Dynamics of Well-Being of Fathers and Mothers with Minor Children
Research Article
How to Cite
Gurko T.A. 2021. Dynamics of Well-Being of Fathers and Mothers with Minor Children — Sociologicheskaja nauka i social’naja praktika. Vol. 9. No. 3. P. 59-72. DOI: https://doi.org/10.19181/snsp.2021.9.3.8433
Abstract
The purpose of the article is to continue the analysis of the dynamics of the life styles and wellbeing of Russian parents. The article presents foreign research directions of studying the influence of the ideology of intensive parenting on the well-being of parents, the lifestyle before the birth of the child/ children, the composition of children by gender, the external similarity of children and parents, the selfassessment of the fulfillment of their parental role, the marital/partner status of parents. It is shown that according to the data of ESS–2018 and RLMS HSE–2019, in the age group of 30–44 years, statistically not significantly more fathers are happy and satisfied with life than their peers who do not have children. No differences were found in these variables between mothers and their peers without children. To analyze the dynamics of parental well-being, sub-samples of parents were formed, regardless of their age and place of residence, according to the criterion of whether they have minor children, according to representative samples of the RLMS HSE. In 2004, this sub-sample was 2,270 parents, in 2008 – 2,220, and in 2019 – 2,645. Subsamples for these years are formed based on the ability to compare data on identical indicators. The analysis of the data shows that from 2004 to 2019, the share of fathers and mothers who are satisfied with their lives and assess their health as good, as well as satisfied with their work in general, their pay, and their professional growth opportunities, increased. For parents who drink alcohol, as well as those who are satisfied with their financial situation, there is almost no change, there are fewer smokers among fathers, but not mothers. According to the RLMS HSE–2019 data, there are more well-off people among married parents, less among never-married mothers and widows, as well as among divorced fathers and mothers. More fathers and mothers with special education are satisfied with life and work, much less of them smoke in comparison with those with secondary education. It does not depend on the level of education of alcohol consumption by parents, satisfaction with the financial situation and the assessment of health. In conclusion, it is proposed to revise the concepts in official documents on family policy, in statistics and in the media in relation to parents and children in non-normative families. The author emphasizes the relevance of developing educational programs for various categories of parents and future parents, and improving their competence.
Keywords:
fathers, mothers, well-being, dynamics, life satisfaction, level of education, marital status, stigma, parental competence
References
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10. Dow D. M. (2016). Integrated motherhood: Beyond hegemonic ideologies of motherhood. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 78 (1), P. 180–196. DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12264
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14. Negraia D. V., Yavorsky J. E. and Dukhovnov D. (2021). Mothers’ and fathers’ wellbeing: Does the gender composition of children matter? Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 82 (3), P. 820–844. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12739
15. Nomaguchi K., Milkie M. A. (2020). Parenthood and well‐being: A decade in review. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 82 (1). P. 198–223. DOI:10.1111/jomf.12646
16. Palkovitz, R. (2019) Expanding our focus from father involvement to father–child relationship quality. Journal of Family Theory & Review. Vol. 11 (4). P. 576–591. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12352
17. Parker K. (2014). Parenthood and happiness: It’s more complicated than you think. URL: https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/02/07/parenthood-and-happiness-its-more-complicated-thanyou-think/ (accessed 20.04.2021).
18. Radó M. K. (2020). Tracking the effects of parenthood on subjective well-being: Evidence from Hungary. Journal of Happiness Studies. № 21. P. 2069–2094. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10902-019-00166-y
19. Roeters A., Mandemakers J. J. & Voorpostel M. (2016). Parenthood and well-being: The moderating role of leisure and paid work. European Journal of Population. № 32. P. 381–401. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10680-016-9391-3
20. Umberson D., Pudrovska T. and Reczek C. (2010). Parenthood, childlessness, and well‐being: A life course perspective. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 72 (3). P. 612–629. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00721.x
21. Yu Q., Zhang J., Zhang L., et al. (2019). Who gains more? The relationship between parenthood and well-being. Evolutionary Psychology. July-September. P. 1–10. DOI: 10.1177/1474704919860467
2. Gurko T. A. (2018). Zhiznennye stili rossijskih roditelej: dinamika, regional’nye, vozrastnye i professional’nye osobennosti. [The lifestyles of Russian parents: trends and regional, age, and professional specifics]. Sociologicheskaja nauka i social’naja praktika. Vol. 6, № 2. P. 94–109. DOI: https://doi.org/10.19181/snsp.2018.6.2.5859 (In Russ).
3. Gurko T. A. (2020). Dinamika i differentsiaciya zhiznennyh stilej gorodskih roditelej [Dynamics and differentiation of the lifestyles of urban parents]. Sotsiologiya i obshchestvo: tradicii i innovacii v social’nom razvitii regionov. Ed. by V. A. Mansurov. Moscow : RSS ; FCTAS RAS publ. P. 4472–4481. DOI: 10.19181/kongress.2020.526 (In Russ.).
4. Gurko T. A. (2021). Blagopoluchie detej v razlichnyh semejnyh strukturah: obzor rezul’tatov zarubezhnyh issledovanij. [Children’s well-being in various family structures: a review of foreign research results]. Vestnik Nizhegorodskogo universiteta im. N. I. Lobachevskogo. Seriya: Sotsial’nye nauki. № 1 (61). P. 45–53. DOI: 10.52452/18115942_2021_1_45 (In Russ.).
5. Kon I. S. (2009). Muzhchina v menyayushchemsya mire. [A man in a changing world]. M. : Vremya publ. 496 p. (In Russ.).
6. Berge L. M. and Carlson M. J. (2020). Family policy and complex contemporary families: A decade in review and implications for the next decade of research and policy practice. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 82 (1), P. 478–507.
7. Boss P., Bryant C. and Mancini J. (2017). Family stress management: A contextual approach (3rd edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. 206 p.
8. Bogenschneider K. and Corbett T. J. (2010). Family policy: Becoming a field of inquiry and subfield of social policy. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 72 (3), P. 783–803. DOI: 10.1111/j.17413737.2010.00730.x
9. Deaton A., and Stone A. A. (2014). Evaluative and hedonic wellbeing among those with and without children at home. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Vol. 111 (4), P. 1328–1333. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1311600111
10. Dow D. M. (2016). Integrated motherhood: Beyond hegemonic ideologies of motherhood. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 78 (1), P. 180–196. DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12264
11. Furedi F. (2002). Paranoid parenting: Why ignoring the experts may be best for your child. Chicago Review Press. 234 p.
12. Hays S. (1996). The cultural contradictions of motherhood. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. 252 p.
13. Levine J. A., Pittinsky T. L. (1997). Working fathers: new strategies for balancing work and family. Boston. Da Capo Lifelong Books. 288 p.
14. Negraia D. V., Yavorsky J. E. and Dukhovnov D. (2021). Mothers’ and fathers’ wellbeing: Does the gender composition of children matter? Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 82 (3), P. 820–844. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12739
15. Nomaguchi K., Milkie M. A. (2020). Parenthood and well‐being: A decade in review. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 82 (1). P. 198–223. DOI:10.1111/jomf.12646
16. Palkovitz, R. (2019) Expanding our focus from father involvement to father–child relationship quality. Journal of Family Theory & Review. Vol. 11 (4). P. 576–591. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12352
17. Parker K. (2014). Parenthood and happiness: It’s more complicated than you think. URL: https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/02/07/parenthood-and-happiness-its-more-complicated-thanyou-think/ (accessed 20.04.2021).
18. Radó M. K. (2020). Tracking the effects of parenthood on subjective well-being: Evidence from Hungary. Journal of Happiness Studies. № 21. P. 2069–2094. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10902-019-00166-y
19. Roeters A., Mandemakers J. J. & Voorpostel M. (2016). Parenthood and well-being: The moderating role of leisure and paid work. European Journal of Population. № 32. P. 381–401. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10680-016-9391-3
20. Umberson D., Pudrovska T. and Reczek C. (2010). Parenthood, childlessness, and well‐being: A life course perspective. Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 72 (3). P. 612–629. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00721.x
21. Yu Q., Zhang J., Zhang L., et al. (2019). Who gains more? The relationship between parenthood and well-being. Evolutionary Psychology. July-September. P. 1–10. DOI: 10.1177/1474704919860467
Article
Received: 18.05.2021
Accepted: 10.09.2021
Citation Formats
Other cite formats:
Harvard
Gurko, T. A. (2021) ’Dynamics of Well-Being of Fathers and Mothers with Minor Children’, Sociologicheskaja nauka i social’naja praktika, 9(3), pp. 59-72. doi: https://doi.org/10.19181/snsp.2021.9.3.8433.
Section
SOCIOLOGY OF THE FAMILY
Publisher: Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FCTAS RAS)