‘I Feel Happy When I See Her… She Needs Me’: A Qualitative Study on Grandparenting and Children's Social–Emotional Development in Rural Malaysia

ABSTRACT This study explored rural co‐residential Malaysian grandparents' conceptualisation of their practices and contributions to their preadolescent grandchildren's social–emotional development. Using a qualitative research design, we conducted semi‐structured interviews with 25 non‐custodial co‐residential grandparents of preadolescents (Mage = 64.8 years; SD = 8.23) from three ethnic groups in rural Peninsular Malaysia. Framework analysis revealed three themes: (1) Defining the journey of grandparenting and grandparenthood; (2) Coaching grandchildren's social skills and expression of autonomy support, and (3) Supporting grandchildren's emotional regulation and sharing with grandchildren. Our results revealed shared and unique ways grandparents perceived their role in facilitating autonomy, promoting cohesive intergenerational relationships, and supporting their grandchildren's social and emotional regulation skills development through supportive and responsive daily caregiving interactions. The findings reflect Malaysian families' evolving yet culturally rooted dynamics, where autonomy and relatedness are not mutually exclusive but co‐exist within supportive intergenerational relationships. This research challenges oversimplified characterisations of Asian grandparenting by revealing the emotionally responsive and socially instructive roles that grandparents play in fostering their grandchildren's social–emotional development.