Rozhdestvenskaya E. Y. (2020) Involved Fatherhood, Caring Masculinity. Monitoring of Public Opi­nion: Economic and Social Changes. No. 5. P. 155—185.

Текст статьи на сайте журнала URL: https://monitoringjournal.ru/index.php/monitoring/article/view/1676 (дата обращения 07.01.2021)

Abstract

Modern research shows that fatherhood and fathering-practices are closely linked to the concept of masculinity and gender contracts. This means inducing changes in masculine and paternal roles due to actively changing configurations of women's educational, labor, and maternal responsibilities. Thus, the social institution of fatherhood is under pressure from both the public and private spheres. How far have fathers become available for children, how filled with real content is the interaction with them, and how much do they take responsibility for the children? As a theoretical approach, the article develops a socio-constructivist platform, on the basis of which the author discusses the theory of social recognition of Alex Honnett, Nancy Frazer regarding the concept of involved paternity, as well as the theory of caring masculinity Carla Elliot. As an acceptable conceptual framework, the author builds a complementary gender construct that allows relativizing hegemonic normative masculinity through a legitimate care discourse that becomes gender neutral and frees up the space of fatherly practices in the style of active fatherhood involved. The focus of the empirical study described in the article is the question of the continuity and differences of fatherly practices over three generations. The study is based on an analysis of the collection of 200 family cases collected, each of which is a three-generation section of the problems of fatherhood, motherhood and socialization in the format of a semi-structured interview. For the analysis of the narrative content of paternal practices, the following categories are distinguished: everyday action in upbringing, upbringing norms, assessments and modes of justification for models of upbringing and participation in upbringing. The main empirical conclusion is that fatherhood “returns” to the family, overgrows with masculine transforming care practices, its value is valorized as a meaningful independent role.