Intergenerational transmission of parenting as a value

Abstract

While intergenerational similarities and differences are of key importance for tracking social change, relatively little is known about the transmission of values regarding parenting in Poland. Therefore, this paper explores the process of intergenerational transfer, focusing specifically on the transmission of parenting as a value. From a methodological perspective, the article is based on a combined dataset from two projects completed with a multi-perspective approach. The ensuing qualitative thematic analysis offers intergenerational comparisons of dyadic interviews with pairs consisting of 51 young adults and one parent of each (n=102). As a result, three patterns – straightforward transmission, lagging transfer, and broken intergenerational value-normative connectivity in regard to parenting as a value – are discussed. Ultimately, the paper contributes a better understanding of the public and private aspects within long-term socialisation effects, explored here as residing at the intersection of changing values and intergenerational contexts of family life in Poland.