Construction of fatherhood in late socialism: the experiences of Lithuanian men

Abstract

The paper examines the changes in fatherhood in Lithuania, focusing on the experiences and attitudes of men, who became fathers in two different historic periods – the soviet time and in the years of societal transformations after the collapse of communist regime. The narratives of 24 men (born in 1950–1965 and 1970–1985) are explored, the data come from the qualitative research, conducted in 2012. It is maintained that the construction of fatherhood in late socialism can be described in terms of modern fatherhood metanarrative, while the features of a ‘new father' can be traced mainly among the younger males of ‘independence generation’.

Keywords:

• Masculinity
• fatherhood
• fathering
• children
• Lithuania
• qualitative research

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Sarmite Mikulioniene is a Sociology professor at Mykolas Romeris University, Vilnius, Lithuania. Her main research interests are Family, Population ageing, Intergenerational issues and Equal Opportunities policies, Life-long learning.

Vida Kanopiene is a Sociology professor at Mykolas Romeris University, Vilnius, Lithuania. She has been involved in many national and international research programmes and projects since the mid- 1980s. Her main research areas include Family, Population ageing, Migration, Labour market, Gender issues and Equal Opportunities policies, Life-long learning.

Notes

1. Fatherhood involves the cultural coding of men as fathers, which includes not only the rights of fathers, their responsibilities, statuses and commitments, but also the vast area of discourses around ‘good' and ‘bad' fathers. (Hobson and Morgan 2002, 10–11). The term ‘fathering’ refers to the men's personal experience as fathers (Miller 2011, p. 6).

2. Provision of 3 years childcare partly paid leave to one of the parents, depending on their decision, was introduced on the 1st of April, 1991 (before it was granted only to the mother). Since the 1st of July, 2006 the fathers are granted one month duration of paid paternity leave after the baby's birth.

3. Born in 1950–1965 and 1970–1985.

4. This research project was financed by the European Social Fund (ESF), and carried out in 2011–2015. Research team: V. Kanopiene, S. Mikulioniene, V. Česnuityte. Project website:

5. Based on Antonio Gramsci's concept of hegemony, the term of hegemonic masculinity was developed by Connell and is defined as ‘the configuration of gender practice which embodies the currently accepted answer to the problem of the legitimacy of patriarchy, which guarantees (or is taken to guarantee) the dominant position of men and the subordination of women' (Connell 2005, p. 77).

6. Those who agreed to participate in the interviews provided their contact information (phone number and e-mail address).