The Evolution of African American Family Structure
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Authors
Welks, Jennifer
Issue Date
1992
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
Research for this project consisted of interviewing
four grandmothers and one grandfather who are primary
caregivers of their grandchildren. I also interviewed one
adult male who was raised predominately by his grandparents.
I interviewed each informant twice, except Carol. The
length of those interviews ranged from 45 minutes to one
hour and 45 minutes, for an average of one hour and 16
minutes per interview. I met Carol during a support group
meeting for grandparents who raise their grandchildren. I
consider that group meeting our first interview. I took
notes during the session which lasted about 2 hours. I then
asked Carol if she would participate in the study. Although
she agreed enthusiastically, I believed she had given me
enough background information in the group session to
warrant only one more interview. The second interview
lasted about one hour and 40 minutes.
Rapport was excellent. All informants shared very
personal and potentially shameful information. I can
attribute some of this wonderful rapport to the personal
closeness I had previous to the interviews with three of my
informants. I worked with two informants, Lance and Dee,
for several months before our professional association
began. I also had a relationship with my informant Carol.
We both participated in a small support group for
grandparents who are primary guardians of their
grandchildren. The emotionally intense group meeting
quickly produced feelings of trust among the participants.
The intimacy which existed between Lance, Dee, Carol, and I
prior to the interviews hindered the gender, racial, and age
barriers which could have easily developed.
I greatly attribute the exceptional rapport I
experienced with Chris, Tim, and Jill to the respect my
informants had for my work supervisor. Joanne Hyames was
the supervisor of the Foster Care System at the Kalamazoo
County Juvenile Home during my internship there this summer
and fall. Chris and Tim have been foster parents for years
and have associated with Mrs. Hyames both on personal and
professional levels. Mrs. Hyames actually approached Tim
and Chris before I did; explaining who I was and a little
about my project. In addition, Jill also knew Mrs. Hyames
before I contacted her. The Juvenile Home conducts seminars
on ways to improve parental ability. Jill met Mrs. Hyames
during one of the meetings. I believe the assurance Xrs.
Hyames conveyed to the informants regarding my integrity
gave me a head start establishing intimacy.
Eventually, all my informants revealed very painful
facts about their children or in Lances case, his mother.
Drugs, prostitution, neglect, physical and sexual abuse of
their grandchildren were revealed by my informants.
Considering many parents feel responsible for the outcome of
their children, revealing such "failures" so openly
represents strong evidence of good rapport. Intimate
rapport with Lance can further be illustrated by his
expression after our second interview. He was surprised at
his candidness. I believe this was one of the first times
he has explored his feelings about his absent biological
parents. Intimacy with Dee can be illustrated not by what
was said during the interview but before. Dee and another
co worker discussed some potentially very damaging
information about her superiors at work in my presence. I
believe a high degree of trust had to exist for Dee to
comfortably discuss such sensitive information in my
attendance.
Description
iii, 221 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College.
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.