Nuorten naisten työn ja perheen yhteensovittamisen odotukset ja koetut toimintamahdollisuudet muotoutuvassa aikuisuudessa

Abstract

This dissertation examined young women’s perceived capabilities in relation to their expectations on work-family reconciliation in emerging adulthood. The mechanisms of inequality underlying these capabilities were also explored. The study comprised three sub-studies focusing on the perceived capabilities and mechanisms of inequality in young women’s expectations on (1) family formation, (2) work-family reconciliation and (3) work. The target study group were young women aged 18 to 29 from different educational backgrounds and life situations who did not yet have children. A mixed methods approach combining individual interview data (N=30) and the Finnish Youth Barometer 2019 survey data (N=527) was applied. The interview data were analyzed using thematic analysis and typification, along with content analysis and categorization. The survey data were studied using person-oriented latent profile analysis. The results showed that young women's expectations on work and family were guided by individual, institutional, and cultural-societal factors. Socioeconomic factors, such as level of education, labor market status, financial situation, living region, and unfavorable life course experiences during childhood and adolescence, were related to the limited capabilities of the unemployed women for working life, family formation and work-family reconciliation. Partnership status did not differentiate the young women’s expectations on working life but was, however, meaningful for their expectations on forming a family in the future. Furthermore, the family leave system offered by the Finnish welfare state and the ideal of intensive motherhood steered women's expectations towards a preference for long family leave and the primacy of maternal care. The ideals of intensive motherhood were particularly pronounced among the women students, who also considered education and career to be important in their future life course. The labor market, especially among those who were long-term unemployed, was a significant determinant of the young women’s aspirations and ability to plan for their later working lives and hence for family formation and work-family reconciliation.