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Counseling Psychology Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Counseling Psychology

Practice Recommendations For Mental Health Professionals: Perspectives From Grandparents And Their Adolescent Grandchildren, Kendra A. O'Hora, Megan L. Dolbin-Macnab Mar 2015

Practice Recommendations For Mental Health Professionals: Perspectives From Grandparents And Their Adolescent Grandchildren, Kendra A. O'Hora, Megan L. Dolbin-Macnab

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

Although grandfamilies are consumers of a variety of mental health services, less is known about what these families, particularly the grandchildren, want from practitioners. To gain insight into how practitioners can best meet the needs of grandfamilies, 40 custodial grandmothers and their adolescent grandchildren were interviewed. Results of a qualitative analysis indicated that grandmothers and grandchildren did not make clear distinctions between various types of services and service providers. Grandchildren, in particular, emphasized the need for mental health professionals to facilitate mentoring and to provide opportunities for grandchildren to socialize with other grandchildren who have been through similar circumstances. Grandmothers …


The Experience Of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Deborah Sampson, Katherine Hertlein Ph.D. Mar 2015

The Experience Of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Deborah Sampson, Katherine Hertlein Ph.D.

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the experiences of grandparents and the challenges they face raising their grandchildren. This study was conducted through qualitative interviewing, where participants responded to open-ended questions regarding the challenges of raising their grandchildren. Themes and patterns were identified through an open-coding process. The five themes discussed include: characteristics of everyday life, parenting experiences, lack of resources, managing negative emotions, and social changes. Implications for clinical practice and further research are discussed.