Abstract
This chapter describes the perspectives and experience of Jamaican fathers from middle and low-income communities in the main urban area. This account is situated within the framework of the Afro-Caribbean family, which often locates men at the margin of their families, if they choose to pursue a traditional path of multiple sexual relationships in the effort to demonstrate virility and dominance. In this situation, many fathers may live separately from their children, so that there are both “inside” children and “outside” children. Jamaican men of all social classes hold a strong attachment to their identity as fathers, and do not show any confusion regarding their parenting roles or the desired outcomes for children. The extent of their actual fatherwork varies with whether they reside with their children, so that inevitably children receive unequal fathering.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
To “own a child” is to acknowledge paternity.
References
Anderson, P. (2009). The Changing roles of fathers in Jamaican family life (Working Paper No. 10). Kingston: The Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Anderson, P. (2012). Measuring masculinity in an Afro-Caribbean context. Social and Economic Studies, 60(1), 49–93.
Anderson, P., & Witter, M. (1994). Crisis, adjustment and social change: A case study of Jamaica. In E. Le Franc (Ed.), Consequences of structural adjustment: A review of the Jamaican experience (pp. 1–54). Kingston: Canoe Press.
Bailey, W., Branche, C., & Le Franc, E. (1998). Parenting and socialisation in Caribbean family systems. Caribbean Dialogue: A Policy Bulletin of Caribbean Affairs, 4(1), 21–27.
Barrow, C. (1996). Family in the Caribbean: Themes and perspectives. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers.
Barrow, C. (2001). Men, women and family in the Caribbean. In C. Barrow & R. Reddock (Eds.), Caribbean sociology: Introductory readings (pp. 418–426). Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers.
Barrow, C. (2010). Caribbean childhoods – ‘Outside’, ‘Adopted’ or ‘Left Behind’. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers.
Blake, J. (1961). Family structure in Jamaica. New York: Free Press of Glencoe.
Brown, J., & Chevannes, B. (1998). Why man stay so. Kingston: University of the West Indies Press.
Brown, J., Anderson, P., & Chevannes, B. (1993). Report on the contribution of Caribbean men to the family (Submitted to the IDRC). Kingston: Caribbean Child Development Centre.
Chevannes, B. (2001). Learning to be a man: Culture, socialization and gender identity in five Caribbean countries. Kingston: University of the West Indies Press.
Clarke, E. (1957). My mother who fathered me. London: George Allen & Unwin.
Evans, H. (1989). Perspectives on the socialization of the working-class Jamaican child. Social and Economic Studies, 38(3), 177–203.
Evans, H., & Davies, R. (1997). Overview of issues in childhood socialization in the Caribbean. In J. Roopnarine & J. Brown (Eds.), Caribbean families: Diversity among ethnic groups (pp. 1–24). London: Apex Publishing Company.
Figueroa, M. (2004). “Male privileging” and “Academic underperformance” in Jamaica. In R. Reddock (Ed.), Interrogating Caribbean masculinities (pp. 136–166). Kingston: University of the West Indies Press.
Frazier, E. F. (1939). The Negro family in the United States. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Gayle, H., with Grant, A., Bryan, P., Yee Shui, M. & Taylor, C. (2004). The adolescents of urban St. Catherine: A study of their reproductive health and survivability. Spanish Town: Children First Agency.
Gray, O. (2004). Demeaned, but empowered: The social power of the urban poor in Jamaica. Kingston: University of the West Indies Press.
Harriott, A. (2003). Understanding crime in Jamaica: New challenges for public policy. Kingston: University of the West Indies Press.
Herskovits, M. (1941). The myth of the Negro past. Boston: Beacon.
LeFranc, E., Bailey, W., & Branche, C. (1998). Gender role definition and identity: The centrality of primordial Values. Caribbean Dialogue: A Policy Bulletin of Caribbean Affairs, 4(1), 11–19.
Leo-Rhynie, E. (1993). The Jamaican family: Continuity and change (Grace Kennedy Foundation Lecture). Kingston: Institute of Jamaica Publications Limited.
McKenzie, H., & McKenzie, H. (1971). Sociology and the Caribbean family (Unpublished paper). Kingston: Department of Sociology, University of the West Indies.
Norman, L., & Uche, C. (2003). The Machismo culture in Jamaica: Implications for HIV prevention. Roundtable presentation at Annual Sociological Association Meeting, August, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Planning Institute of Jamaica. (2012). The economic and social survey of Jamaica 2011. Kingston: Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Planning Institute of Jamaica and Statistical Institute of Jamaica. (2010). Jamaica survey of living conditions. Kingston: Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Powell, D. (1986). Caribbean women and their response to familial experiences. Social and Economic Studies, 35(2), 83–130.
Priestley, S. (2010). An analysis of the impact of fertility change in Jamaica. Doctoral dissertation, Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work, University of the West Indies, Kingston.
Ricketts, H., & Anderson, P. (2008). The Impact of poverty and stress on the interaction of Jamaican caregivers with young children. International Journal of Early Years Education, 16(1), 61–74.
Ricketts, H., & Anderson, P. (2009). Parenting in Jamaica (Working Paper No. 9). Kingston: The Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Roberts, G. (1957). The population of Jamaica. London: Cambridge University Press.
Roberts, G., & Sinclair, S. (1978). Women in Jamaica: Patterns of reproduction and family. Millwood: TKO Press.
Robotham, D. (1990). The African background to the Jamaican family (Unpublished paper). Department of Sociology and Social Work, University of the West Indies, Mona.
Smith, R. (1973). The matrifocal family. In J. Goody (Ed.), The character of kinship (pp. 121–144). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Smith, R. (1982). Family, social change and social policy in the West Indies. New West Indian Guide, 56(3–4), 111–142.
Whitehead, T. (1992). Expressions of masculinity in a Jamaican sugartown: Implications for family planning programs. In T. Whitehead & B. Reid (Eds.), Gender constructs and social issues (pp. 103–141). Chicago: University of Illinois Press.
Wilson, P. (1973). Crab antics: The social anthropology of the English-speaking societies of the Caribbean. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Wint, E., & Brown, J. (2001). The knowledge and practice of effective parenting. In C. Barrow & R. Reddock (Eds.), Caribbean sociology: Introductory readings (pp. 436–448). Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Anderson, P., Daley, C. (2014). Parenting Across Social Classes: Perspectives on Jamaican Fathers. In: Selin, H. (eds) Parenting Across Cultures. Science Across Cultures: The History of Non-Western Science, vol 7. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7503-9_25
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7503-9_25
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-7502-2
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-7503-9
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)