Grandparents Caring For Their Grandchildren And Successful Aging

At present,the global aging trend is intensifying.How to effectively improve the quality of life of the elderly has become the focus of attention around the world.The international organization represented by the World Health Organization(WHO)actively advocates the concept of “successful aging” and emphasizes that elderly life should not only be healthy and long-lived,but also actively participate in society.The idea is that older people are no longer a drag on social development,but a precious human resource that can create value for families and society.Grandparents caring for their grandchildren is a kind of family tending phenomenon that exists in urban and rural areas in contemporary China.Older people care for their grandchildren for their children can allow young parents to devote more time and energy to their work,thus better balancing the relationship between family and work.Based on the concept of successful aging,grandparents caring for their grandchildren is an important way for families to effectively develop and utilize the resources of the elderly.Grandparents caring for their grandchildren has reduced the burden of child rearing for young parents,but it also has a certain negative impact on the physical and mental health of the elderly.Based on this background,this paper attempts to explore whether grandparents caring for their grandchildren will affect the successful aging of the elderly? If there is an impact,what are the main factors? What is the specific impact mechanism?This article started from the life history theory,regard the grandparents caring for their grandchildren as an important event in the elderly's old life,and discuss the influence of time,space,content and feedback of the grandparents caring for their grandchildren on the successful aging of the elderly.An analysis of the 2013 Shanghai Urban Elderly Status and Willingness Survey data shows that older people who provide grandparents caring for their grandchildren are more likely to achieve successful aging than older people who do not care for their grandchildren.For the elderly in urban areas,the elderly who do not have jobs or who are not reemployed after retirement,the elderly whose children provide life care and emotional support,and the elderly who live with their children,it is more likely to provide intergenerational care for a successful aging.However,for the elderly in the rural areas,the elderly who provide housework for their children,and the elderly who live in the nursing homes/elderly apartments,the possibility of providing intergenerational care to achieve successful aging is even smaller.In addition,for older people who provide intergenerational care,the older they are,the less likely they are to achieve successful aging;but for younger elderly,the chances of providing intergenerational care for a successful ageing are even greater.