Fatherhood in Late Modernity: Cultural Images, Social Practices, Structural Frames

How do structural changes - in the welfare state, gender relations, and work - affect concepts and realities of fatherhood? Fatherhood in Late Modernity analyzes the cultural images and representations of fatherhood, including the varieties of fatherhood in relation to social backgrounds, the organizational influences, as well as the impact of political and legal interventions on configurations of fatherhood. It links in with international comparative research and shows how fruitful it can be to break disciplinary boundaries. With an interdisciplinary approach, the contributions investigate the sometimes contradictory relationship between cultural representations and social practices of fatherhood. They contextualize diverse fatherhoods in various social backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, and different national contexts. Reflecting methodological challenges is crucial to the volume's approach: Which parameters are used to quantify change? * Which links and interactions exist between cultural, individual, organizational, and societal dimensions? * How can the complex interaction between structural constraints and agency be analyzed? * Can certain agents of change be identified? * How can social change be conceptualized?