Peculiarities of the life position of parents of preschool children: a comparison of the opinions of those “married” and “divorced”
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Abstract
Background. Contemporary Russian society is experiencing significant changes in family structure: divorce rates are rising, the proportion of single-parent families is increasing, and perceptions of marriage and parenthood are transforming. Under these conditions, parents’ attitudes — their values, outlook on the future, and perception of threats — directly influence the development of preschool children and the stability of the family as a social institution. Research into these characteristics, particularly among divorced mothers, is essential for developing family support measures and improving the quality of preschool education.
Objectives. To identify the features of the influence of socio-demographic and socio-stratification factors on various components of the “life position” of parents of preschool children.
Sample. A total of 42 865 parents of preschool children aged 2 to 7 participated in an anonymous questionnaire survey using a specially developed author’s questionnaire. For the purpose of the main hypothesis, subsamples of fathers (1 313 respondents), married mothers (34 199), and officially divorced mothers (2 535) were specifically identified.
Methods. Survey data were processed using the SPSS 21 and StatSoft Statistica 7.0 statistical software packages. All differences in respondents’ responses discussed in the article are statistically significant at a p≤0.05 level. To study the interrelations of the components of «life position», the method of factor analysis was used (the method of extracting Principal Components with Varimaks axes rotation with Kaiser normalization).
Results. Four substantive factors were identified that determine the characteristics of the «life position» of parents of preschool-aged children: F1 «doubt in professional success — parenting (focus on the child)»; F2 «personal success — marriage»; F3 «focus on physical well-being — life pessimism» and F4 «Value of social life». The results showed that the life position of a divorced mother is significantly distorted: compared to the traditional maternal position, both parental and marital orientations are altered.
Conclusions. The data obtained show fundamentally different attitudes of fathers and mothers towards the importance of implementing the parental function in raising a preschool child. The breakdown of a family («divorce») in the presence of a preschool-age child causes the mother to develop a negative attitude towards marriage as a traditional value.
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