Parenting and social solidarity in cross-cultural perspective

Abstract

Many scholars, particularly in Anglophone countries, have observed that mothers and fathers are now expected to do much more explicit ‘parenting’ than in the past. This article draws on the case studies of Norway and the UK as examples of welfare states with different historical orientations to social coherence, equality and diversity as a means of examining the spread (or otherwise) of these ideologies. In particular, it considers theoretical concerns of risk, responsibility and trust, especially as they relate to our ideas of childhood and adulthood. In short, the article suggests that an intensification of parenting has the potential to have a corrosive effect on notions of social solidarity, and makes the case instead for a societal conception of raising children.