Parenthood and everyday mobilities in Portugal: a gender approach

• Autor(a) principal: Schouten, Maria Johanna Christina
• Data de Publicação: 2017
• Outros Autores: Las Heras, Soledad
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.6/6224
• topic: Children’s mobility; Parents’ role; Gender; Time use; Portugal

The spatial transition of individuals and their families between the different contexts of home, work/school, and leisure activities, as well as the time spent during this «interface», are attracting growing attention from sociologists. The main subject of the present study relates to the transportation of children to and from day-care, school or extracurricular activities, and the strategies mothers and fathers apply to managing this routine form of mobility. In an analysis of the various dimensions of this parental task, attention is paid to the central place children occupy in today’s families, strengthening parents’ protective instincts. The data presented come from a study of households in two zones in Portugal with diverse geographical and demographic characteristics. The quantitative and qualitative data indicate differences between men and women in types and patterns of mobility, and also in the access to and use of means of transport. The daily school run, in its broadest sense, can be taken as an activity pertaining to the domain of «caring» and to a certain extent this is reflected in its gendered character.