DIVERSITY OF VALUES TOWARDS PARENTING IN DIFFERENT SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL CONTEXTS IN EUROPE. THE MIGRATION BACKGROUND MATTERS

Abstract

The study aims to assess variations in values towards parenting across 28 countries in Europe and their relationship to a set of determinants at two levels - country and individual. Data and methods: Microdata from the representative ESS wave 9 conducted in 2018-2020 is used. A 4-component variable of values towards parenting is designed. Central research questions are: how do the cultural context and the socio-economic development in different countries influence values towards parenting? What is the effect of some values concerning the relationships between individuals and groups on this value-parenting variable? What is the situation with migrants as a specific group - how do values towards parenting vary between the natives, first-generation and second-generation immigrants in different clusters of countries and do they associate with the macro-cultural context? Is there a relationship between attitudes towards immigrants in these countries and values towards parenting? Answers are sought through different types of analysis - descriptive, principal component analysis, and multilevel linear regression modelling. Results: Migrant background as a micro-level socialisation context variable has the strongest impact on values towards parenting. Although we document an adaptation of migrants' values towards parenting in conformity with the macro-level cultural context and by the migrant generation. Among the three cultural context variables designed, both humanism and conservatism are important statistically significant individual-level predictors of values toward parenting and the former is a country-level predictor. These values act as predictors irrespective of people's age and education. The human development index is the strongest predictor at the country level.