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SINGLE MOTHERS DOING FAMILY: RE-FORMING TRADITIONAL FAMILY IN TURKEY

Year 2018, , 71 - 101, 27.04.2018
https://doi.org/10.18490/sosars.418989

Abstract

In this study, my main purpose is to grasp how women whose marriage is ended up either by divorce or the loss of the husband experience the life after marital dissolution as a widow and a divorced woman in economic, social network and social support, cultural stigma and single parenting issues in Turkey. I claim that widowed and divorced women are trapped in between family, market and state; and that gender based, family oriented patriarchal society and social policies do not allow these women to live their life the way they want and to stand on their own feet, and make them lean on their families or men. In this study, my argument is that divorced and widow women are doing family in order to cope with the difficulties of being single mothers. In order to understand the change in women’s experiences with patriarchy, semi-structured interviews were conducted with nineteen divorced mothers and seventeen widow mothers living in Ankara. This study shows us while the divorced mothers were trying to construct a new family; they reconstruct the traditional family approach by letting grandfathers to be authority figure in the family. The findings of this study point out that divorced and widow women families are defined by the family ideal. Single mothers try to perform the family by adopting traditional family norms in their family after marital dissolution because of the pressure of patriarchal system in the society. The cases of divorced and widow women show us that family ambivalence and authority problems occur because single mothers do not fit the traditional family model in Turkey.

References

  • REFERENCES “European Quality of Life Survey 2003,“ http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/areas/qualityoflife/eqls/2003/eqls.htm, accessed in 19 November 2013. “Evlilik Okulu Kursu,” http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/kadin/7724673.asp, accessed in 1 November, 2013. “İşte Devletin Evlilik Kurtarma Planı” http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/10843/iste_devletin_evlilik_kurtarma_plani.html, accessed in 19 November 2013. Abalı, S. (2006). Considering the Sexual Life as a Cause of Divorce by Women, Unpublished Master‘s Thesis, Marmara University. Amato, P. (1987). Family processes in one-parent, stepparent and intact families: The child’s point of view. Journal of Marriage and the Family 49, 327-337. Belge, B. (2011). "Women Policies Erased from Political Agenda", http://bianet.org/english/women/130607-women-policies-erased-from-political-agenda, Boss, P. (1980). Normative family stress: Family boundary changes across the lifespan. Family Relations, 29(4), 445-450. Boss, P. (1987). “Family Stress,” in Marvin B. Sussman & Suzanne K. Steinmetz (Eds.), Handbook of Marriage and the Family (pp. 695-723). New York: Plenum. Buğra A. and Keyder, C. (2005). “Poverty And Socıal Polıcy In Contemporary Turkey,” Boğazıçı Unıversıty Socıal Polıcy Forum. Buğra, A. and Keyder, C. (2003). “the New Poverty and The Changing Welfare Regime of Turkey,” Report Prepared for United Nations Development Programme. Bugra, A. and Keyder, C. (2006). “Turkish welfare regime in transformation,” Journal of European Social Policy, 16, 3: 211–28. pp. 156–89. Buğra, A., & Keyder, Ç. (2004, September). Arguing for basic income in Turkey: Main challenges. In Paper, 10th BIEN Congress in Barcelona, September. Buğra, A. and Yakut Çakar, B. (2010). "Structural Change, Social Policy Environment and Female Employment: The Case of Turkey," Development and Change, 41(3): 517-538. Cherlin, A. (2006). On Single Mothers “doing” family, Journal of Marriage and Family, 68(4), pp. 800-803. Coşar, S. Yeğenoğlu, M. (2011). “New Grounds for Patriarchy in Turkey? Gender Policy in the Age of AKP, South European Society and Politics, 16:4, 555-573. Demircioğlu, N. (2000). The Effects of Divorce on Professional Women‟s Status and Sex Role Unpublished PhD thesis, Ege University. Ecevit,Y. ( 2012). Feminist Sosyal Politika Bağlamında Türkiye’de Çocuk Bakımı ve Erken Çocukluk Eğitimine İki Paradigmadan Doğru Bakmak. In A. Makal ve G.Toksöz (Der.), Geçmişten Günümüze Türkiye’de Kadın Emeği. Ankara Üniversitesi Yayınevi.Ankara. 220-265. Edgell, P. and Docka, D. (2007). Beyond the Nuclear Family? Familism and Gender Ideology in Diverse Religious Communities. Sociological Forum, 22: 25–50. Garfinkel, I. and McLanahan S. (1986). Single Mothers and Their Children: A New American Dilemma, Baltimore: Urban Institute Press. Glenn, Evelyn Nakano (1987). Gender and the Family. In Beth Hess and Myra Marx Ferree (Eds). Analyzing Gender: a Handbook of Social Science Research, London: Sage Publications. Grütjen, D. (2008). The Turkish welfare regime: An example of the Southern European model? The role of the state, market and family in welfare provision. Turkish Policy Quarterly, 7(1), 111-129. İşmen, A. E., and Yavuzer, H. (2005). “Evlilik Okulu Projesi” III. Ulusal Aile ve Evlilik Terapileri Kongresi, İstanbul. Kagıtçıbası, C. (1986). Status of women in Turkey: Cross-cultural perspectives. International Journal of Middle East Studies, 18, 485-499. Kavas, S. and Gunduz-Hosgor, A. (2012). The Parentıng Practıce Of Sıngle Mothers In Turkey:Challenges And Strategıes, Paper to be presented at the European Population Conference, Stockholm, June 13-16, 2012. Kavas, S. (2010). “Post Dıvorce Experıence Of Highly Educated And Professıonal Women,” Unpublished PhD Dissertation, METU, Sociology. Keskin, I. (2007). Boşanmanın Sosyolojik Ve Psikolojik Nedenleri Ve Boşanmanın Ortaya Çıkardığı Sonuçlar, Niğde Üniversitesi. Kılıç, A. (2008). The gender dimension of social policy reform in Turkey: towards equal citizenship?. Social Policy & Administration, 42(5), 487-503. Kongar, E. (1976). Imparatorlukltan Günümüze Türkiye’nin Toplumsal Yapısı, Istanbul: Cem Press. Landry-Meyer, L., & Newman, B. M. (2004). An exploration of the grandparent caregiver role. Journal of Family Issues, 25(8), 1005-1025. Madden-Derdich, D. A., Leonard, S. A., & Christopher, F. S. (1999). Boundary ambiguity and coparental conflict after divorce: An empirical test of a family systems model of the divorce process. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 588-598. Millar, J. (1989). Poverty and the Lone-Parent Family: The Challenge to Social Policy, Aldershot: Avebury. Moghadam, V. (2000). Economic restructuring and the gender contract: the case of Jordan in Gender and global restructuring: sightings, sites and resistances Marianne H. Marchand, Anne Sisson Runyan (Eds) NY: Routledge. Naples, N. A. (2001). A member of the funeral: An introspective ethnography. In M.Bernstein & R.Reimann (Eds.), Queer families, queer politics: Challenging culture and the state (pp. 21 – 43). New York: Columbia University Press. Naples, N. A. (2007). Feminist Methodology and Its Discontents. In W. Outhwaite ve S. P. Turner (eds). The Sage Handbook of Social Science Methodology, Los Angeles: Sage Publications. Nelson, M.T. (2006). Single Mothers ‘Do’ Family. Journal of Marriage and Family (pp. 781-795). Öztan, E. (2014). “Türkiye’de Ailecilik, Biyosiyaset, ve Toplumsal Cinsiyet Rejimi”, Toplum ve Bilim, Sayı 130, pp. 176-189. Sarkisian, N. (2006). Doing Family Ambivalence: Nuclear and Extended Families in Single Mothers’ Lives. Journal of Marriage and Family,68, 804–811. Sev’er, A. and Pirie, M. (1990). “More Than Just Making It: An Analysis Of Factors That Enhance The Social Functioning Of Female Single-Parents,” University of Toronto Press. Sev’er, A. ve Yurdakul, G. (2001). Culture of honor, culture of change: A feminist analysis of honor killings in Turkey. Violence Against Women, 7(9), 964-998. Smith, S. M. (1993). Service industries in the rural economy: The role and potential contributions. In D.Barkley (Ed.), Economic adaptation: Alternatives for nonmetropolitan areas (pp. 105 – 127). Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Sürerbiçer, F. (2008). Boşanmış Bireylerin Deneyimlerine Göre Evlilik Eğitimi Gereksinimi, Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Ankara. Weiss, R.S. (1979). Going it Alone: The Family life and Social Situation of the Single Parent, New York: Basic Books. World Bank (2003). Turkey: Poverty and Coping after the Crisis. Volume I: Main Report. Washington D.C.: World Bank. Yazıcı, B. (2012). “The Return to the Family: Welfare, State, and Politics of the Family in Turkey,” Anthropological Quarterly, Volume 85, Number 1, Winter 2012, pp. 103-140.
Year 2018, , 71 - 101, 27.04.2018
https://doi.org/10.18490/sosars.418989

Abstract

References

  • REFERENCES “European Quality of Life Survey 2003,“ http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/areas/qualityoflife/eqls/2003/eqls.htm, accessed in 19 November 2013. “Evlilik Okulu Kursu,” http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/kadin/7724673.asp, accessed in 1 November, 2013. “İşte Devletin Evlilik Kurtarma Planı” http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/10843/iste_devletin_evlilik_kurtarma_plani.html, accessed in 19 November 2013. Abalı, S. (2006). Considering the Sexual Life as a Cause of Divorce by Women, Unpublished Master‘s Thesis, Marmara University. Amato, P. (1987). Family processes in one-parent, stepparent and intact families: The child’s point of view. Journal of Marriage and the Family 49, 327-337. Belge, B. (2011). "Women Policies Erased from Political Agenda", http://bianet.org/english/women/130607-women-policies-erased-from-political-agenda, Boss, P. (1980). Normative family stress: Family boundary changes across the lifespan. Family Relations, 29(4), 445-450. Boss, P. (1987). “Family Stress,” in Marvin B. Sussman & Suzanne K. Steinmetz (Eds.), Handbook of Marriage and the Family (pp. 695-723). New York: Plenum. Buğra A. and Keyder, C. (2005). “Poverty And Socıal Polıcy In Contemporary Turkey,” Boğazıçı Unıversıty Socıal Polıcy Forum. Buğra, A. and Keyder, C. (2003). “the New Poverty and The Changing Welfare Regime of Turkey,” Report Prepared for United Nations Development Programme. Bugra, A. and Keyder, C. (2006). “Turkish welfare regime in transformation,” Journal of European Social Policy, 16, 3: 211–28. pp. 156–89. Buğra, A., & Keyder, Ç. (2004, September). Arguing for basic income in Turkey: Main challenges. In Paper, 10th BIEN Congress in Barcelona, September. Buğra, A. and Yakut Çakar, B. (2010). "Structural Change, Social Policy Environment and Female Employment: The Case of Turkey," Development and Change, 41(3): 517-538. Cherlin, A. (2006). On Single Mothers “doing” family, Journal of Marriage and Family, 68(4), pp. 800-803. Coşar, S. Yeğenoğlu, M. (2011). “New Grounds for Patriarchy in Turkey? Gender Policy in the Age of AKP, South European Society and Politics, 16:4, 555-573. Demircioğlu, N. (2000). The Effects of Divorce on Professional Women‟s Status and Sex Role Unpublished PhD thesis, Ege University. Ecevit,Y. ( 2012). Feminist Sosyal Politika Bağlamında Türkiye’de Çocuk Bakımı ve Erken Çocukluk Eğitimine İki Paradigmadan Doğru Bakmak. In A. Makal ve G.Toksöz (Der.), Geçmişten Günümüze Türkiye’de Kadın Emeği. Ankara Üniversitesi Yayınevi.Ankara. 220-265. Edgell, P. and Docka, D. (2007). Beyond the Nuclear Family? Familism and Gender Ideology in Diverse Religious Communities. Sociological Forum, 22: 25–50. Garfinkel, I. and McLanahan S. (1986). Single Mothers and Their Children: A New American Dilemma, Baltimore: Urban Institute Press. Glenn, Evelyn Nakano (1987). Gender and the Family. In Beth Hess and Myra Marx Ferree (Eds). Analyzing Gender: a Handbook of Social Science Research, London: Sage Publications. Grütjen, D. (2008). The Turkish welfare regime: An example of the Southern European model? The role of the state, market and family in welfare provision. Turkish Policy Quarterly, 7(1), 111-129. İşmen, A. E., and Yavuzer, H. (2005). “Evlilik Okulu Projesi” III. Ulusal Aile ve Evlilik Terapileri Kongresi, İstanbul. Kagıtçıbası, C. (1986). Status of women in Turkey: Cross-cultural perspectives. International Journal of Middle East Studies, 18, 485-499. Kavas, S. and Gunduz-Hosgor, A. (2012). The Parentıng Practıce Of Sıngle Mothers In Turkey:Challenges And Strategıes, Paper to be presented at the European Population Conference, Stockholm, June 13-16, 2012. Kavas, S. (2010). “Post Dıvorce Experıence Of Highly Educated And Professıonal Women,” Unpublished PhD Dissertation, METU, Sociology. Keskin, I. (2007). Boşanmanın Sosyolojik Ve Psikolojik Nedenleri Ve Boşanmanın Ortaya Çıkardığı Sonuçlar, Niğde Üniversitesi. Kılıç, A. (2008). The gender dimension of social policy reform in Turkey: towards equal citizenship?. Social Policy & Administration, 42(5), 487-503. Kongar, E. (1976). Imparatorlukltan Günümüze Türkiye’nin Toplumsal Yapısı, Istanbul: Cem Press. Landry-Meyer, L., & Newman, B. M. (2004). An exploration of the grandparent caregiver role. Journal of Family Issues, 25(8), 1005-1025. Madden-Derdich, D. A., Leonard, S. A., & Christopher, F. S. (1999). Boundary ambiguity and coparental conflict after divorce: An empirical test of a family systems model of the divorce process. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 588-598. Millar, J. (1989). Poverty and the Lone-Parent Family: The Challenge to Social Policy, Aldershot: Avebury. Moghadam, V. (2000). Economic restructuring and the gender contract: the case of Jordan in Gender and global restructuring: sightings, sites and resistances Marianne H. Marchand, Anne Sisson Runyan (Eds) NY: Routledge. Naples, N. A. (2001). A member of the funeral: An introspective ethnography. In M.Bernstein & R.Reimann (Eds.), Queer families, queer politics: Challenging culture and the state (pp. 21 – 43). New York: Columbia University Press. Naples, N. A. (2007). Feminist Methodology and Its Discontents. In W. Outhwaite ve S. P. Turner (eds). The Sage Handbook of Social Science Methodology, Los Angeles: Sage Publications. Nelson, M.T. (2006). Single Mothers ‘Do’ Family. Journal of Marriage and Family (pp. 781-795). Öztan, E. (2014). “Türkiye’de Ailecilik, Biyosiyaset, ve Toplumsal Cinsiyet Rejimi”, Toplum ve Bilim, Sayı 130, pp. 176-189. Sarkisian, N. (2006). Doing Family Ambivalence: Nuclear and Extended Families in Single Mothers’ Lives. Journal of Marriage and Family,68, 804–811. Sev’er, A. and Pirie, M. (1990). “More Than Just Making It: An Analysis Of Factors That Enhance The Social Functioning Of Female Single-Parents,” University of Toronto Press. Sev’er, A. ve Yurdakul, G. (2001). Culture of honor, culture of change: A feminist analysis of honor killings in Turkey. Violence Against Women, 7(9), 964-998. Smith, S. M. (1993). Service industries in the rural economy: The role and potential contributions. In D.Barkley (Ed.), Economic adaptation: Alternatives for nonmetropolitan areas (pp. 105 – 127). Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Sürerbiçer, F. (2008). Boşanmış Bireylerin Deneyimlerine Göre Evlilik Eğitimi Gereksinimi, Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Ankara. Weiss, R.S. (1979). Going it Alone: The Family life and Social Situation of the Single Parent, New York: Basic Books. World Bank (2003). Turkey: Poverty and Coping after the Crisis. Volume I: Main Report. Washington D.C.: World Bank. Yazıcı, B. (2012). “The Return to the Family: Welfare, State, and Politics of the Family in Turkey,” Anthropological Quarterly, Volume 85, Number 1, Winter 2012, pp. 103-140.
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Primary Language Turkish
Journal Section Articles
Authors

Esra Gedik

Publication Date April 27, 2018
Submission Date November 1, 2017
Published in Issue Year 2018

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APA Gedik, E. (2018). SINGLE MOTHERS DOING FAMILY: RE-FORMING TRADITIONAL FAMILY IN TURKEY. Sosyoloji Araştırmaları Dergisi, 21(1), 71-101. https://doi.org/10.18490/sosars.418989

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Sosyoloji Araştırmaları Dergisi / Journal of Sociological Research

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