Att vara förälder eller att utföra föräldraskap - en sociologisk undersökning av föräldraskapets acceleration

Sammanfattning

The widespread prevalence of a general intensification of parenting ideals has been described in academic research and discussed in contemporary media debates. This study constitutes a social phenomenological investigation of experiences and perceptions of parenting among the Swedish middle class, with norms, expectations, and ideals of intensive parenting as its primary focus. Semi-structured lifeworld interviews were conducted with six Swedish middle-class parents of children aged 6 to 12. The empirical material was analyzed using Hartmut Rosa’s sociological theory of social acceleration and the general intensification of the pace of life, as well as his theoretical contributions concerning how we relate to the world and to others, through an exploration of the interplay between experiences of resonance and alienation in the participants’ narratives. The empirical material was analysed through thematic analysis, and the results are presented across three themes. The analysis shows that the structural inevitability of an accelerated pace of life contributes to experiences of stress, confusion, and alienation among parents. Furthermore, it illustrates how managing an ever-increasing number of everyday tasks, as well as navigating logistics and short-term decisions related to parenting, contributes to an emphasis on parenting as a task rather than parenting as a relationship or an ethic. This, in turn, leads to experiences of insecurity and inadequacy within the context of parenting. Finally, the study discusses how these feelings of insecurity and inadequacy serve as incentives for a desire for extensive control, which appears to hinder the conditions for the kind of presence and deeper connection with their children that the parents themselves claim to value most.