Grandparenting in China

Educational inequality has been largely examined through nuclear family-based research, yet the role of extended family members, especially grandparents, remains underexplored (Mare, 2011). This book investigates grandparental effects on grandchildren’s educational outcomes in China, where three-generation co-residence prevails and grandparental involvement in childcare remains intensive. Results reveal that grandchildren with better-educated grandparents perform better in school, with household educational investment as a key mediator. Grandchildren also benefit academically from higher educational expectations among low-SES grandmothers, and from consistent authoritative parents and grandparents. This book suggests that educational inequality research should move beyond the parent-child dyad and explore the role of grandparents in the intergenerational reproduction of educational inequality.