Violence begets violence: How grandmother kinship caregivers mitigate abuse by their grandchildren
Abstract
Growing research evidence has shown that grandparents who provide care to their grandchildren as kinship caregivers (termed grandparent kinship care) experience several challenges, including abuse by the children in their care. We argue that grandmother kinship caregivers in Ghana may be subjected to severe and continuous abuse due to the legitimacy of myths about witchcraft accusations against older people. Following narrative interviews with 31 grandmother kinship caregivers in Ghana, who have experienced abuse and harm from children in their care, we found that the grandmothers used physical punishment and discipline, neglect, and other violence strategies to control and mitigate abusive behaviors of the children in their care. Grandmothers need protection from abuse; thus, we recommend the development of parenting programs to enable grandparent kinship caregivers to develop skills to protect themselves and prevent future harm by children in their care.
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of Publication
1-1-2025
Publication Title
Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
School
School of Arts and Humanities
RAS ID
88266
Funders
Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship
Copyright
subscription content
Comments
Bentum, H., Abdullah, A., Banham, V., & Adusei-Asante, K. (2025). Violence begets violence: How grandmother kinship caregivers mitigate abuse by their grandchildren. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2025.2601974