•An untapped data source of blogs was used for insight into parental loneliness.•Disconnection was a global theme related to parental loneliness.•Findings imply being unprepared for the transition to ...parenthood led to loneliness.•Sensitive communication is needed to enable parents to disclose feelings of loneliness•There are gaps in insights from vulnerable and marginalised groups
UK-based national surveys and international longitudinal studies have shown that around a third of parents experience chronic or persistent loneliness. There is limited research about the experience of loneliness in parenthood, however blogs authored by parents, sharing their personal experiences about loneliness offer a potential rich data source. The purpose of this study was to identify and analyse blog narratives written by parents who had experienced loneliness to increase understanding of their experiences. One hundred and ninety-six relevant blog posts were identified, of which 157 had contact details to request permission to use the blog post in the study. Twenty-two parent bloggers gave their permission. Thematic network analysis was used to open code the blogs and 4 organising themes and subthemes emerged, which centred on a global theme of disconnection. Disconnection underpinned themes relating to a sense that being a parent was overwhelming, changes in identity linked to becoming a parent, difficulties in sharing feelings of loneliness with others, and a need for social connection. Findings point to parents being unprepared for the transition to parenthood, with implications for perinatal education and support, including further opportunities for parents to connect to reduce social isolation.
Display omitted
The article provides a scientific review of the understanding of intensive parenthood in foreign and national literature in the context of describing the psychological traits of mothers adhering to ...the model of intensive parenthood. The term itself is not purely scientific, but because of the popularity of this perspective of parenthood, it needs detailed consideration, description, research and justification. Many modern researchers are interested in describing and examining in more details the ideology of such a common pattern of parental behavior as intensive parenthood, and that’s why in this article you can find different views on the term and list of difficulties concerned with the model itself. The article also describes the psychological traits of mothers who adhere to this model of motherhood.
В статье приводится описание подходов к пониманию интенсивного родительства в зарубежной и отечественной литературе в контексте описания психологических черт матерей, придерживающихся модели интенсивного родительства. Сам термин не является сугубо научным, но по причине популярности данного направления родительства, он нуждается в детальном рассмотрении, описании, исследовании и обосновании. Многие современные исследователи заинтересованы вопросом описания и детального рассмотрения идеологии такой распространенной модели родительского поведения, как интенсивное родительство, и в статье приведены наиболее важные взгляды на понятие интенсивного родительства и трудности, сопряжённые с данной моделью. В статье также описаны психологические черты матерей, придерживающихся данной модели материнства.
In R (McConnell and YY) v Registrar General for England and Wales 2020 EWCA Civ 559, the Court of Appeal held the Registrar General was correct to register a trans man, who had given birth after the ...issuing of his gender recognition certificate, as ‘mother’ on his son’s birth certificate. In their judgement, the court rejected the appellants’ contention that the Gender Recognition Act 2004 should be construed to allow registration as either ‘father’ or ‘parent’. The court further held that the interference with the appellants’ Article 8 rights which resulted from the registration as ‘mother’ was proportionate and justified.
This study examined memorable messages about the decision to have children and become a parent. A total of 440 memorable messages were coded, and three main themes were found. Advice and ...considerations included warnings, messages about delaying having children, predictions about changing one’s mind, messages about financial and relational stability, and messages emphasizing personal choice. The theme of positive emphasis included children bring meaning/purpose to life, general positivity, messages about how children complete a family, and messages about how the parent–child relationship is unique and special. Family expectations and influence included messages about a family expectation to have children, family lineage, how the child becomes the caregiver, the parents’ desire to become grandparents, and marriage being a necessity. The memorable messages overall offered both positive and negative portrayals of having children. The continued theorizing about memorable messages is also discussed.
Gender in the Migratory Process Lutz, Helma
Journal of ethnic and migration studies,
12/2010, Letnik:
36, Številka:
10
Journal Article
Recenzirano
This paper argues for treating gender as a key category in the understanding of migratory processes. Starting with an illustration of the absence of women in mainstream migration research, it ...presents the debate on this phenomenon and its development from a focus on women to one on gender. Through discussion of the debate on current migration phenomena it is demonstrated how gender can be used in a conceptual framework which includes various levels (micro, meso and macro). The paper advocates the analysis of migratory processes within a broader framework of social change.
This longitudinal study examined how relative contributions to the division of childcare are related to individual and relational outcomes across the first 2 years of the transition to parenthood. ...Data were collected from a large sample of first-time parents 6 weeks before the birth of their child and then at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months postpartum. The results revealed that certain individual differences-especially gender and attachment avoidance-shape individual reactions to childcare, above and beyond the proportion of childcare tasks that partners report completing. Women and less avoidantly attached new parents handle the introduction of childcare tasks better than most men, especially those who are more avoidantly attached. In addition, certain reactions to childcare, such as childcare self-efficacy and perceptions of work-family conflict, moderate the relation between contributions to childcare and relationship satisfaction over the course of the transition. We also discuss the need for more research on men's adjustment during this particularly stressful transition.
The desire to have children is often regarded as a deep, biologically driven desire or a rational decision based on weighing costs and benefits. Based on these assumptions, many people believe that ...the desire to have children is unchanging. However, the studies presented here indicate that the desire to have children is readily shifted by subtle situational cues, such as advertisements and social media feeds depicting positive images of parents and children. In four studies (N = 1,093), we randomly assigned young adults (ages 18-35) without children to view images of parents and children or control images. We found that positive parent-child images led young adults to a greater desire to have children via increases in empathic emotions both immediately (Studies 1-4) and 3 days later (Study 3), but viewing negative parent-child images did not decrease the desire to have children (Study 2). The results of our studies suggest that portrayals of parents and children may temporarily influence young adults' desires to have children. Given the abundance of parent-child images on social media and intense societal pressure to have children, small changes in the desire to have children may accrue over time to influence child-rearing decisions.
Public Significance Statement
These studies suggest that when young adults see images of parents and cute children, they feel a greater desire to have children of their own, in part because those images make them feel affectionate, compassionate, and caring. Given the abundance of parent-child images on social media and intense societal pressure to have children, small changes in the desire to have children may have implications for actual child-rearing behavior and overall emotional well-being.
Fertility treatment is not guaranteed to succeed and around 30% of patients do not achieve parenthood. Failed treatment represents the loss of parenthood and often triggers intense and prolonged ...grief reactions. There is an increasing awareness of the need to support patients in the aftermath of failed treatment; however, there are no effective interventions for the effect. This need for support is expected to increase as the number of people delaying parenthood increases and therefore so does the number for whom assisted reproduction will not offer a solution.
This mixed-methods review aims at investigating if patients with failed fertility treatment experience significant psychosocial adjustment difficulties that warrant the provision of psychosocial support, and at developing a comprehensive model of adjustment to unmet parenthood goals that can be used to assist the design of theory led psychosocial interventions.
Five databases were systematically searched between 1978 and December 2015. Search terms were variations of fertility treatment AND psychosocial adjustment AND post-treatment. Quantitative studies had to include group mean comparisons on psychosocial adjustment (mental-health and well-being) between patients who had failed treatment and a control group. Qualitative studies had to focus on experiences of psychosocial adjustment after failed treatment. Screening, data extraction and critical appraisal were carried out independently by the authors using predefined protocols. Two meta-analyses were performed on mental-health and well-being with a random effect model. The primary outcome was Hedge's g. Publication bias was checked with visual inspection of funnel plots, Egger's test and the trim-and-fill method. A three-stage thematic analysis of results reported in primary qualitative papers was implemented. First-order descriptive and second-order interpretative themes were extracted.
Nine quantitative (9052 individuals, 8 countries) and 9 qualitative (267 individuals, 6 countries) studies were included. Six (67%) of the quantitative studies reported on mental-health and six on well-being. The meta-analyses showed that the failed group had worse mental-health (g = -0.496, P = 0.001, 95% CI -0.791 to 0.200; I2 = 88%, P < 0.001) and well-being (g = -0.324, P < 0.001, 95% CI -0.454 to 0.193, I2 = 0%, P = 0.552) than controls. The qualitative review resulted in 28 first-order themes that were grouped into 6 second-order themes: individual and relational adjustment, social adjustment, acceptance, pursuit of new life goals, meaning making, and fertility care perceptions and needs. The data showed that individual, relational and social adjustment tended to increase with time since treatment, and that individuals' care perceptions and needs also changed. The data also suggested that individuals who engage in the psychological tasks of accepting and making meaning of their situation and pursuing new life goals adjust better and have fewer support needs. These predictions were articulated in the Three Tasks Model of Adjustment to Unmet Parenthood Goals.
Results provide compelling evidence for the provision of psychosocial care directed at helping individuals who are relinquishing their parenthood goals. The Three Tasks Model of Adjustment to Unmet Parenthood Goals offers comprehensive guidance on the therapeutic mechanisms that psychosocial care should target to promote adjustment. Future research should test the model with prospective cohort studies or by developing and testing interventions based on its predictions.
Hope is a mental resource and a robust predictor of well-being, which allows individuals to better cope with hardship. Little is known about dyadic hope - i.e., hope serving as a joint resource ...within intimate relationships. We examined dyadic hope in a sample of 100 couples in early parenthood, a challenging though common phase in couples' lives. Three months after becoming parents, both partners completed daily diaries for 3 weeks, reporting their daily hope, stressors, and three types of outcomes: individual, relational, and parental. Using multilevel actor-partner interdependence models, we found that greater hope (both daily and person-level) was positively associated with better actor and partner outcomes of all three kinds. Additionally, hope buffered various daily stressors. Our results show that hope is a personal and shared resource for couples in this pivotal juncture, and thus may constitute a target for future interventions.
In this article, we draw on research employing creative nonfiction (CNF) in psychology and the sport sciences, to outline the value of one untapped CNF methodology: the hermit crab essay. We expand ...the methodological repertoire for CNF in arts based research by advocating for hermit crab CNFs that borrow from ready-made structures, to present ‘real research material’ in newly creative and accessible ways. We use the r/AmItheAsshole online advice community as our borrowed structure, to create examples ‘in action’ from a narrative study of running and fatherhood. We outline reflections researchers might consider if using this form of CNF.