Edizioni FrancoAngeli - Last issue of SOCIOLOGIA E POLITICHE SOCIALI (3/2011)

Presentazione

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Giovanna Rossi, Sara Mazzucchelli

Verso una nuova genitorialità

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Giovanna Rossi
The reflection on parenthood comes back today with unique characteristics that seem to overshadow the underlying relational dimension, focusing more on individual constitutive dimensions: maternal or paternal. What do we mean when we talk about parenthood? What does it mean then to grapple with this issue from a sociological point of view? We will discuss the topic, framing it within some dynamics about being adults today and the morphogenesis of the family. So, we will analyze the different forms of parenthood (deferred; assisted, shared, social) and, finally, paradoxically the placement of "non-parenting" within this framework.

Moms&work: il complesso rapporto tra maternità e lavoro

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Sara Mazzucchelli
The paper aims to analyze the complex relationship between motherhood and work, a relationship considered ambiguously, both from the socio-economic literature and the current European policies. The relational perspective allows us to capture the distinctive elements of this relationship and also enlarge the usual sociological point of view: we can avoid the reduction of motherhood to procreative choices and a consequent flattening of policies to a functional and feminist frame of reference focused on the workfare culture and individual rights. Making use of the analysis of specific and updated statistical data and of interesting international researches - we sought to capture the true complexity involved; it necessarily refers to the process of structuring personal identity, to the underlying rating on the self and to the reflexivity’s practice that makes it possible. Reflexivity and relationality seem to constitute the essential terms of reference for understanding the "new female identity"; it’s a multi faced identity not reducible in simple macrocategorization. Reflexivity and relationality play on two fronts: internal and external. Reflexivity is what allows to link subjective inclinations, preferences, talents and cultural and structural emerging properties; at the same time relationality is the criteria that guide the choices concerning the sphere of family, work and their relationships.

Uomini, paternità e lavoro: la questione della conciliazione dal punto di vista maschile

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Maria Letizia Bosoni
Identity transformation process, for both men and women, and structural changes in the family and in the labour market lead to consider the role of "new fathers" and practices related to fatherhood. In this scenario, one of the most relevant issue is the complex relationship between family and work. Thus, it is interesting to consider how fathers shape their identity as parents, partners and workers, in different life contexts. This article will address, through the analysis of both national and international literature, the transformation in paternity from different point of view: reflection on the men identity (through the contribution of men’s studies), changes in the paternal role and policies supporting fathers.

La flessibilità per padri impegnati full time: contro una visione del work life balance fondata sull’antitesi

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Esther Dermott
The term work-life balance is prevalent in academic literature, policy debates and popular discourse. Despite its ubiquity, the term has received relatively little critical analysis and the ‘balance’ which is strived for remains opaque. Drawing on qualitative empirical work with fathers who are in full-time employment, this paper critiques the implicit assumption that "work" and "life" are necessarily in conflict and compete for scarce resources. The paper argues instead that a complementary model of work-life balance, albeit with moments of friction, better captures fathers’ experiences than the adversarial model which currently dominates. It is suggested that this formulation of work-life balance is both a conceptual improvement and a starting point for developing more useful policy measures.

Paternità, famiglia e lavoro nella vita degli uomini: negoziare vecchie e nuove mascolinità

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Karin Wall
The main aim of this article is to understand how men living in couples with young children construct their roles and identities as fathers in the context of different types of family functioning. To explore this issue, our analytical framework examines the dynamics of fathering and of family functioning, thereby focusing on the interrelationships between men as fathers, partners and breadwinners. Drawing on data from a qualitative study carried out in 2005-2006 in Portugal, the article shows a diversity of fatherhood patterns. Joint and supportive fatherhood emerge within the framework of fusional dynamics, while disengaged fatherhood is connected to genderdifferentiated autonomy. Four other patterns were found to be linked to the various forms of the modern "associative" family identified in this study. Equal fatherhood emerges in couples whose practices closely match the ideals of gender equality and individual autonomy, whereas appropriative, timecondensed and stay-at-home patterns of fatherhood are connected to different forms of "gender unequal" associative couples.

Genere e responsabilità di cura. Una introduzione

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT

Tina Miller
This article provides an overview of the contemporary Western context in which men become fathers and ideals of fatherhood are constructed. The parameters of fatherhood are much less clearly drawn than those associated with motherhood, but both are shaped by gendered "choices" and constraints which operate across the home and work spheres. The article examines European policy changes which have helped to shape societal ideas and ideals about fatherhood (and motherhood) responsibilities as well as tracing the changes in the focus of research agendas in relation to men’s lives as fathers and constructions of caring responsibilities. An overview of the theoretical and methodological tools used to explore how paternal involvement is anticipated, practised and narrated amongst a group of UK men becoming fathers for the first time is also provided.

Recensioni

Fri, 15 Dec 2011 8:00:00 GMT