insight4me Sociology: Contemporary Families With Dr Emma Huddlestone From University of East Anglia & Professor Paul Hodkinson From University of Surrey

Register here

• University of Surrey: Paul Hodkinson, Professor of Sociology, will present Contemporary Fathers – Experiences, Expectations & Wellbeing. What involvement do contemporary fathers have in caring and parenting? How does becoming a father affect men’s life, identity and wellbeing? What kind of social expectations do fathers encounter, and what kind of challenges do these create? In this talk we examine the role and experience of fathers and the way in which they are positioned by society.  Against the context of shifting understandings of men, but ongoing gender barriers in the home and workplace, we examine what has and hasn’t changed with respect to fathers’ involvement in parenting their children, and some of the difficulties that can be experienced by those who do take on extensive caregiving roles. We will also explore what the experience of becoming a parent can be like for fathers, and the ways in which expectations on men and fathers can contribute to wellbeing struggles during or after the process of having a baby.

• University of East Anglia: In this talk, Dr Emma Huddlestone, Lecturer in Sociology, will introduce her qualitative research exploring Military Families and their experiences of war and military life – focusing on methods used and key findings from the research. Specifically, she will explore how interviews with civilian partners of service personnel enabled her to identify the various ways in which the UK Armed Forces relies upon partners’ gendered labour and support to achieve its aims. She will also reflect on her current work which explores creative ways to share military partners’ experiences, foregrounding the emotionality felt during interviews.

In this insight4me Sociology online event for schools and colleges, two universities, University of East Anglia and University of Surrey, will each have roughly 30 minutes to deliver a punchy, interactive topic based ‘micro’ talk. Within an overall session theme of Contemporary Families, the universities have the freedom to choose their own focus and use the time to convey the key points of the case studies for the students.

insight4me is a series of subject specific webinars for Aged 16+ pre-university students. The sessions directly support students’ current studies by giving an insight into particular curriculum areas whilst affording an understanding of how these subjects continue beyond A-levels, T-levels, IB, BTEC and equivalent qualifications, and how they vary between universities.

Our events are designed so that a group of students can take part from a classroom or students and teachers can take part as individuals, either from school or from home. There is no charge to take part.

As a live, participative event, this session will not be recorded but slides and other resources will be shared after the event, where available.

Suitable for: Aged 16+ pre-university students studying, or with a possible interest in studying, Sociology and related disciplines. Student groups, and individual students and teachers are very welcome to join us.

Preparation/Pre-Reading: Students may wish to consider the 2 topics and discuss some of the key elements in advance. Students can also think about questions they have about studying at university level.

The IT Setup: The event will be run on Zoom and participants will be able to join using laptops, tablets, and mobile devices. If you are joining as a school group, we recommend connecting with one device and projecting on to a whiteboard. You will be able to interact with the university via typed comments and questions or via a microphone if preferred. Full details will be sent to those who have registered (see below) prior to the event.

Booking a Place: This is free for schools and colleges. If you would like to take part in this event, please register your interest using the link to the registration form below:

Register here