We share the work but not the role

in The Asian Conference on Cultural Studies 2011 - Official Conference Proceedings (2011)

In 2005 a new concept of institutional childcare called "Maison Relais pour Enfants" (MRE) was established in Luxembourg. That can be considered as a flexible answer to an increasingly complex society ... [more ▼]

In 2005 a new concept of institutional childcare called "Maison Relais pour Enfants" (MRE) was established in Luxembourg. That can be considered as a flexible answer to an increasingly complex society. The MRE aims to facilitate the reconciliation of work and private life, especially for parents with children aged between 3 and 48 months. This study accompanies the establishment of MRE for members of the University of Luxembourg and the neighborhood around the MRE. As a first step, we interviewed 45 persons (parents, staff and politicians) driven by the need to understand their expectations of the varied functions of the new MRE. The special situation in Luxembourg, a small European country with a highly developed economy, a trilingual education system and one of the ten highest net migration rates in the world, results in many different social environments. First results indicate that there are different ideas about the role of the MRE for giving satisfaction to the children and their parents. Results also show that mothers and fathers handle their Work-Life-Balance depending on their (cross) cultural background; parents often feel "guilty" and they are confronted with a whole range of conflicting thoughts and ideologies of their social environments and related party. [less ▲]