Family is the main institution for the rendition of values and norms, socialization of new generations and, ultimately, it determines the face of the society. Although the traditional monogamous family retains its positions in the mass consciousness, it has been transforming steadily being affected by the changing reality. The article explores the ideas of men and women about the modern family, the grounds of marriage, the distribution of family responsibilities and roles. The analysis is based on the results of monitoring opinion polls on reproductive be-havior and health carried out by the Vologda Scientific Centre in the territory of Vologda re-gion in 2011, 2014 and 2017. It has been assumed that the family in Russia relies on a fairly clear understanding of the role of husband and wife and their duties. Traditionally, the “wife” is the mother, the sexual partner, the homemaker, the mistress. The “husband” is the father, the sexual partner, the protector, the man, the head of the family and the breadwinner. However, in today’s reality, women acquire the role of the breadwinner and the head of the household in more than 50 % of the families. At the same time, the range of responsibilities of a wife is substantially greater than that of husbands. We observe a situation in which women combine activities of different spheres: moneyed assistance, work outside the family and ensuring the internal well-being of the family (bringing up children, taking care of the family members’ health and psychological comfort, organizing leisure, sustaining family bonds), which requires no less effort. The effect of traditional stereotypes provokes discomfort in women who make a significant contribution to the maintenance of the family. On the one hand, the stereotype gives rise to doubts about one’s own femininity, on the other — entails the depreciation of a man. Women carry out both “female” and “male” duties, and men — not only confine themselves to their own ones, but also willingly share them with women. Thus, the issue is no
longer about the role, but about the contribution of the spouses to family well-being. This ap-proach and the principle of solidarity is implemented by the majority of the young families interviewed, allowing us to hope that a compromise between “male” and “female” in the family is still possible.
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