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Martin Piotrowski, Weronika Kloc-Nowak, Sylwia Timoszuk. 2026.

Spatially Contingent Contact: How Geographical Distance and Borders Shape Grandparent-Grandchild Communication

 

Population, Space and Place (Volume32, Issue4, e70275)

https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.70275


Abstract

The geographies of modern families are increasingly stretched by migration and mobility, raising crucial questions for population geography about the maintenance of intergenerational bonds. This study investigates the frequency of social contact between Polish grandparents and their grandchildren (both minor and adult), explicitly analyzing how these dynamics are contingent upon spatial context. Drawing on a 2019–2020 survey of grandparents (N=1,000) and integrating insights from social presence and media niche theories, we employ ordered logit regression to compare face-to-face and ICT-mediated contact across three distinct spatial categories of grandchildren: local (within 25 km), domestically distant (elsewhere in Poland), and transnational (abroad). Findings reveal that geographical distance and the presence of national borders fundamentally shape contact patterns. Results support a mixed, context-dependent model: remote communication serves a compensatory function for transnational grandchildren, substituting for a lack of physical co-presence. Conversely, it provides a cumulative function for local grandchildren, supplementing frequent in-person contact. Domestically distant grandchildren represent an intermediary group. This research contributes to spatial demography by demonstrating how technology and geography intersect to reshape intergenerational solidarity within an ageing population context marked by high rates of mobility and migration.
 

Keywords

Grandparenting, Geographical distance, Intergenerational contact, ICT (Information and Communication Technology), Poland

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