"Like Behind a Stone Wall": Involved Fatherhood in the Context of Maternal Self-Realization Opportunities

Abstract

Involved Fatherhood is in the focus of researchers' attention because of the background of a general changes in the structure of gender roles in the modern Russian family, however, a number of blind spots remain in the study of this problem. Thus, it is relevant to analyze the mutual influence of involved fatherhood and mothers' practices, including how the father's activity changes the mother's trajectories and well-being. The presented study aims to analyze the involved fatherhood as a factor that positively affects the social opportunities of a woman in the first years of motherhood. The research methodology is based on the theory of the social construction of gender, the social topology of P. Bourdieu, the concept of non-maternal practices of mothers (sustainable social practices of a woman that are determined by the complex situation of caring for young children, but are not directly related to caring for them). Based on the analysis of 720 accounts of young mothers in social networks, 230 statements of mothers on thematic forums, and 10 in-depth interviews (5 married couples, men in which are actively involved in the childe care process), it was found that fatherhood is an important factor in the implementation of non-maternity practices, including that have an economic effect and a transitive potential for a woman. This and the orientation of a woman to preserving her subjectivity through the implementation of non-maternal practices creates some conditions (financial, timing, functional) for greater inclusion of fathers in the processes of care and upbringing. The main motive for the involvement of men is the orientation towards the interests of the child and the subjective experiences of the fatherhood. However, the effect of support is highly appreciated by mothers as a factor determining the expansion of women's social opportunities, their material and psychological well-being.