Generational shift in parental beliefs and parenting practice in a Chinese context

Abstract

Background: Although the importance of historical perspective in understanding a phenomenon has been well-recognized, attempt to study generational shifts in parenting is meager and is almost non-existent in Hong Kong. Contemporary parenthood has been characterized as fraught with problems, however there is little study attempts to understand how contemporary parenting has become characterized as such. In retrospect, there have been generational shifts in “themes” of parenthood in the history of Hong Kong. This study seeks to unravel these generational shifts in parental beliefs and parenting practices.

Main body: The presentation draws on findings from a qualitative study to examine the generational shifts in parenting beliefs and practices in the Hong Kong Chinese context. Employing qualitative study method of narrative inquiry, 120 in-depth interviews with 60 parents (30 mothers and 30 fathers) had been conducted. Five generational cohorts – parents in the 70s’ the 80s’ the 90s’, the 2000s’ and the 2010s' parents shared their experience in being parents and their parenting practices. Narrative accounts of parents reveal generational shifts and gender disparity in meaning of parenthood, parental responsibility, and identity as a parent.

Discussion: The findings provide indigenous understanding to generational shifts in parental beliefs and practices; and look into the discursive formations of dominant discourses that shape parenting beliefs and conditions constrain parenting practices. Based on the findings, the presentation discusses implications for parenting wok and proposes directions for child and parenting services.