Changing gender roles and attitudes to family formation in Ireland

Recent decades have witnessed major changes in gender roles and family patterns, as well as a falling birth rate in Ireland and the rest of Europe. While the traditional family is now being replaced in many cases by new family forms, we do not know the reasons why people are making the choices they are and whether or not these choices are leading to greater well-being. While demographic research has attempted to explain the new trends in family formation and fertility, there has been little research on people's attitudes to family formation and having children. This book presents the results of the first major study to examine people's attitudes to family formation and childbearing in Ireland. Based on a nationwide representative sample of 1,404 men and women in the childbearing age group, the study was carried out against a backdrop of changing gender role attitudes and behaviour as well as significant demographic change. Factor V: Perceived Male Reluctance to Share HouseworkFactor VI: Belief That Mothers Are Best Nurturers; Effects of demographic characteristics on attitudes to gender roles; Summary of key findings; Note; 4 Family formation: attitudes and behaviour; Introduction; Dimensions of attitudes; Factor I: Belief in Marriage; Factor II: Belief in Cohabitation; Factor III: Perceived Negative Aspects of Marriage/Positive Aspects of Cohabitation; Factor IV: Perceived Gender Differences in Being Single; Factor V: Perceived Difficulty in Finding a Partner; Factor VI: Ambivalence Towards Being Single Demographic changes and the changing nature of the family: psychological implications for individuals and societyEffect of relationship or family status on well-being; Effects of demographic changes and changes in the family on social integration; Purpose and aims of the study; 2 Method; The qualitative study; Pilot study; Research design, sampling and fieldwork for main study; Research design and sample; Fieldwork methodology; Weighting of the sample and comparison with population estimates; Instrument of main study; Note; 3 Attitudes to gender roles; Dimensions of attitudes The relationship between women's labour force participation and fertilityThe effects of family policies on women's labour force participation and fertility; The impact of childcare on women's labour force participation and fertility in Ireland; Work-life balance policies: effects on women's labour force participation and pregnancy decisions; The effect of work-life balance and childcare policies on pregnancy decisions and well-being; Attitudes to family formation: an important component; The economic and social effects of decreasing fertility on society Front Matter Contents List of figures List of tables Series editor’s foreword Acknowledgements Changing gender roles and family formation: overview of key issues and previous research Method Attitudes to gender roles Family formation: attitudes and behaviour Attitudes to having children and childlessness People’s priorities and values Attitudes to social policies relevant to family formation Predictors of family status Predictors of ideal and expected family size The effect of family status on well-being Summary and discussion Appendix References Index Factor I: Perceived Threat of Women's Career AdvancementFactor II: Male Role Ambiguity; Factor III: Support for Female Financial Independence; Factor IV: Belief in Traditional Male Support and Protection; Factor V: Male Reluctance to Share Housework; Factor VI: Belief That Mothers Are Best Nurturers; Prevalence of attitudes to gender roles; Factor I: Perceived Threat of Women's Career Advancement; Factor II: Male Role Ambiguity; Factor III: Support for Female Economic Independence; Factor IV: Belief in Traditional Male Support and Protection Cover; Half Title; Series Information; Title Page; Copyright Page; Table of Contents; List of Figures; List of Tables; Series editor's foreword; Acknowledgements; 1 Changing gender roles and family formation: overview of key issues and previous research; Rationale for study; Background and context of present study; Changing gender role attitudes: the international context; Socio-cultural context in Ireland; Irish women's increasing participation in the labour force; Demographic changes and the emergence of new family forms