Tracking ambivalence in family definitions at different stages of the family life cycle

The article investigates how definitions of family differ at subsequent stages of the family life cycle (FLC) in Poland, where multiple framings of family collide. Highlighting temporal changes in ambivalence, we discern how certain stages of family life shape the main elements of family definitions at an individual level. Three distinct, temporally embedded, stages of becoming and being a parent are analysed in relation to ambivalence on the basis of data originating from two qualitative research projects conducted in Poland. These featured in-depth interviews (n = 112) with individuals at these three stages of family life. We show that (1) ambivalence is a feature of family definitions when awaiting first-time parenthood; (2) it decreases for those parenting young children; and (3) becomes even more uncommon for those at the empty nest stage of family life. While the analysis reveals weakening ambivalence in family definitions, it also points to tensions between 'doing family' (family practices) and 'being family' (institutional perspective) as definitional approaches that sociologically reflect how people in Poland frame family. We posit that the concept of sociological ambivalence can be employed conceptually to understand the meanings of family at distinct stages of people's parenting lives.