Exploring masculinities within men's identificatory imaginings of first‐time fatherhood

Abstract

The changing role and practices of men as fathers is a growing subject of interest and debate within academic and everyday responses to contemporary sociocultural change. Prompted by questions about the production of identities and masculinities that accompanies social change, this paper is a psychosocial exploration of the identificatory positionings that are apparent in men's talk of becoming first-time fathers. Our qualitative analysis draws on a sample of 30 heterosexual and variously skilled men aged between 18 and 40 years in Norfolk (UK) who were interviewed as first-time fathers just before and after the birth of their child. We explore aspects of men's identifications within inter-generationally located biographies and associated social and relational contexts, specifically attending to ways in which men can make sense of a 'new' style of fatherhood, themselves and their masculinities in terms of being modern and traditional fathers. In adopting a psychosocial approach we are primarily concerned for ways in which the identificatory positions available to first-time fathers are conditional on a complex assemblage of dynamic mediations that are at once social, discursive and psychological.

The impact of maternal postnatal depression on men and their ways of fathering: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

“…However, although men in the present study reported significant effects of the extra responsibility, they did not seem to view their fathering as compensatory mothering. This is in contrast to Finn and Henwood's (2009) UK study with 30 firsttime fathers (from normative contexts) who framed their highly involved and nurturing fathering as motherly-like paternity. Our participants rarely gendered roles but instead oriented to a shared parenting discourse (Vuori, 2009) wherein both genders are, in principle, equally capable of and responsible for, all aspects of parenting.…”

“…This is surprising given the emphasis in family research and UK policy on the importance of fathers to child and family wellbeing (e.g. Finn & Henwood, 2009;Gold & Adeyemi, 2013;Loehlin, Horn, & Ernst, 2010;Ramchandani, Domoney, Sethna, Psychogious, Vlachos et al, 2012). As Asmussen and Weizel (2010) wellbeing.…”

Women's and men’s career interruptions in Europe : the role of social policies1

“…Some women, instead, may persist with continuous full-time participation, returning soon after childbirth (Solera, 2009;Scott et al, 2009;Bettio et al, 2013). For men the main reasons for interruptions are still not family-related, having more to do with unemployment or training, although men's take up rates of leaves show signs of increase among younger generations, opening not only to new gender allocations but also to new gender and parenthood identities (Finn and Henwood, 2009;Ray et al, 2010;EIGE, 2011).…”

Full Issue

“…Este interés se ha traducido en la realización de estudios cualitativos longitudinales que se han enfocado en dar cuenta del proceso que viven los hombres al convertirse en padres (Barclay & Lupton, 1999;Deave & Johnson, 2008;Draper, 2003;Finn & Henwood, 2009;Henwood & Procter, 2003;Ives, 2014;Miller, 2011;Shirani, 2015). Una de las preguntas que se plantean estos estudios es si se ha producido en las últimas décadas una evolución desde un padre proveedor (centrado en el trabajo, distante y autoritario) hacia un 'nuevo padre' (involucrado en los cuidados, cercano y afectivo).…”