Föräldraskap, möjligheter och identitet. Upplevelser av graviditet och att bli förälder under skolgång i KwaZulu-Natal, Sydafrika.

Abstract

This study examines how young women and men in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, experience pregnancy and parenthood when they are in school, with a particular focus on responsibility and future opportunities. The study aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of how young parents interpret the consequences of early parenthood. The research is theoretically grounded in Iris Marion Young’s theory of structural injustice and Thomas Hylland Eriksen’s theory about status positions. In addition, Joseph H. Pleck’s theory on fatherhood and masculinity is used to analyze how young men understand and perform fatherhood. The study is based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with three women and three men, who became parents during their school years. The material was analyzed through thematic analysis. The findings show that pregnancy and parenthood were experienced as both meaningful and limiting life events. Young women were more directly affected through primary caregiving responsibilities, while young men were mainly affected through financial pressure and expectations connected to provider roles. The results further demonstrate that support systems such as positive school environments played a decisive role in shaping participants' future opportunities. The study concludes that the consequences can not be understood solely as individual choices. Instead, they must be analyzed in relation to broader structural inequalities, gendered responsibility patterns and unequal access to resources.