Gender features of shared leisure time of modern parents with their children preschoolers

Background. Time spent with family is a significant factor influencing the child’s successful development, including gender socialization. Mothers and fathers probably prefer different activities when spending time together with children of different genders. Considering that different types of activities have a heterogeneous effect on a child’s personality, the choice of different joint activities can play a significant role in their development. But in modern psychology, family leisure activities in the aspect of parent-child relationships have been little studied by domestic authors. Objectives. The study aims to identify gender characteristics of joint leisure time of parents with their preschool children. Sample. The study involved 42 864 parents of preschool-age children aged 18 to 56 years: 41 551 women and 1 313 men from different regions of the Russian Federation. Methods. The study was conducted on the basis of the author’s questionnaire aimed at studying the parents’ perception of various aspects of preschool children’s lives. Data processing was carried out using frequency and factor analysis. Results. Study results showed differences in leisure activities of fathers and mothers with their boys and girls. Two key bipolar factors of parents’ preferences for types of joint leisure were identified: “Practically oriented forms of activity — Playful forms of activity” and “Artistic, aesthetic activity — “Cognitive” activity”. Conclusions. The obtained data allow us to record the features of family leisure with children. Firstly, modern parents strive to spend time with their children, choosing traditional types of family pastime. Secondly, the features of family leisure activities are gender-specific: mothers are focused on practical benefits, while fathers prefer play. In addition, parents with girls and boys choose different directions of activities. Thirdly, important contribution to full-fledged leisure activities with a preschooler is made by family completeness: in single-parent families, the frequency of play forms of child-parent interaction decreases.