Browsing by Subject "maternity"

Aims. The purpose of this study is to describe how entrepreneurial women with children experience parenting. The theoretical background is based on the parenting role map (Helminen and Iso-Heiniemi, 1999), as well as the cultural aspects of motherhood (Berg, 2008). The point of view regarding entrepreneurship and parenting coordination is derived from a model (Salmi 2004c) with work and family, as the point where three fields intersect. The fields consist of working life and politics, family life and social policy, as well as the constructive processes of gender and equality politics. Experiences of parenting by self-employed women examined three broad thematic areas: parenting experience, entrepreneurship and parenting coordination, and parenting and entrepreneurship, as positioned in the careers of the interviewees. The main research questions are: 1. How is parenting experienced in the everyday life by female entrepreneurs with children? 2. What types of coping strategies and solutions have women entrepreneurs created to coordinate entrepreneurship and parenting? 3. How have parenthood and entrepreneurship positioned themselves in the life cycle of women entrepreneurs? Methods. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews involving eight 30 to 55-year-old female entrepreneurs in the Uusimaa region. In addition to the interview, the subjects produced their own life stories, where they recorded the important stages of family life and entrepreneurship. The data were analysed using content analysis. The experiences of self employed women were approached through phenomenological understanding without attempting to remove them from the general social context. Results and conclusions. The parenthood of self employed women parentage was purely gender based and expressed as maternity in their daily lives. The role of maternity appeared in their everyday care of children, household tasks, and basic needs. Closeness and presence were also strong factors. A safety net involving the grandparents was present. Also, use of time and bringing the child to the work were functions of the coordination solutions. The life stories of female entrepreneurs appeared as individual stories, with maternity as the common denominator. The use of time included exceptional creativity and resourcefulness in addressing the needs of the family. The way female entrepreneurs schedule their time in everyday life provides an interesting perspective in the discussion regarding coordination of work and family.