Pros and cons of grandparents raising grandchildren

Christopher Orosco

WEEK TWO DISCUSSION

When discussing whether grandparents have any legal right for visitation or not, one first has to step back and take a look at the whole picture. If the parents of a child are caring for their child properly without any cause for concern, those parents should have full rights when it comes to who can or cannot be in contact with their children. However, if the parents are incapable of caring for their child’s wellbeing and a family member such as a grandparent, aunt, or uncle decides to try and step in with adequate reasons as to why they should have a court approved role in the child’s life, then that can be taken into consideration by a judge, board, or team of social workers.

When taking this scenario into consideration; “Samantha, age 9, had not seen her maternal grandparents for more than 15 months as a result of her father’s belief that the maternal grandparents would not model or inculcate “appropriate moral/religious values” in the child. Samantha’s mother had passed away approximately 17 months before. It was only after Samantha’s mother died that her father refused to allow any contact between Samantha and her mother’s parents although they previously took her on various outings on a regular basis and paid for her private school tuition.” (Beiner, Lowenstein, Worenklein, & Sauber, 2014)

A lot of people may feel that the grandparents here have a valid right to be able to spend time with their grandchild. However, if there are no reasons to show that the now single father is not properly caring for the child in anyway, he should be able to dictate who is allowed to spend time with his child. You or I may not agree with his reasoning, and obviously neither does the grandparents, but that is the father’s decision. There are many valid arguments on both sides of this scenario, but in the end, the grandparents are not the parents, and should not be able to receive a court judgment saying they have the same rights as a parent.

Beiner, S. F., Lowenstein, L., Worenklein, A., & Sauber, S. R. (2014). Grandparents’ Rights:

Psychological and Legal Perspectives. American Journal of Family Therapy, 42(2), 114–126.

https://doi-org.nuls.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/01926187.2013.857907

Philipp Urasch

Philipp Urasch - Week 2 Discussion Post

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Question 1:

Discuss the pros and cons of regulated and enforced grandparent visitation rights. Part of your answer and discussion should involve the roles that grandparents play in grandchildren’s lives (e.g., alternative caregivers, playmates, family historians and transmitters of family values and traditions, advice-givers to parents).

This week's discussion is on an exciting topic for me since I do not have any grandparents to reference in my own life. After conducting my research, I can see how grandparents can provide positive support to a working parent, especially in times of struggle, such as divorce or separation. Raising a child in any regard is a difficult challenge to conquer, and one must have a good support network around. In my opinion, a grandparent's primary purpose would be to pass on traditions and family values. However, parents can utilize their parents to seek out guidance and advice since the grandparents have already experienced raising a child.

Pros:

· Many grandparents that are taking care of their grandchildren say that it keeps them fit and active (“10 advantages and disadvantages of grandparents looking after their grandchildren,” 2017).

· Grandparents can pass on their wisdom and life experiences to the children (“10 advantages and disadvantages of grandparents looking after their grandchildren,” 2017).

Cons:

· Physical limitations and declining health of grandparents could make it difficult to keep up with the energy required to raise a child.

· Kelley, Whitley, and Campos (2013) stated that research findings indicated that grandparents who are caring or raising grandchildren are in more likely to suffer from psychological issues such as depression and stress.

References:

10 advantages and disadvantages of grandparents looking after their grandchildren. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.virginmediatelevision.ie/xpose/article/lifestyle/253822/10-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-grandparents-looking-after-their-grandchildren

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. (2011). Retrieved from http://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/spennurres/grandparents_raising_grandchildren/0

Kelley, S., Whitley, D., & Campos, P. (2013). African American caregiving grandmothers: results of an intervention to improve health indicators and health promotion behaviors. Journal of Family Nursing, 19(1), 53–73. https://doi.org/10.1177/1074840712462135

Question 2:

How to resolve intergenerational conflict, how to determine the “children’s best interests,” the consequences of grandparent visitation rights on family functioning, and how to resolve the grandparent policy.

Whether or not child custody evaluators act in the best interest of the child, it always seems like the child is never directly involved in the decision-making process. It is rare to hear the child being asked about his or her opinion of where to stay. Montoya (2000) explains that during a court hearing, the supreme court ruled that taking the children away from the parents would conflict with a constitutional right. The supreme court felt it was unjust to have outside party decide the future of the child. There should be more done to help facilitate coming to an inner family solution without bringing the issue out into the open court.

During the summer of 2018, the president signed into law ‘The Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Act’ which received support from over 40 advocacy groups (Butts, 2018). The main goal of the bill is to offer support to the community of grandparents who are raising children. Butts (2018) explains that with a growing number of grandparents being responsible for raising grandchildren due to substance abuse and prolonged military deployment of the biological parents. Therefore, it is important to provide grandparents with adequate resources.

References:

Butts, D. (2018). How this law will help grandparents raising grandkids. Retrieved from https://www.nextavenue.org/law-grandparents-raising-grandkids/

Montoya, T. (2000). Troxel v. Granville: Is court ordered grandparent visitation over? American Journal of Family Law, 14(4), 217–222.

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2 days ago

Arlene Tibbs

Arlene Tibbs Week 2 DQ

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The relationship between child and grandparents have evolved over the years. The grandparents have become the leading force in maintaining discipline, the holder of family traditions and the focal point for family gatherings. The family depends heavily on grandparents because they are the guidebook through life. They are wise and have experience in the matters that we have yet to endure. The pros of regulated grandparent visitation is the ability to eradicate toxicity from the life of the child. The way I grew up, I would never want to put my child in the same situation. If I was forced to send my daughter to my mother's house, I would die. The environment was not conducive to success and growth. This would not be in the best interest of my daughter.

The con of regulated visits is the ability for the child to spend time with their grandparents. This would be especially helpful in a situation where the child has lived with their grandparents for a number of years. This may be due to the abandonment of the parents or drug abuse. The opiod crises requires more grandparents to step in more than ever. It is estimated that 19 percent of children live with their grandparents due to drug abuse (Anderson, 2019). In this case, it would be in the best interest of the child to stay with the grandparents and only grant visitation to the parents if they are suitable.

Anderson, L. (2019, April 22). The Opioid Crisis and Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2019/04/opioid-crisis-grandparents-raising-grandchildren.html

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Chasity San Miguel

Grandparents are the best!

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As Goyer states, it is harder to prove the harm that comes with allowing grandparents visitation rights than it is to prove that it is in the best interest of the child. Being a single mother, I am grateful for all of the wonderful and positive things that come out of the relationship between my son and his grandparents. Grandparents visitation rights should always be in the best interest of the grandchildren.

A con to this matter would include each state to “incorporate statutory guidelines for granting visitation rights to grandparents” (FindLaw). To some states, it may be an inconvenient matter that they do not want to take part in. Another “con,” would be if grandparents were untrustworthy or abusive in any form and their intentions were not good. I as a parent, would not want my son’s grandparents fighting for visitation rights under these circumstances. Unfortunately, situations get tough when dealing with divorced parents or custody battles. When grandparents have already developed a great relationship with their grandchildren, I believe that is causes more harm than good to not allow grandparents their visitation rights. On the contrary, grandparents may hold positive qualities such as stability, support, and consistency. With families experiencing instability these days due to divorce, death, and/or incarceration, I’d say that grandparents are much needed in their grandchildren’s lives.

On a personal note, my parents divorced when I was about nine years old and my grandparents were the peace to this chaos. My grandparents served as second parents to me. When I was a child, they were role models to me for many things and as an adult for many other things that I’ve grown to realize over time. They were so full of tradition, morals, and consistency and showed me great characteristics to possess including respect, loyalty, and love. I am forever grateful for my grandparents and look forward to see how my son will accept his grandparent’s teachings.

Goyer, A. (2009). Grandparents’ Visitation Rights. AARP. Retrieved from https://www.aarp.org/relationships/grandparenting/info-05-2009/goyer_grandparent_visitation.html.