Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Orienting Frameworks and Concepts

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Fatherhood, Adolescence and Gender in Chinese Families

Part of the book series: Palgrave Macmillan Studies in Family and Intimate Life ((PSFL))

  • 450 Accesses

Abstract

In this chapter, the concepts and the theoretical frameworks regarding the study of fathers, adolescent girls, and their family lives are discussed. First, the framework of time—historical time, generational time, and life course time—is a central theme since the focus of the study includes two family generations: fathers and daughters who live through very different times. In addition, the orientation of individualism and collectivism provide a useful perspective in the Chinese context as a result of globalization and the significant social changes in recent decades. Furthermore, the concepts of identity and gender; care and fathering; and family negotiations represent the main sensitizing concepts that I have employed in approaching the analysis of the data in Chaps. 4, 5, 6, and 7.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 79.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Aapola, S., Gonick, M., & Harris, A. (2005). Young femininity: Girlhood, power, and social change. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adam, B., Hockey, J., Thompson, P., & Edwards, R. (2008). Researching lives through time: Time, generation and life stories. Leeds: University of Leeds.

    Google Scholar 

  • Allatt, P. (1996). Conceptualizing parenting from the standpoint of children: Relationship and transition in the life course. In J. Brannen & M. O’Brien (Eds.), Children in families: Research and policy (pp. 130–144). London: Falmer Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ata, R. N., Ludden, A. B., & Lally, M. M. (2007). The effects of gender and family, friend, and media influences on eating behaviors and body image during adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36(8), 1024–1037.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bagnoli, A., & Ketokivi, K. (2009). At a crossroads: Contemporary lives between fate and choice. European Societies, 11(3), 315–324.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beck, U. (1992). Risk society: Towards a new modernity. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beck, U., & Beck-Gernsheim, E. (1995). The normal chaos of love. Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blumer, H. (1969). Symbolic interactionism: Perspective and method. London: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brannen, J. (1996). Discourses of adolescence: Young people’s independence and autonomy within families. In J. Brannen & M. O’Brien (Eds.), Children in families: Research and policy (pp. 114–130). London: Falmer Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brannen, J. (2002). Lives and time: A sociological journey. Paper presented at the A Professional Lecture, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brannen, J. (2004). Working and caring over the twentieth century: Change and continuity in four-generation families. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Brannen, J., Lewis, S., Nilsen, A., & Smithson, J. (2002). Young Europeans, work and family: Futures in transition. London: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Brannen, J., & Nilsen, A. (2002). Young people’s perspectives on the future. In J. Brannen, S. Lewis, A. Nilsen, & S. Janet (Eds.), Young Europeans, work and family (pp. 48–68). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brannen, J., & Nilsen, A. (2005). Individualisation, choice and structure: A discussion of current trends in sociological analysis. The Sociological Review, 53(3), 412–428.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cameron, D. (1989). The feminist critique of language: A reader (2nd ed.). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coleman, J. (1997). The parenting of adolescents in Britain Today. Children and Society, 11, 44–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coleman, J. (2010). The nature of adolescence (4th ed.). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Connell, R. (2005). Growing up masculine: Rethinking the significance of adolescence in the making of masculinities. Irish Journal of Sociology, 14(2), 11–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Croll, E. (2006). The intergenerational contract in the changing Asian family. Oxford Development Studies, 34(4), 473–491.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Daly, M., & Lewis, J. (1999). Introduction: Conceptualizing social care in the context of welfare state restructuring. In J. Lewis (Ed.), Gender, social care and welfare state restructuring in Europe (pp. 1–25). Aldershot: Ashgate.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darling, N., Cumsille, P., & Loreto Martínez, M. (2007). Adolescents’ as active agents in the socialization process: Legitimacy of parental authority and obligation to obey as predictors of obedience. Journal of Adolescence, 30(2), 297–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dermott, E. (2005). Time and labour: Fathers’ perceptions of employment and childcare. Sociological Review, 53(S2), 89–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dohnt, H. K., & Tiggemann, M. (2006). Body image concerns in young girls: The role of peers and media prior to adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 35(2), 141–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. (1985). Life course dynamics: Trajectories and transitions, 1968-1980. New York: Cornell University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. (1999). Children of the great depression: Social change in life experience (25th Anniversary ed.). Oakland, CA: Westview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis (1st ed.). London: Faber & Faber.

    Google Scholar 

  • Finch, J. (1989). Family obligations and social change. Cambridge: Polity Press in association with Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Finch, J. (2007). Displaying families. Sociology, 41(1), 65–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Finch, J., & Mason, J. (1993). Negotiating family responsibilities. London: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M., & Gordon, C. (1980). Power-knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings, 1972-1977. Brighton: Harvester Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furlong, A., & Cartmel, A. (1997). Young people and social change: Individualisation and risk in late modernity. Buckingham: Open University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furman, W., Low, S., & Ho, M. (2009). Romantic experience and psychosocial adjustment in middle adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 38(1), 75–90.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (1991). Modernity and self-identity: Self and society in the late modern age. Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (1992). The transformation of intimacy: Sexuality, love and eroticism in modern societies. Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (1994). Living in a post traditional society. In U. Beck, A. Giddens, & S. Lash (Eds.), Reflexive modernisation: Politics, tradition and aesthetics in the modern social order (pp. 56–109). Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (1999). Family. Paper presented at the Reith Lectures, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillies, V. (2003). Family and intimate relationships: A review of the sociological research. London: Families and Social Capital ESRC Research Group.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillies, V., McCarthy, J. R., & Holland, J. (2001). Pulling together, pulling apart: The family lives of young people. London: Family Policy Studies Centre & Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillis, J. (1996). Making time for family: The invention of family time(s) and the reinvention of family history. Journal of Family History, 21(1), 4–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen, M., & Svarverud, R. (2010). iChina: The rise of individual in modern Chinese society. Copenhagen: Nordic Institute of Asian Studies.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hareven, T. (1982). Family time and industrial time: The relationship between family and work in a New England industrial community. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hilary, G. (1983). The labour of love. In J. Finch & D. Groves (Eds.), A labour of love: Women, work, and caring (pp. 13–30). London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hobson, B., & Morgan, D. (2002). Introduction. In B. Hobson (Ed.), Making men into fathers: Men, masculinities and the social politics of fatherhood (pp. 1–24). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Holland, J., Weeks, J., & Gillies, V. (2003). Families, intimacy and social capital. Social Policy and Society, 2(4), 339–348.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huang, Z. (2003). Shui shi Qingnian: Guanyu Qingnian Nianling Jieding de Baogao [Who is youth? A report on definition of youth]. China Youth Study, 11, 31–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jakes, S. (2005, October 3). Li Yuchun: Loved for being herself. Times Magazine.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jamieson, L. (1999). Intimacy transformed? A critical look at the ‘pure relationship’. Sociology, 3(3), 477–493.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kehily, M. (2007). Understanding youth: Perspectives, identities and practices. London: SAGE in association with the Open University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kerr, M., & Stattin, H. (2000). What parents know, how they know it, and several forms of adolescent adjustment: Further support for a reinterpretation of monitoring. Developmental Psychology, 36(3), 366–380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lam, C. M. (2007). Not grown up forever: A Chinese conception of adolescent development. New York: Nova Science.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lam, C. M., M.S.W, & A.C.S.W. (1997). A cultural perspective on the study of Chinese adolescent development. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 14(2), 85–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Langford, W., Lewis, C., Solomon, Y., & Warin, J. (2001). Family understanding: Closeness, authority and independence in families with teenagers. London: Family Policy Studies Centre.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lau, S. (1996). Self-concept development: Is there a concept of self in Chinese culture? In S. Lau (Ed.), Growing up the Chinese way: Chinese child and adolescent development. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Li, Y., Hu, X., Ma, W., Wu, J., & Ma, G. (2005). Body image perception among Chinese children and adolescents. Body Image, 2(2), 91–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, Y. (2003). Pao Laopo de Shanghai Nanren [Henpecked Shanghai husband]. Shanghai Wave, 12, 36–37.

    Google Scholar 

  • Liying, K. (2003). Chinese children’s changing family and school environments. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 24(4), 381–395.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Long, Y. (1998). Ah, Shanghai Nanren [Ah, Shanghaiman]. Shanghai: Xue Lin Publisher.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mac an Ghaill, M., & Haywood, C. (2006). Gender, culture and society: Contemporary femininities and masculinities. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mannheim, K. (1952). The problem of generations. In P. Kecskemeti (Ed.), Essays on the sociology of knowledge. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • McBride, B. A., Brown, G. L., Bost, K. K., Shin, N., Vaughn, B., & Korth, B. (2005). Paternal identity, maternal gatekeeping, and father involvement. Family Relations, 2005(54), 360–372.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDowell, L., Ray, K., Perrons, D., Fagan, C., & Ward, K. (2005). Women’s paid work and moral economies of care. Social and Cultural Geography, 6(2), 219–235.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McFall, S. L., & Garrington, C. (2011). Early findings from the first wave of the UK’s household longitudinal study. Colchester: Institute for Social and Economic Research, University of Essex.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLeod, J., & Thomson, R. (2009). Researching social change. London: Sage.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • McNeal, J. U., & Yeh, C.-H. (2003). Consumer behavior of Chinese children: 1995-2002. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 20(6), 542–554.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meland, E., Haugland, S., & Breidablik, H.-J. (2007). Body image and perceived health in adolescence. Health Education Research, 22(3), 342–350.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mills, W. (1959). The sociological imagination. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morgan, D. (1996). Family connections: An introduction to family studies. Cambridge: Polity Press association with Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morgan, D. (1999). Risk and family practices: Accounting for change and fluidity in family life. In E. B. Silva & C. Smart (Eds.), The new family? London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Connor, P. (2006). Young people’s constructions of the self: Late modern elements and gender differences. Sociology, 40(1), 107–124.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olson, G. (2006). Teenage girls: Exploring issues adolescent girls face and strategies to help them. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, G., Cobas, J., Bush, K., Supple, A., & Wilson, S. (2005). Parent-youth relationships and the self-esteem of Chinese adolescents: Collectivism versus individualism. Marriage and Family Review, 36(3/4), 173–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plumridge, L., & Thomson, R. (2003). Longitudinal qualitative studies and the reflexive self. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 6(3), 213–222.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Qin, L. (2004). Dasi Buzuo Shanghai Nanren [I’d rather be dead than be a Shanghai man]. BeiJing: Xi Yuan Publisher.

    Google Scholar 

  • Salway, S., Chowbey, P., & Clarke, L. (2009). Parenting in modern Britain: Understanding the experiences of Asian fathers. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solomon, Y., Warin, J., Lewis, C., & Langford, W. (2002). Intimate talk between parents and their teenage children: Democratic openness or covert control. Sociology, 36(4), 965–983.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun, H. (2003). The current status of Chinese children. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 24(4), 337–354.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thomson, R., Bell, R., Holland, J., Henderson, S., McGrellis, S., & Sharpe, S. (2002). Critical moments: Choice, chance and opportunity in young people’s narratives of transition. Sociology, 36(2), 335–376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thomson, R., Henderson, S., & Holland, J. (2003). Making the most of what you’ve got? Resources, values and inequalities in young women’s transitions to adulthood. Educational Review, 55(1), 33–46.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tronto, J. (1994). Moral boundaries: Political argument for an ethic of care. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Valentine, G. (2003). Boundary crossings: Transitions from childhood to adulthood. Children’s Geographies, 1(1), 37–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walkerdine, V., Lucey, H., & Melody, J. (2002). Growing up girl: Psychosocial explorations of gender and class. London: Palgrave.

    Google Scholar 

  • Watson, J. (2004). McDonald’s in Hong Kong. In F. Lechner & J. Boli (Eds.), The globalisation reader (2nd ed., pp. 125–132). Oxford: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Way, N., & Gillman, D. A. (2000). Early adolescent girls’ perceptions of their relationships with their fathers: A qualitative investigation. Journal of Early Adolescence, 20(3), 309–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weber, I. G. (1999). Shanghai youth, television, and cultural identity: An ethnographic portrait (Doctoral thesis). Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wei, H. (2001). Shanghai baby. London: Robinson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weller, S. (2006). Situating (Young) teenagers in geographies of children and youth. Children’s Geographies, 4(1), 97–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • West, C., & Zimmerman, D. (1987). Doing gender. Gender and Society, 1(2), 125–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, F. (2002). Changing lives in a changing world. Paper presented at the International Conference on Adolescence, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, F. (2004). Rethinking families. London: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yan, Y. (2010). The Chinese path to individualization. British Journal of Sociology, 61(3), 489–512.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yeh, K.-H., Liu, Y.-L., Huang, H.-S., & Yang, Y.-J. (2005). Individuating and relating autonomy in culturally Chinese adolescents. In J. Liu, C. Ward, A. Bernardo, M. Karasawa, & R. Fischer (Eds.), Progress in Asian social psychology: Contributions on Asian social psychology (Vol. 6). Seoul: Kyoyook-Kwahak-Sa.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. UCL Institute of Education, University of London, London, UK

    Qiong Xu

Authors
  1. Qiong Xu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Copyright information

© 2016 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Xu, Q. (2016). Orienting Frameworks and Concepts. In: Fatherhood, Adolescence and Gender in Chinese Families. Palgrave Macmillan Studies in Family and Intimate Life. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-46178-0_3

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-46178-0_3

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-137-46177-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-137-46178-0

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation