Using Identity Theory to Develop a Midrange Model of Parental Gatekeeping and Parenting Behavior

Abstract

Given the socially constructed nature of parenthood, frameworks such as identity theory can help explain mothering and fathering behaviors and, particularly, parents' influence on one another's behaviors (referred to here as parental gatekeeping). Burke's (1991, 1997) identity verification model suggests that others encourage or inhibit identity‐relevant behaviors via identity‐behavior‐feedback loops. This article proposes that such dyadic processes can explain parental gatekeeping; by combining empirical literature and propositions from identity theory and adding gender and power as moderating constructs, a midrange model of parental gatekeeping and parental behavior is derived.

A Longitudinal Investigation of Mothers' and Fathers' Initial Fathering Identities and Later Father-Child Relationship Quality

“…Such dyadic standards become important when counter-identities interact, as feedback to the identity-relevant behavior of a partner would originate from these counter-identity standards (Adamsons, 2010). In the above example, if the father worked long hours, the mother (based on her own emphasis on provision as part of "good fathering") would respond positively to such behaviors, providing congruent feedback and reinforcing the father's pattern of behavior.…”

“…Status identities are assumed to exist in pairs, such that someone is a husband because someone else is a wife, and someone is an employee because someone else is an employer. Such dyads are referred to as counter-identities, and counter-identities hold identity standards not only for themselves, but also for their dyad partners (Adamsons, 2010). For example, a mother and father each has a set of identity standards stating both what it means to be a "good mother" and a "good father."…”

Rethinking Maternal Gatekeeping

“…Importantly, scholars had called for a more comprehensive model of gatekeeping that (a) was not limited to restricting fathers (Adamsons, ; Schoppe‐Sullivan et al, ; Trinder, ), (b) was sensitive to maternal needs and intentions about fathers (Sano, Richards, & Zvonkovic, ; Szabo et al, ), and (c) allowed for understanding a father's role in gatekeeping (Walker & McGraw, ). We address the first two points by proposing our three‐dimensional model of gatekeeping in which the dimensions operate along unique but intersecting continua.…”

A Reconsideration of the Fatherhood Premium

“…When fatherhood, specifically the provider role, is salient, clear, and high in commitment, fathers are expected to change their behavior in ways that enhance wages. Scholars have recently used identity theory to theorize and examine variation in men's engagement with their children (Adamsons 2010;Fox and Bruce 2001;Henley and Pasley 2005;Rane and McBride 2000), yet implications for the fatherhood wage premium have not been explored. Given the dominant position of financial providership in men's conceptions of fatherhood (Forste, Bartkowski, and Jackson 2009;Townsend 2002), this omission limits our understanding of how men construct the intersection of worker and father statuses.…”