Grandmother-grandchild relationships and the role of the middle generation: A cross-cultural perspective.

Recent studies underlined the importance of grandparent-grandchild ties, but the quality of relations varies across cultures. Parents as middle generation may play a mediating role, e.g., by regulating contact frequency and exchanged support. The present study aims to explore the mediating role of mothers for the relationship between maternal grandmothers and grandchildren in cultural contexts with different family norms and kinship systems. A sample of N = 489 family-triads (adolescents, mothers, maternal grandmothers) from USA, Germany, China and Turkey participating in the Value-of-Children study reported on their relationship quality and intergenerational support provision. Analyses showed that the relationship quality of mothers to their own mothers was related to the grandmother-grandchild relation in all countries included. Further, results partly suggested an indirect effect of social support provided by adult daughters on the grandmother-grandchild relationship. Findings are discussed within the framework of intergenerational relations throughout the lifespan from a cross-cultural perspective.