Berent, Iris; (2024) How Do Jewish Parents of School-Age Children in Israel Experience Receiving Parental Advice? Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

Preview

Text Berent_10195494_thesis_revised_sigs_removed.pdf Download (3MB) | Preview

Abstract

This in-depth qualitative study casts a revealing light on the subjective experiences and perceptions of 13 middle-class educated Jewish Israeli parents, both mothers and fathers, with school-age children in the greater Tel Aviv area interviewed from 2015 to 2018, before the COVID pandemic and the current war in Israel following the attacks of October 7, 2023. Taking its lead from Bronfenbrenner’s groundbreaking 1979 bio-ecological model, the research delves deeply into how social positioning and cultural influences shape parents’ encounters with parental advice. The richness of the data is derived from personal interviews with parents who have grappled with a variety of types of advice, either actively sought out or unsolicited. To ensure an understanding of the nuances involved, parents were categorised into three groups according to their attitudes towards parental advice: One group was labeled Proactive in Seeking Parental Advice (Group A), that is, those parents actively seeking advice. Another group was labeled Objecting to Receiving Parental Advice (Group B), which referred to those parents who resisted unsolicited advice. The third group was labeled Ambivalent Towards Receiving Parental Advice (Group C), and referred to those parents expressing ambivalence towards advice. What emerges from the thematic analysis of the interview data is a portrait of a society in which the cultural norms of intensive parenting are reinforced through an understanding of Jewish tradition, contemporary secular norms, and a socio-political climate of neoliberalism. Although Israel is a country in which parenthood is greatly revered, all parents voiced a response to the tenets of intensive parenting culture promoting risk management and evidence-based child-rearing practices. Yet, despite these societal pressures, the interviews reveal a shared experience of stress and a universal desire to retain some degree of autonomy in the face of advice. The majority of parents expressed hesitation, if not outright resistance, towards both professional and lay parental advice. Many parents shared that they view parenting as a deeply personal endeavor, with some going so far as to articulate that they had felt threatened by advice. Thus, this study explores a unique cultural paradox: Israeli parents grappling with stress around parental advice within a society saturated with intensive parenting ideals and underpinned by values such as familism, religious values, autonomy, and individualism. These findings shed a light on the complex landscape of parental advice, allowing us to better understand, support, and empower parents as they navigate their unique parenting journeys.

Download activity - last month

Export as JSONXMLCSV

Download activity - last 12 months

Export as JSONCSVXML

Downloads by country - last 12 months

Export as CSVXMLJSON

Archive Staff Only

View Item