WUNRN
Research
Agenda on Families & Family Wellbeing for Europe - Final Report
This
Final Report has been prepared by Marina Rupp, Loreen Beier, Anna Dechant,
Christian Haag at the State
Institute for Family Research, University of Bamberg.
Direct Link to Full 125-Page Report:
Abstract: This report is the final outcome of FAMILYPLATFORM and the result of the encounter between more than 170 experts and stakeholders from all over Europe and beyond, creating a lively think tank on family issues. It summarises important policy questions, research gaps and research issues that were highlighted during the 18 months of working together closely within FAMILYPLATFORM. A series of societal challenges for families, family‐related policy and research have been identified through the work of FAMILYPLATFORM. Based on these crucial societal challenges, seven important research areas are outlined in this report:
- Family Policy
- Care
- Life Course and Transitions
- Doing Family
- Migration and Mobility
- Inequalities and Insecurities
- Media and New Information Technologies
In each research area vital research questions are identified, combined with general remarks on methodological issues and approaches. Altogether, these challenges, research areas and methodological issues are building a research roadmap for the European Union for the years ahead. The realisation of this research roadmap could help policy makers to meet future societal challenges and to improve the wellbeing of families.
By highlighting outlines of upcoming societal challenges, future research areas and methodological approaches the research agenda contributes to the future EU research work programme (7th and 8th Framework Programme). Although it is a European research agenda, its impact should not be limited to the European‐funded research level: the agenda also contains a variety of recommendations for establishing and refining research programmes at the national and regional levels.
Furthermore, this report refers to policy makers who are active in the field of social and family policy. They will find core questions and issues that will be important in the upcoming years for the improvement of everyday family life, the wellbeing of families and children, gender equality, the reconciliation of work and family life, and the demographic development in Europe.
But this report is addressed not only to policy makers, organisers and decision‐makers of research programmes but also to researchers themselves. They will find information on crucial research questions and research gaps as well as methodological advice. For them the research agenda provides a wide‐ranging pool of research ideas and approaches. It could be used as a starting point for varied research projects at the European, national and local levels. Last but not least, this report is of importance for civil society organisations active in the field of family and family policies, as it provides a scientific foundation for policy activities.