‘Traditionalizing’ Effect of Parenthood on First Time Mothers: Insights from a Longitudinal Study

Introduction: Some researchers have documented that transitioning to parenthood may have a 'traditionalizing' effect on the gendered division of housework and childcare. However, it is not completely clear what influences this change in behaviour and attitudes whaying it more to the side of traditional gender norms.
Goals and Methods: The goal of the research is to enhance the understanding of the factors that influence the manifestation of this phenomenon. To achieve this objective, two waves of individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten women at two specific time points: during pregnancy and four to six months postpartum. Although convenience sampling was employed for data collection, the research participants displayed variation in terms of marital status, educational level, number of children, breastfeeding practices, and other characteristics. An inductive thematic analysis was carried out, allowing for a cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis of the data.
Results: The research participants, who declared a more traditionally gendered division of household labour prior to childbirth, continued to be responsible for a greater share of housework duties after childbirth. While childcare tasks, with one exception, were mostly carried out by mothers as well; surprisingly, only two out of nine women expressed dissatisfaction regarding such a division. Furthermore, by employing a novel approach to measure attitudes towards gender roles, four research participants had altered their views on who should be the primary carer of an infant after they became parents.
Conclusion: The research findings suggest that the 'traditionalizing' effect may be observed in the attitudes of some women without necessarily being observed in the division of housework duties. The salience of the new identity as a mother to a woman is being discussed as a precursor for the 'traditionalizing' effect to be manifested.