In the context of aging and urbanization, the scale of elderly migrants entering metropolitan areas is increasing. Identifying the correlation between grandchild caring and mental health for this group in metropolitan areas is of great significance. Currently, although many studies in China have focused on the correlation between grandchild caring and the physical and mental health of elderly people (Blustein et al., 2004; Albertini et al., 2018; Zhai et al., 2023), there is inconsistency in the conclusions and we know very little about the correlation between grandchild caring and the mental health of elderly migrants in metropolitan areas. This study is the first to explore the correlation between grandchild caring and mental health of elderly migrants in metropolitan areas in China, and to explore the heterogeneity and mechanism of this relationship among elderly migrants with different characteristics. Taking Beijing as an example, this study found a positive correlation between grandchild caring and the mental health of elderly migrants, and participation in grandchild caring was significantly correlated with a lower risk of depressive symptoms among elderly migrants in metropolitan areas.
Theory of role enhancement might explain the association between grandchild caring and depressive symptoms. Individuals can acquire social support and resources by assuming multiple roles (Seiber, 1974), which can partially counterbalance the detrimental effects of role stress on health (Szinovacz et al., 2006). Grandchild caring can serve as a means to compensate for role deficiencies of elderly migrants (Di Gessa et al., 2016). This, in turn, can mitigate the risk of mental health problems. Grandchild caring offers elderly migrants an opportunity to reaffirm their value within the family and society, thereby finding a sense of fulfillment in their later years (Tao et al., 2018). Regular interaction with grandchildren can retard the rate of cognitive decline in older adults, subsequently diminishing the likelihood of depressive symptoms (Chen et al., 2023). Lastly, by assuming the role of caregivers, older adults develop a sense of responsibility, causing them to refrain from smoking, drinking, and adopting healthy lifestyle habits, which, in turn, fosters physical and mental well-being (Waldrop et al., 2001). In addition, cultural context is also of great significance (Seung-Won et al., 2018). China is a a kinship-oriented society, there is an emphasis on intergenerational reciprocity and the significance of blood ties (Fei, 2015). Grandchild caring is considered a duty motivated by altruism and responsibility towards the family and lineage, reflecting ethical principles (Yang et al., 2004; Song et al., 2008). The elders who participate in grandchild caring in China view it as a contribution and commitment to their family, driven by collective expectations from both family and society towards the older generation (Li et al., 2021). Consequently, grandchild caring in China is perceived by many elders as beneficial for their physical and mental well-being. Our results are consistent with and build on previous studies.
Currently, some researches argue that grandchild caring could lower the mental health levels of older people, primarily based on the Role Strain Theory. The Role Strain Theory suggests that when individuals play multiple roles simultaneously, if they cannot balance and coordinate their own resources to cope with various roles, it can lead to stress and strain, thus affecting mental health (Goode, 1960). Grandchild caring increases the obligations of older people and intensifies their physical and mental stress (He et al., 2021), and consumes a significant amount of time and energy for older people, exacerbating their self-neglect of health issues and squeezing the time available for exercise and medical services (Baker et al., 2008). Another possible explanation is that the difference id caring intensity. In this study, it is found that high caring intensity can increasing the risk of depressive symptoms among elderly migrants in metropolitan areas. It is especially suitable for the elderly migrants who are female, 70 years old and above and have lived in Beijing less than 4years. The physical functions of elderly migrants gradually decrease as age. And role transitions such as retirement and declining labor capacity significantly reduce the social economic resources of elderly migrants. It becomes even more difficult for them to coordinate resources to cope with the problem of "role strain." Therefore, high intensity of grandchild caring will further increase the risk of depressive symptoms among the elderly migrants.
Previous research has suggested that grandchild caring affects the mental health of the elderly not only through intergenerational economic reciprocity but also through non-monetary intergenerational transfers (Arpino et al., 2014). Our findings indicate that grandchild caring not only directly reduce the risk of the depressive symptoms among elderly migrant in metropolitan areas, but also reduce it by adding the emotional feedback from adult children, promoting their participation in social activities and enhancing emotional interaction between grandparents and grandchildren. However, children’s financial feedback is not the reason why grandchild caring reduces the risk of depressive symptoms among elderly migrants. This study shows that grandchild caring does not increase children's financial feedback to elderly migrants. This finding differs from the conclusion of previous research targeting the non-migrant which showed that grandchild caring can enhance the well-being of grandparents by increasing their financial support from their children (Wang, 2022). One possible explanation is that elderly migrants live and eat together with their children in metropolitan areas, so their children do not give them too much additional economic feedback. However, non-migrants generally take care of their grandchildren in their own homes, so children will provide them with more financial feedback as compensation, which constitutes an important source of their income.
Notably, the enhancement of emotional interaction with grandchildren is a vital factors that why grandchild caring reduce depressive symptoms among elderly migrants. By grandchild caring, grandparents feel a sense of value, experience an increase in their life goals, and have the opportunity to enjoy life with their children in ways that would not otherwise be possible (Noriega et al., 2017). This is especially true in China, where the "skip-generation kinship" phenomenon is prevalent (Jiang, et al., 2013), leading to substantial emotional interaction between grandparents and grandchildren. It serves as a crucial form of social support for the elderly (Chen, et al., 2012). However, previous studies have overlooked it.
As an exploratory research, especially focusing on the unique group of elderly migrant in metropolitan areas, and explaining the correlation between grandchild caring and depressive symptoms of this group from the perspective of emotional interaction with grandchildren, as well as comparing the effects of this mechanism with other mechanisms, this study still has some innovative significance. However, several limitations should be noted. First, due to the strong mobility of the elderly migrants, it is difficult to obtain their registered residence and current residence, and it is impossible to obtain a complete sampling frame. This study can only refer to previous survey data on the migrants in Beijing. Based on the distribution of characteristics such as sex and age, a non probability sampling method of quota sampling is adopted to maximize the representativeness of the sample. Therefore, the research conclusion of this article needs to be cautious when extrapolating to the entire elderly migrants. Secondly, the survey data used in this article only consists of 1000 samples, and the number of mobile elderly migrants with certain characteristics is relatively small. Therefore, when conducting heterogeneity analysis or subsample testing, the small number of samples in certain groups affects the stability of the results. Therefore, further research on updating the dataset can be performed in the future.
In conclusion, grandchild caring significantly decreases the risk of depressive symptoms among elderly migrants. However, high intensity of caring may increase the risk of depressive symptoms. It is especially suitable for the elderly migrants who are female, 70 years old and above and have lived in Beijing less than 4years. Social activity participation, emotional feedback from adult children, and emotional interaction with grandchildren are the mediating variables in the relationship between grandchild caring and mental health of elderly migrants in metropolitan areas. Notably, emotional interaction with grandchildren makes the most significant contribution to the mediating effect.