Grandchildren Living in Grandparent-Headed Households, 2022
Family Profile No. 18, 2024
Author: Jaden Loo
This is an update of
FP-18-01 & FP-21-07
In recent decades, a growing share of children reside in grandparent-headed households (Wu, 2018). This Family Profile uses data from the child’s perspective in the American Community Survey to chart grandchildren living in grandparent-headed households since 2008. Here, we focus on differentiating between multigenerational grandparent-headed households (parent present) and skipped-generation grandparent-headed households (no parent present). We then describe variation in these grandparent-headed households by minor children’s age, household economic disadvantage, and race/ethnicity. This profile is the first in our updated series on grandparenthood.
Trend in the Proportion of Children Living in a Grandparent’s Household and Presence of a Parent
- The share of minor children living in a grandparent-headed household has risen modestly from 6.79% of households with minor children in 2008 to 7.81% in 2022.
- This share reached its peak in 2020 when 8.80% of minor children were living in a grandparent-headed household.
- In 2022, roughly three-quarters of minor children who resided in a grandparent-headed household lived in a multi-generational household (with a parent present) and the remaining quarter lived in a skipped-generation household (without a parent present).
- Among households where minor children reside with their grandparents, the distribution of those in skipped-generation households has remained relatively consistent from 2008 to 2022 (pattern not shown).
Figure 1. Percentage of Minors Living in a Grandparent-Headed Household, 2008-2022
Figure 2. Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent, 2022
Source: NCFMR analyses of American Community Survey 1-year estimates (IPUMS USA University of Minnesota, www.ipums.org), 2022
Children Living in a Grandparent’s Household by Presence of Parent and Age of Child
- In 2022 most minor children residing in a grandparent-headed household were living in a multigenerational household regardless of age group. Levels ranged from a high of 83% among those aged 6 and under to 62% among those aged 13 to 17.
- Compared with younger children, older children more often reside in a skipped generation household. Approaching two-fifths (38%) of children aged 13 to 17 in grandparent-headed households lived in a skipped generation household, which is more than double the share among children aged 6 and under (17%).
Figure 3. Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent and Age Groups, 2022
Economic Disadvantage Among Children Living in a Grandparent’s Household by Presence of Parent
- For children living in a grandparent-headed household, those in a skipped generation household fared worse economically than those in a multigenerational household.
- More than two fifths (43%) of children in a grandparent-headed household below the poverty line lived in a skipped generation household, whereas among those between 100% and 200% of the poverty line just 29% were in a skipped generation household. For children above 200% of the poverty line, two in ten were in a skipped generation household.
Figure 4. Economic Disadvantage among Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent, 2022
Variation by Race/Ethnicity
Figure 5. Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent by Race/Ethnicity, 2022
- Across all five racial/ethnic groups, minor children living in a grandparent-headed household more frequently lived in a multigenerational household compared with a skipped generation household.
- The shares living in multigenerational households were larger for Hispanic and Asian children (82% and 83%, respectively) than for children of all other racial/ethnic groups.
- The greatest percentage of children in skipped-generation households was among Black children (31%), followed closely by White children (30%), and then children of other racial/ethnic groups (26%)
Data Source:
Flood, S., King, M., Rodgers, R., Ruggles, S., Warren, J. R., Warren, D., Chen, A., Cooper, G., Richards, S., Schouweiler, M., & Westberry, M. (2024). IPUMS USA: Version 15.0 American Community Survey. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2024. https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V15.0
References:
Wu, H. (2018). Grandchildren living in a grandparent-headed household. Family Profiles, FP-18-01. Bowling Green, OH: National Center for Family & Marriage Research. https://doi.org/10.25035/ncfmr/fp-18-01
Carlson, L. (2021). Grandchildren living in grandparent-headed households, 2019. Family Profiles, FP-21-07. Bowling Green, OH: National Center for Family & Marriage Research. https://doi.org/10.25035/ncfmr/fp-21-07
Suggested Citation:
Loo, J. (2024). Grandchildren living in grandparent-headed households, 2022. Family Profiles, FP-24-18. Bowling Green, OH: National Center for Family & Marriage Research. https://doi.org/10.25035/ncfmr/fp-24-18
This project is supported with assistance from Bowling Green State University. From 2007 to 2013, support was also provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. The opinions and conclusions expressed herein are solely those of the author(s) and should not be construed as representing the opinions or policy of any agency of the state or federal government.
Updated: 09/04/2024 02:23PM