Grandparental involvement and South African adolescents’ emotional and behavioural health: a summary of research findings

South African grandparents provide considerable support to their grandchildren. However, little is known about whether grandparental involvement contributes to children's well-being. This paper synthesises the findings of our research on the relationship between grandparental involvement and the emotional and behavioural health of South African adolescents. In the first phase of the research, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 adolescents. Thematic analysis indicated that grandparents served as caregivers or surrogate parents, teachers and sources of motivation and emotional support. In the second phase, we piloted a structured questionnaire informed by the qualitative evidence with 204 students in Grades 8 and 9 (mean age = 13.69 years) at a public high school. In phase 3, the survey instrument was administered to a larger sample of 671 adolescents. Multiple regression models indicated that greater grandparental involvement was associated with more adolescent prosocial behaviour, regardless of family structure and the level of parental involvement. In addition, maternal grandfather involvement was associated with fewer adolescent emotional problems. Maternal grandmother involvement predicted fewer adolescent internalising problems only when grandmothers and adolescents co-resided in three-generation households. The findings suggest that grandparental involvement is a potential resource for promoting social and emotional competence in adolescents.