Sep 01 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)
Outsourced: Modern-day parenting
Washington:
PTI
|
Many modern-day parents are comfortable off-loading traditional parental duties to professional care-givers, researchers, including one of Indianorigin, have found.Recognizing a need for help, many businesses now offer traditional care-giving services ranging from planning birthday parties to teaching children how to ride a bike. Researchers found that by outsourcing traditional parental duties, modern-day parents feel they are ultimately protecting parenthood.
To better understand the role of the marketplace in modern-day parenting, the research authors Amber M Epp and Sunaina R Velagale ti, both from the University of Wisconsin, conducted indepth interviews with participants who varied in parenting views, practices, and challenges ranging from income to social class and the availability of help from immediate family .
The interviews showed that parents are more willing to turn to the marketplace for help once they have provided a strong baseline of activities that allow them to direct how care is given, protect their connections as parents, and assert their role as the primary caregiver. Achieving this balance helps parents maintain their feelings of responsibility , control, and intimacy , the authors said.
Understanding this can offer insight for companies looking to better market their services to parents.
“Our findings run counter to the widespread idea that family and the local community should always be the first and second lines of parenting help. Often times, businesses can resolve parenting tensions more effectively due to the contractual nature of the services they provide,“ the authors concluded.
To better understand the role of the marketplace in modern-day parenting, the research authors Amber M Epp and Sunaina R Velagale ti, both from the University of Wisconsin, conducted indepth interviews with participants who varied in parenting views, practices, and challenges ranging from income to social class and the availability of help from immediate family .
The interviews showed that parents are more willing to turn to the marketplace for help once they have provided a strong baseline of activities that allow them to direct how care is given, protect their connections as parents, and assert their role as the primary caregiver. Achieving this balance helps parents maintain their feelings of responsibility , control, and intimacy , the authors said.
Understanding this can offer insight for companies looking to better market their services to parents.
“Our findings run counter to the widespread idea that family and the local community should always be the first and second lines of parenting help. Often times, businesses can resolve parenting tensions more effectively due to the contractual nature of the services they provide,“ the authors concluded.
