Abstract
Fundamental reforms in childcare services appear to have eroded traditional
support to the male breadwinner model across European states. There has been a strong debate about the direction of these changes, and the ways in which childcare services can alter the division of labor and promote gender equality. This paper deals with these issues by using fuzzy set ideal-type analysis to assess the conformity of childcare service provisions in European economies to Fraser’s four ideal typical models: male breadwinner, caregiver parity, universal breadwinner, and universal caregiver. We find that there is resilience of traditional gender roles in the majority of European countries, while there are different variants of the universal breadwinner shaping different forms of childcare policies. The more equalitarian universal caregiver model maintains its utopian character.
support to the male breadwinner model across European states. There has been a strong debate about the direction of these changes, and the ways in which childcare services can alter the division of labor and promote gender equality. This paper deals with these issues by using fuzzy set ideal-type analysis to assess the conformity of childcare service provisions in European economies to Fraser’s four ideal typical models: male breadwinner, caregiver parity, universal breadwinner, and universal caregiver. We find that there is resilience of traditional gender roles in the majority of European countries, while there are different variants of the universal breadwinner shaping different forms of childcare policies. The more equalitarian universal caregiver model maintains its utopian character.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 50-79 |
Journal | Social Politics |
Volume | 21 |
Issue number | 1 |
Early online date | 17 Feb 2014 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2014 |
Keywords
- childcare
- Europe
- social policy
- Fuzzy sets
- gender equality
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Prizes
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2015 Nominee honor for the best paper in work-family research, Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research
Rossella Ciccia (Recipient), 01 May 2015
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)