Children and Childhood in Dutch Society and Dutch Sociology

Abstract

Growing up in the Netherlands means growing up in a country with a strong domestic tradition, which is anchored both in the institutions of the welfare state and in the mentality of the people. In the 21st century, however, this condition hampers the adjustment to changes in family relations and in society at large. One implication is the ambiguous position of children, hanging between the private and the public domain, implying specific tensions and dilemmas. Two issues are significant: the division of responsibility for children between parents and collective institutions; and the search of parents and other educators — peers included — to find a balance between external social control and self-control in the formation of the personality of children. Dutch sociological research on children and childhood is scarce and fragmentary, which may be linked to the ambiguous social position of contemporary Dutch children.

Partners in Parenting: An Overview of the Literature on Parents’ and Nonparental Adults’ Perspectives on Shared Responsibilities in Childrearing

“…Van Daalen suggested that although the male breadwinner model seems to have been at least partly replaced by a dual-earner model, the historic Dutch tradition of the nuclear family taking sole responsibility for childrearing may still be "anchored both in the institutions of the welfare state and in the mentality of the people" (p. 351). This may have hindered the partial transfer of childrearing responsibilities to other caregivers (Van Daalen, 2010). Three publications by Scales and colleagues (2001Scales and colleagues ( , 2003Scales and colleagues ( , 2004 seem to be consistent with Van Daalen"s conclusions.…”

“…Some of the publications relevant to our first study objective suggested that the sensitivities surrounding shared childrearing in Western societies may stem from the prevailing cultural ideology (McCartney & Phillips, 1988;Scales et al, 2001Scales et al, , 2003Scales et al, , 2004Van Daalen, 2010). In Western societies there appears to be a historical tradition that childrearing is solely the responsibility of the nuclear family; this tradition may be embedded not only in the mentality of citizens -parents and nonparents -but also in youth and family policy.…”

“…A descriptive study by Van Daalen (2010) provided an historical overview of childrearing ideology in the Netherlands. Van Daalen suggested that although the male breadwinner model seems to have been at least partly replaced by a dual-earner model, the historic Dutch tradition of the nuclear family taking sole responsibility for childrearing may still be "anchored both in the institutions of the welfare state and in the mentality of the people" (p. 351).…”

Paternalizing mothers: Feminist repertoires in contemporary Dutch civilizing offensives

“…To many of the Dutch, gender equality does not necessarily mean a gender-equal division of labour or care. In fact, when compared to surrounding countries, the Dutch have a strong domestic tradition in which the mother ideally cared for the house and the children and the father worked outside of the home (Kremer, 2007; Kloek, 2009; Van Daalen, 2010). For the Dutch, this does not automatically result in an experienced unequal distribution of power, as the mother traditionally enjoyed much autonomy.…”

“…First, a strong preference for self-care , that is to say that the Dutch government stimulates parents to take care of their children themselves, instead of providing comprehensive schemes of childcare or promoting intergenerational care. Most Dutch parents share in this ideal: they too feel that parents are the ones that should take care of their own children and that children are best taken care of in the domestic sphere (Korteweg, 2006; Kremer, 2007; Van Daalen, 2010). Second, the ideal prescribes the form of the nuclear family .…”