s findings, in several parts, are consistent with previous studies, particularly as it concerns the direct association between grandparenting and life satisfaction [
26], as well as the mediating role of intergenerational support [
12]. However, the finding on the mediating role of aging attitude is unique to the current study and, therefore, contributes to the existing literature and enhances the understanding of the intricate dynamics involved in how caring for grandchildren impacts the overall life satisfaction of older adults.
First, the result on the positive association between grandparenting and life satisfaction among older adults is consistent with Tanskanen’s study conducted with samples of European older adults [
26], and supports the role enhancement theory [
12]. Caring for grandchildren is an important family participatory activity that reduces the burden on adult children, increases their opportunities, and promotes family happiness [
38,
39]. Grandchild care also provides older people with a sense of accomplishment and emotional communication, enhancing their multifaceted roles and a sense of purpose and meaning in life, which improves their life satisfaction. This effect was found to be robust in the PSM test results.
The core aspect of the current study is the investigation of the mechanism of the association, and the study found that caring for grandchildren impacts the life satisfaction of older people through individual and situational factors defined as aging attitudes and intergenerational support. Specifically, grandchild care positively affects the aging attitudes of older people, which is consistent with previous research in the context of China [
12]. This significant mediation effect may be attributed to two factors. First, aging is often associated with a shrinking network size [
38], the responsibility of grandchild care, however, could provide an avenue for older adults to socialize more and also increase activities of daily living (ADL). Studies have shown a positive association between network size increased ADL and improved life satisfaction among older adults [
39,
40]. Secondly, as supported by the role enhancement theory, caring for grandchildren enables older people to realize their value to society and their families, promoting a more positive attitude towards aging and improving their life satisfaction [
36].
Furthermore, the finding showed that economic and instrumental support mediates the relationship between grandchild care and life satisfaction among older Chinese adults. Grandparents involved in grandchild care can significantly relieve their adult children of the burden of childcare, allowing them more latitude to focus more on their careers or other personal goals [
37]. As a reciprocity gesture, adult children may be inclined to provide more financial and instrumental support to grandparents, strengthening their relationships and contributing to their life satisfaction [
41]. This mutual benefit model of Chinese families could play an important role in improving the life satisfaction of older people from the perspective of social exchange theory [
38].
Comparatively, the mediated effect size of the general aging attitude was substantially higher than the self-aging attitude. The findings imply that general attitudes about aging are more influential than personal attitudes. It is possible that people are more likely to be influenced by a societal construct or cultural attitude about aging than by their own personal attitude [
42]. Also, among the three dimensions of intergenerational support, the result indicated that instrumental support had the most significant mediated effect size. This suggests that instrumental support, which includes financial/material resources and emotional resources, is vital in how older adults perceive life satisfaction [
39] even when inundated with the stress of grandparenting.
The findings of this study have significant theoretical and practical implications. Theoretically, this study contributes to the existing literature by revealing the complete mediating role of aging attitudes and intergenerational support in the relationship between caring for grandchildren and the life satisfaction of older individuals, casting light on the complex dynamics at play. Notably, it highlights that society and cultural views on aging might be more influential than personal attitudes and that instrumental assistance, such as financial and emotional resources, is critical in molding older adults' perception of life satisfaction. Practically, these insights underscore the importance of recognizing the social value of older people in supplementing child care and promoting family development. Policymakers and institutions should provide social support to older individuals who care for their grandchildren, encouraging them to maximize family benefits and promote their own healthy aging. Furthermore, older people should recognize their value to their children's family development and cultivate a positive attitude towards aging to achieve healthy aging through social participation. In addition, society should establish a cultural atmosphere that fosters respect and love for older people while rejecting age discrimination.
This study has limitations in several aspects. Firstly, while the 2014 CLASS is relatively old, it was still used for this analysis because the more recent survey waves did not incorporate data on AAQ, an important mediating variable in this study. Though we acknowledge the importance of using more recent data, however, we believe that the dataset remains representative and relevant to our research questions. By using the same dataset for all variables, we maintain data consistency and comparability throughout the analysis. Also, given that China is largely a conservative society, there is likely to be some temporal stability regarding sociocultural and familial dynamics. To this extent, using the 2014 data does not necessarily diminish the relevance of our findings.
Secondly, the cross-sectional data used in this study do not establish causality even with the PSM method. In addition, the study lacks data on how the age difference of the care recipient affects the relationship. Furthermore, caregiving behaviors may affect grandparents' health behaviors, and other mechanisms may be worth exploring. Lastly, the study only examines the relationship between caring for grandchildren and life satisfaction without considering the intensity of care. Despite these limitations, this research makes an additional unique contribution to knowledge regarding the association between caring for grandchildren and life satisfaction. Notably, the study sheds light on the mediating role of the aging attitude, further enhancing our understanding of the complex dynamics involved.
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.