Becoming a Grandparent

Becoming a grandparent turns attention towards close ties and the wish to guide the next generation. Research suggests the transition is linked to gains in wellbeing, and that steady, moderate help with grandchildren goes with longer life and sharper thinking. In the UAE, 2026 is the Year of Family.

What the report found

1. The UAE puts the family at the centre. 2026 is the Year of Family, with continuity between generations among its priorities. A Ministry of Family, the Barakatna initiative and the National Policy for Senior Emiratis support older relatives within the family, and satisfaction with family life in Abu Dhabi reached 78.4 per cent.
2. Grandparents are part of how people raise children. Research on human evolution, and a review of 45 studies of child survival, suggest that help from relatives, grandmothers among them, has long improved children's chances.
3. The new role shifts priorities. When time feels precious, people turn towards close ties and meaning. The wish to guide the next generation, which psychologists call generativity, finds a natural outlet in a grandchild.
4. The transition can lift wellbeing. In large European panels, becoming a grandmother was linked to better quality of life and life satisfaction, and in another analysis to fewer depressive symptoms. Researchers still discuss how much of the gain comes from the role itself.
5. Steady, chosen help does the most good. Grandparents who looked after grandchildren from time to time lived longer in one Berlin study, and one day a week was linked to sharper thinking in another. Closeness, stories and balance matter more than hours.

What is inside

1. The moment
2. Before: the news and the wait
3. During: the first months
4. After: a role that grows
5. How the moment is lived across the Gulf
6. What lasts

Plus a phase map of the moment, an illustrated first year as a grandparent, a table of grandparenting styles and a data panel of UAE and Gulf figures.

Who it is for

For new and future grandparents and their families, and for employers, services and public bodies in the UAE and the Gulf.

How we work

Moment Reports look at how people think and decide at particular points in the year or in life, starting with the UAE and then the wider Gulf. Every claim is graded Established, Emerging or Untested, and where researchers disagree, both sides are set out before we say where we stand.

Cite this report

The Why We Project (2026) Becoming a Grandparent: A new role in the family. Moment Report No. 17. Dubai: Why We Tech Ltd. Available at: thewhyweproject.com