Same or Different?: the Parenting Experience of Women and men in Contemporary Slovakia

The study provides a closer look on the experience and meaning of parenthood among urban middle-class couples presently engaged in parenting. The author adresses the specific aspects of parenthood after socialism like the emergence of stay-at-home wifes and the increased involvement of fathers. Further, the author also elaborates on the main theories in the field of psychology that guide the conduct of parenthood and that are referred to in the interviews. Regarding the meaning of parenthood the results of the present study are consistent with previous research. Being a parent means something fundamentally different for women and men, which is demonstrated with the diverse levels of responsibility that women and men take for their children. The findings in the field of experience capture further differences. It is not always women who are eager to become mothers, rather on the contrary and at the same time, the parenting experience seems to be more positive for fathers than for mothers. Overall, this study represents an argument for a change in the way society and its structures influence the experience of parenthood.