Anticipating the transition to parenthood: the contribution of Foucaultian discourse analysis to understanding life-course patterns

Existing analyses of life-course transitions tend to take either an institutional or an agency perspective. The aim of this paper is to show how a discourse analytical approach might contribute to bridging the gap between the two perspectives and thereby broaden our understanding of life-course trajectories. To do this, it presents an empirical study that looks at how young Swiss adults anticipate the transition to parenthood. The findings show that young adults are confronted with conflicting and opposing norms concerning parenthood. On the one hand, there is the idea of free choice as to whether and when to have a child. On the other hand, there exist persisting societal prescriptions that govern who may legitimately become a parent. Whoever does not fulfil the required conditions – the discourse suggests – should not have children. The discourse perspective thus brings to the fore what counts as shared knowledge in a particular place and at a particular historical moment. It indicates how the social construction of the transition to parenthood forges particular life-course trajectories

The business of care: Private placement agencies and female migrant workers in London

This article presents the results of a qualitative research project on private domestic and care placement agencies in London. Although there is a paucity of empirical studies on these private actors, they have become increasingly important in the domestic and care sector in the UK. In a context of growing commodification and marketization, the article shows how domestic and care services constitute an extremely profitable ‘industry’ in which large companies are increasingly investing. Drawing on content analysis of agencies' websites and in‐depth interviews with agencies' managers/owners, migrant workers and key informants, the article sheds light on these intermediary figures' marketing and business strategies as well as on the ways they contribute to establish the language and practice of domestic and care work as a business. Furthermore, it highlights the employment conditions and selection criteria established by these private agencies for female migrant workers, particularly in a context in which commodification/marketization is expected to foster more professionalization. The article thus fills a significant gap in the literature on domestic and care work, gender and migration by analysing the ways in which for‐profit recruitment agencies have become important players in the care industry

Vom Spagat der Väter: es braucht eine familienfreundliche Zukunft

Für viele Väter ist es schwierig, Beruf und Familie gleichwertig zu gewichten. Denn nach wie vor sind meist sie für die finanzielle Sicherheit der Familie zuständig