What does today’s ‘village’ to raise a child look like?

Today’s parents are reinventing what it means to rely on their “village” when it comes to raising a child, new research finds.

According to a survey of 2,000 parents of children ages 0-6 conducted by Talker Research on behalf of The Goddard School, 78% agree that the definition of a village— or their community and support system— is different today than when they were growing up. In fact, another 86% of parents say they have a different type of support system today than their own parents did.

Growing up, respondents recall spending the most time with grandmothers (60%), grandfathers (41%), aunts (51%) and uncles (41%) as well as their parents’ best friend (38%).

In total, they can remember an average of eight different people being regularly involved in their lives as children, and a majority (86%) are still in some contact with their childhood village. But today, parents rely on an average of seven different people, and fewer of them are relatives.