To Örebro University

In this article, we examine empirically a key element of individualization theory—the democratic family. We do so using the “acid test” of family policy, and family practice, in Sweden. First, we review the progress of family policy in Sweden since the 1960s, which has expressly promoted an agenda of gender equality and democracy in families, with individual autonomy for both adults and children as one key element. We then turn to family practice, looking particularly at negotiation and adult equality, lifelong parenting after separation, and children's autonomy. While Swedish policy makers and shapers seem to have developed the idea of the democratic family long before the sociologist Anthony Giddens, the results in practice have been more ambivalent. While there has been change, there is more adaptation to pre-existing gender and generational norms.

The idea that women should take the responsibility for home and family and men should be the breadwinners is less dominant today. On the basis of a study of the division of labour within Swedish families, this is an examination of the way in which gender identity and power relations influence the negotiations between partners, given the differing interests. As this study shows there is rarely equality on this question between married or cohabiting partners, despite the dominants ideas of one or the other sex, and even when the women work full-time (the division is a lot more equal in young couples without children). The explanation of this inequality lies in the weight of gender norms and in the different expectations linked to parental roles. It is nevertheless apparent that women with greater resources in terms of education, income or professional status more often break with these norms and impose their demands concerning the division of labour within the couple.

The gendered nature of the struggle to integrate caring, family and paid work has been repeatedly demonstrated. Most research, however, has focused on dual parent families. This paper discusses work-family conflict in the everyday lives of lone mothers in Sweden. We use an agency-centered framework inspired by the capabilities approach, which emphasizes that the options of an individual depend greatly on institutions and relations with others. Drawing on 38 in-depth interviews with lone mothers from different social backgrounds we explore i) how the proper relationship between motherhood and paid work is conceived of, ii) the institutional and relational factors that influence lone mothers’ opportunities to attain work-life balance, and iii) the strategies employed in negotiating paid work and family. Our results show that paid work is integral to good motherhood to all lone mothers regardless of social class. They also show that lone mothers typically experience high levels of work-family conflict. Opportunities to reconcile paid work and family depend on employment conditions, accessibility to social support networks, the role of the absent father, household composition, and access to public childcare on unregularly hours. In the case of middle class mothers, blurred boundaries between work and family life, late meetings and work related traveling restrict opportunities to attain work-family balance. For low income and/or working class mothers temporal employment, unregular working hours and low earnings are significant constraining factors. Reducing working hours, negotiating working schedules with employers and colleagues, and asking relatives and friends for help are examples of strategies used to reduce work-life conflicts. Reducing travelling time between the job and the home by moving from one place to another, and moving closer to relatives to increase the chances to get practical support are other examples. While middle-class women typically used flexi-time at work to alleviate conflicts between different responsibilities, several low-income mothers changed jobs or invested in education in order to improve their situation

Gender equality has been an important policy goal for more than four decades in Sweden and is commonly seen as an integral part of the Swedish welfare state. However, the gender division of work is still reproduced both in and out of paid work. In this chapter, we analyse interviews with 40 Swedish women and men (20 couples) to explore how norms regarding what is in the child’s best interest enter into decisions concerning parental care, childcare and paid work, and links to social construction of motherhood and fatherhood. A key notion in the interviews was shared parenting. It was seen as highly important that the child gets close, strong ties to both its mother and father. A second, and related, notion was that it is in the interest of the child to have an engaged and caring father, implying a new kind of fatherhood. The ideas on shared parenting and the engaged father were sometimes linked to ideas on gender equality, but sometimes they went hand in hand with more traditional notions of motherhood and fatherhood. Motherhood was, on the one hand, constructed as distinct from fatherhood and closely related to female biology. On the other hand, motherhood was constructed to fit with women’s identities as independent and work-oriented. The interviews seem to reflect a recent political and cultural development where major changes have occurred regarding fatherhood norms but where less has happened regarding motherhood norms. Gender equality was, however, one central factor that the couples took into account in their plans for the future. About half of the interviewed couples planned to share parental leave equally or wanted to share equally but were open to being flexible, for instance in regard to possible changes in their employment or financial situation. Licensed childcare was the obvious childcare arrangement after the parental leave period was over and was perceived as beneficial to the child’s development. Unlike parents in many other countries, parents in Sweden can rely on a system of social policies that are developed and adjusted to facilitate the lives of dual-earner/dual-carer families.

There is lively discussion in the social sciences about minority groups and their claims for social justice. Universalism versus difference and redistribution versus recognition are two important issues of debate. This paper takes a closer look at the social justice claims articulated by the Swedish disability movement. It discusses how questions of representation, collective identity, and needs interpretations are dealt with in a number of disability associations. One important assumption guiding our study is that the interpretations of members' needs, how their needs can best be met, and who is to have the legitimate right to communicate their needs, are questions subject to constant debate. The aim is to demonstrate some of the complexities confronting the disability movement in its struggle for social justice. To be more specific, we set out to show two things: (i) how different kinds of justice claims are balanced by the investigated organizations; and (ii) that the demands for cultural recognition and socioeconomic redistribution are raised not only by the disability movement vis-à-vis the state, but also by groups within the disability movement vis-à-vis other groups in the movement.

During the last few decades, Swedish welfare policy has been increasingly criticized by various social groups who take as their point of departure the limitations of a social policy that predominantly focuses on class equality and paid work. The establishment of special public authorities, commissioned to combat discrimination against particular groups of citizens, may be interpreted as a manifestation of increased state attention to social disadvantages rooted in culture rather than the economy. This article takes a closer look at the processes by which social justice claims have been transformed into matters of public responsibility by exploring the creation of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman (Ja ̈mO) and the Ombudsman against Ethnic Discrimination (DO). Drawing on policy documents and interviews with key persons, we investigate how “the women’s question” and “the ethnic minority question” have been articulated in Swedish politics. The aim is to describe the processes by which gender and ethnicity were politicized, a politicization eventually resulting in state initiatives to establish the two ombudsman offices. Particular attention is given to the role played by the social sciences in these processes, e.g. the ways in which scientific knowledge was employed in political discourse. 

Family politics has been important in the development of the Swedish ‘women-friendly’ and weak breadwinner gendered welfare state. This article analyses the development of Swedish family politics during the last century by taking as its point of departure the amalgamation of political ambitions, social reforms, and ideas put forward by experts in government commissions. Results suggest that the social sciences played an important role in the making and shaping of Swedish family policy, i.e., that they functioned as ‘bridge discourses’ mediating between the welfare state and social movements that challenged established boundaries between the private and the public sphere.

Statistics suggest that lone mother families have become an increasingly vulnerable group in Sweden. Their standard of living is low compared to other families. The numbers who are on non-permanent employment contracts or unemployed have increased. Mothers with a lower education are particularly exposed. We have conducted a qualitative study with 39 Swedish lone mothers with different occupational and social backgrounds. This paper takes a deeper look at challenges faced by 16 working-class and low-income lone mothers. The aim is to provide a better understanding of the ways in which working conditions and economic resources impact on mothers’ opportunities to balance paid work and family. Mothers are seen as actors whose conduct is guided by cultural ideas about the right and proper way to be a mother and worker. Thematic analysis was used explore themes in the data. Results show that disjunctions between aspirations and access to means for their realization gave rise to conflicts and dilemmas. It also fostered feelings of guilt and shame. Lack of financial resources resulted in a sense of relative deprivation and significantly limited mothers’ opportunities to practice the kind of mothering they preferred. Facing the money–care dilemma, mothers could not effectively use some of the rights granted to Swedish parents, i.e. to reduce working hours and stay at home with sick children. To provide for the family they had to spend long hours at work, meaning less time to devote to their children. Inflexible jobs, nonstandard hours and temporary employment aggravated conflicts.

Research suggests that single mothers are an increasingly vulnerable group in Scandinavia. Drawing on in-depth interviews, this study takes a closer look at challenges faced by Swedish working-class and low-income single mothers. It explores how working conditions and economic resources influence their access to valued practices, such as the possibility to reconcile paid work and family commitments. It is assumed that discrepancies between mothers’ notions of good mothering and their ability to act in accordance with these values give rise to conflicts and dilemmas. Findings show that lack of financial resources and low control over their work situation significantly limited the mothers’ possibility to combine various responsibilities and to practice the kind of mothering they preferred. Furthermore, the opening hours of preschools frequently did not match the mothers’ working schedules, and they could often not effectively benefit from some of the social rights granted by the Swedish welfare state.

It is a commonly held belief among sociologists that the ‘Western’ world is developing towards increased individualization. According to this individualization thesis, processes of individualization are linked to the development of a risk society and have profound effects on family life. Drawing on 20 in-depth interviews, this article explores the transition to parenthood among couples that are presumably at the front of individualization processes. The aim is to show that risk was a central theme in relation to parenting in two ways that are both linked to individual autonomy and the couple relationship. Firstly, the decision to have a baby was considered a risk project. It was minutely planned, not least to avoid the risk of divorce or separation. Secondly, the changes in everyday life that took place with the birth of the child represented new kinds of risk, associated with lack of time and a changing economy of care.