The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit
“Childfree” is a chosen identity, reflecting an individual or couple’s decision to not procreate or parent. This paper explores how individuals who identify as childfree exhibit a high degree of agency while navigating external cultural expectations and social sanctions. We use the online discussion...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Kennesaw State University
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Journal of Public and Professional Sociology |
| Online Access: | https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/jpps/vol16/iss1/2/ |
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| _version_ | 1849426538379870208 |
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| author | Elizabeth Rivera Ellis S. Logan Anne Price |
| author_facet | Elizabeth Rivera Ellis S. Logan Anne Price |
| author_sort | Elizabeth Rivera |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | “Childfree” is a chosen identity, reflecting an individual or couple’s decision to not procreate or parent. This paper explores how individuals who identify as childfree exhibit a high degree of agency while navigating external cultural expectations and social sanctions. We use the online discussion forum, Reddit, to unobtrusively examine how individuals negotiate a childfree identity within an online collective identity group. Analysis was performed on 278 user generated Reddit posts under the “childfree” subreddit in March, 2021 and are coded based on the primary emotional tone individuals express in discussing their decision to remain childfree. We describe the identity construction/management using symbolic language found in the qualitative text of these posts. Our findings show that the most common emotion displayed in regards to the childfree identity is frustration or anger, with “rants” being the predominant user-identified post type at 44%. Reddit users are not asked to give any identifying information but 18% either provided their age or provided telling information. The average age for this group was 25.6 years. This exploratory research documents key socio-cultural factors which frame the decisions of the childfree advocates and the individual narratives that are negotiated in an online community. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-039785434114473cb55fc0ddb447e4e9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2154-8935 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Kennesaw State University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Public and Professional Sociology |
| spelling | doaj-art-039785434114473cb55fc0ddb447e4e92025-08-20T03:29:21ZengKennesaw State UniversityJournal of Public and Professional Sociology2154-89352024-02-01161The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on RedditElizabeth Rivera0Ellis S. Logan1Anne Price2Valdosta State UniversityValdosta State UniversityValdosta State University“Childfree” is a chosen identity, reflecting an individual or couple’s decision to not procreate or parent. This paper explores how individuals who identify as childfree exhibit a high degree of agency while navigating external cultural expectations and social sanctions. We use the online discussion forum, Reddit, to unobtrusively examine how individuals negotiate a childfree identity within an online collective identity group. Analysis was performed on 278 user generated Reddit posts under the “childfree” subreddit in March, 2021 and are coded based on the primary emotional tone individuals express in discussing their decision to remain childfree. We describe the identity construction/management using symbolic language found in the qualitative text of these posts. Our findings show that the most common emotion displayed in regards to the childfree identity is frustration or anger, with “rants” being the predominant user-identified post type at 44%. Reddit users are not asked to give any identifying information but 18% either provided their age or provided telling information. The average age for this group was 25.6 years. This exploratory research documents key socio-cultural factors which frame the decisions of the childfree advocates and the individual narratives that are negotiated in an online community.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/jpps/vol16/iss1/2/ |
| spellingShingle | Elizabeth Rivera Ellis S. Logan Anne Price The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit Journal of Public and Professional Sociology |
| title | The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit |
| title_full | The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit |
| title_fullStr | The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit |
| title_full_unstemmed | The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit |
| title_short | The “Childfree” Movement: How Individuals Negotiate Identities on Reddit |
| title_sort | childfree movement how individuals negotiate identities on reddit |
| url | https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/jpps/vol16/iss1/2/ |
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