Here is a fun fact for the new year, according to a recent article by Elisa Cinelli, the grandparent-grandchild bond has never been stronger. She reported that new research indicates about half of children say they would feel more comfortable going to a grandparent for advice than a parent. In a Preply survey children were asked a series of questions and the results paint an overall positive picture of today’s grandparent-grandchild relationship.
In their survey 68% of the children said they would rather spend time with Nana and Papa (the most widely used grandparent names in the U.S.) than their own parents. Why is this the case, well in part it is because today’s seniors do not think of themselves as “old,” and they are more active, healthy, and living longer. Also as Sylvia Johnson, head of methodology at Preply noted, “A lot of times, grandparents are able to provide more of a mentorship role for children without the day-to-day stress and responsibility of parenting.”
Cinelli highlighted recent research that confirmed children feel more secure and have an easier time dealing with adverse life events when a grandparent is regularly involved in their care. In fact, one of the researchers pointed out that children, with more adults in their lives who show them unconditional love, tend to feel more secure and valued. The research noted that parents are wired to guide, correct, and reprimand their children, while grandparents tend to be less judgmental and critical of their grandchildren’s actions, so children may be more likely to drop their guard.
Whatever the reason, it is a wonderful trend and if you are lucky enough to have grandchildren do not be surprised if they confide in you or ask you for advice. Also, go ahead and spoil that grandchild. If your own offspring give you a dirty look you can confidently state, “Science says it is important” and walk away knowing that you have research to back it up. Happy New Year!