Bower-Brown Susie, Foley Sarah, Jadva Vasanti, Golombok Susan
Centre for Family Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Thomas Coram Research Unit, University College London, London, UK.
J Fam Stud. 2023 May 18;30(1):82-103. doi: 10.1080/13229400.2023.2209060. eCollection 2024.
Elective co-parenting families, meaning two (or more parents) who are not in a romantic relationship having a child together, are becoming more common amongst cisgender, heterosexual parents. The study of elective co-parenting families offers researchers a unique opportunity to decouple co-parenting relationships from romantic relationships, but little research to date has explored their experiences. This study explored two research questions: why do individuals decide to enter into elective co-parenting arrangements? And how do they manage their co-parenting arrangement and their relationship with their co-parent? Interview data from 10 elective co-parents (5 mothers and 5 fathers) were analyzed according to the principles of reflexive thematic analysis. Sociological theorisations of family practices, family display and family thinking were utilized to make sense of the data. The results centred around two organizing themes ('Reproducing the traditional family' and 'Modernising the traditional family'), and participants experienced a tension between these two ideas. Participants aimed to manage their co-parenting relationship with shared values and friendship, but defining their relationship was complex and gendered parenting patterns were ubiquitous. Findings add nuance to theorisations of family life and demonstrate that traditional parenthood ideologies remain pervasive, as parents aim to imagine and pursue parenthood on their own terms.
选择共同育儿的家庭，即两个（或更多）没有恋爱关系的父母共同育有一个孩子，在顺性别、异性恋父母中越来越普遍。对选择共同育儿家庭的研究为研究人员提供了一个独特的机会，将共同育儿关系与恋爱关系区分开来，但迄今为止很少有研究探讨他们的经历。本研究探讨了两个研究问题：个人为什么决定进入选择共同育儿的安排？以及他们如何管理共同育儿安排以及与共同育儿伙伴的关系？根据反思性主题分析的原则，对来自10位选择共同育儿的父母（5位母亲和5位父亲）的访谈数据进行了分析。运用了家庭实践、家庭展示和家庭思维的社会学理论来理解这些数据。结果集中在两个组织主题（“重现传统家庭”和“使传统家庭现代化”）上，参与者在这两种观念之间经历了一种紧张关系。参与者旨在通过共同的价值观和友谊来管理他们的共同育儿关系，但定义他们的关系很复杂，而且性别化的育儿模式普遍存在。研究结果为家庭生活理论增添了细微差别，并表明传统的父母身份观念仍然普遍存在，因为父母们旨在按照自己的方式去想象和追求为人父母的角色。
