Gender aspects in parenthood conceptions of young Europeans. A critical reflection on the European Project B2-InF

The European research project “Be Better Informed about Fertility” (B2-InF) maps what young people understand about infertility and medically assisted reproduction (MAR) and the information they want or need. One part of this project were interviews with young people in eight European countries, which were analysed on legal, sociocultural and gender aspects. In this paper we present the gender analysis results focusing on gender differences in perceptions regarding the desire to become parents, social expectations versus parenthood as a choice, family/career issues and the division of care tasks, infertility, and the meaning of parenthood. The results demonstrate clear gender differences in parenthood responsibilities and appreciations. Traditional parenthood conceptions are strong: women are held responsible for reproductive issues, male infertility is a taboo and gender differences in care roles are distinct. Nevertheless, young Europeans often do not agree with these norms. Furthermore, while many participants are seeing increased social acceptance about LGBTQ+ parenthood, prejudices and legal obstacles continue to make LGBTQ+ parenthood difficult.