CENTRALITY OF THE GRANDFATHER ROLE AMONG OLDER RURAL BLACK AND WHITE MEN

This study examined racial differences in the centrality of the grandfather role and in the factors related to its saliency. Rural men aged 65 years or older, 48 Black and 51 White, reported on their grandchild of most contact. Multiple Classification Analysis, t-tests, and hierarchical multiple regression were used to examine two hypotheses: (a) the grandfather role would be more central to Black than to White men, and (b) factors predicting interaction with grandchildren would vary by race. Strong support was found for both. Racial differences were observed in household structure, association with grandchildren, grand-filial expectations, help given to grandchildren, and in affection for grandchildren. Similarities, however, were seen in the ranked importance of the role, in the amount of help received from grandchildren, and in grandfather-grandchild consensus. The findings support a cultural rather than a structural/economic base for the grandfather role, thus validating the cultural variant perspective.