Changing Family Life » Changing Roles of Children and Grandparents

Children and grandparents: roles that change

In the last lesson you looked at how the roles of partners have changed. Family roles are not only about couples. Children and grandparents have roles too, and in many societies these have changed a great deal.

Key terms:

• Economic burden: someone who costs money to support and does not earn.
• Child-centredness: when family life is organised around the needs, wants and happiness of the children.
• Boomerang children: adult children who leave the family home and then return to live with their parents.

Children as an economic burden

In the past, and in some societies today, children were expected to work. Many helped on the family farm or in the family business, or went out to earn wages. A child was an economic asset, because the family gained from their work.

In many societies this has changed. Laws now ban or limit child labour, and children are expected to go to school instead. Children no longer bring in money, yet they must still be fed, clothed and educated. So sociologists describe them as an economic burden, or cost, to their parents.

This is one reason families in many societies choose to have fewer children, because each child is a long-term cost.

Child-centredness

As children became fewer and more costly, they also became more valued. In a child-centred family, a lot of time, money and attention goes to the children. Parents think about children's education, health, activities and feelings when they make decisions.

• Parents spend time helping with homework and taking children to clubs and lessons.
• Families buy toys, books and devices, and plan holidays and days out to suit the children.
• Children's views are listened to more than in the past.

Notice the link: because children no longer earn, the family's reason for having them has shifted. Children are now wanted for the happiness and love they bring, not for the work they do.

Boomerang children

A boomerang comes back to the person who threw it. Boomerang children are adults who move out of the family home, then come back. This used to be less common, because young adults were expected to leave and stay away.

Reasons why adult children may return home include:

• High housing costs: renting or buying a home may be too expensive.
• Unemployment or low pay: they may not be able to find a job or afford to live alone.
• Education: students may return after finishing study, especially if they have debts.
• Relationship breakdown: after a separation or divorce, a person may need somewhere to stay.

So the parents' job as carers does not always end when the child turns 18. The child may stay an economic burden for longer.

Changing roles of grandparents

In many societies people are living longer, so grandparents are often healthy and active for many years. Their role has become more varied, and it can be positive or negative.

Remember the pivot or sandwich generation from the last lesson. Grandparents' help with childcare can ease the pressure on this middle generation.

Grandparents as dependent or a burden

The role is not always one of giving. As grandparents become older and frailer, they may need care themselves. Then they may be seen as dependent on their family or even as a burden.

• They may need help with shopping, meals, washing or medical care.
• Care can cost money and take a great deal of time from adult children.
• In societies where the state offers little support, the family carries most of this work.

A careful answer does not say that older people are always dependent. Many are healthy and keep giving help for many years.

Weighing it up

Exam-style question

(a) Define the term boomerang children. [2 marks]

(d) Explain three ways in which the role of grandparents has changed in some societies. [6 marks]