The Impact of Social Class and Social Trends on the Role of Grandparent.

This paper attempts to reassess the role of grandparent from a social class perspective. The role is analyzed first as a "peculiar non-institution" for middle-class families in the United States. Grandparenting is shown to differ by degree of "functional centrality" in middle-class families and families of lower socio-economic status, a measure which permits conceptualization of the grandparent role as either "ideological" or "realistic. " Using this theoretical framework, it is noted that certain biological, political, and social trends appear to be converging in a way that could catalyze a rearrangement of social class characteristics, thereby creating a "reality" grandparent role for a significant number of older middle-class persons.