Parental well-being through the eyes of Russian men

The article problematizes the relevance of studying modern paternity practices, summarizes the results of empirical data from Western sociology on the factors and gender specifics of parental well-being. The authors present new findings of an exploratory study of the determinants of parental well-being. With the help of qualitative methods of semantic analysis of the content of written narratives, the basic markers of parental well-being in the perceptions of Russian men were identified (in descending order of importance): “relationships and care for children/family”; “security: income, work, housing”; “health”; “well-being and success of children”, “complete family”. The differentiation of associative ideas about parental well-being depending on the presence of children and their age was examined. In the group of fathers whose children are older than 14 years, the relevance of the material factor decreases, the importance of social success and achievements of children grows. Young childless men are significantly more likely to associate their ideas about parental well-being with financial security, still considering trusting relationships, harmony, happiness and love as the main foundation. The empirics was formed using a standard online survey technology, the period of conducting: April - June 2023. The design of the study follows the author’s “women’s” project of 2022, that made it possible to identify gender specifics. Unlike women, the factor of time devoted to children is insignificant for men; they closely associate parental well-being with family well-being, mention the need for a complete family much more often, emphasize the importance of relationships not only with children, and talk about a general family atmosphere. The male paradigm is dominated by an activity approach, expressed in the ability to take care of children and family. The study confirms the need to apply the principle of targeting in the development of technologies for popularizing the value of parenthood, taking into account gender and age characteristics and marital status.