Grandfathering as spatio-temporal practice

Conceptualizing Performances of Ageing Masculinities in Contemporary Familial Carescapes

Bibliographic Data

ID3977199
AuthorsAnna Tarrant (0000-0002-5253-6056, The Open University, corresponding author)
Year2013
Volume14
Issue2
Pages192-210
Publication date2013-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial & Cultural Geography (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1464-9365 • E-ISSN: 1470-1197
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14649365.2012.740501
OpenAlexW1968099275
LanguageEN
Citations received41
References cited61

This study examines the spatio-temporalities of the intergenerational caring practices that contemporary grandfathers engage in with their grandchildren, in order to critique old men's constructions and performances of ageing masculinities and the gendering and ageing of contemporary carescapes. Findings are based on thirty-one qualitative interviews and two participant observations, conducted in the north-west of England with men who are grandfathers. The concept of carescapes (Bowlby, Gregory and McKie 1997) is employed to explain that grandfathering is both spatially and temporally organized. Findings suggest that men construct distinctly masculine spaces of care later in life, contingent on both their resistance to spatially embedded ageism and their comparisons of grandfathering to previous lifecourse subjectivities, such as fathering. Complexity and diversity in how men negotiate these factors are also apparent and are explored. There is evidence for example that some men's performances of ageing masculinities contribute to the maintenance of a gendered division of labour in family care work, while others perform alternative masculinities that offer potential to transform gendered carespaces. This is further mediated by intergenerational interactions with children and grandchildren. Focus on old men who are grandfathers necessarily complicates geographical perspectives on the spatio-temporalities of multiple masculinities, ageing and informal familial care

Construct (python library · Division of labour · Life course approach · Negotiation · Political science · Social science · Sociology · Temporalities · Gender Roles and Identity Studies · Gender Studies · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Psychology · Social Psychology · Work-Family Balance Challenges

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