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Luto e género: a experiência emocional de pais e mães enlutados
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Esta tese de doutoramento investiga como o género estrutura a experiência emocional de pais e mães enlutados após a morte de um/a filho/a. Frente à crescente individualização e medicalização do luto, defende-se a necessidade de compreender o sofrimento parental como um fenómeno relacional, permeado por normas sociais e relações de poder. Com base numa abordagem integrativa de género, a investigação propõe descrever e interpretar o papel do género na constituição e na gestão das emoções ligadas ao luto. A pesquisa apoia-se em entrevistas individuais e semiestruturadas realizadas com 33 participantes (21 mães e 12 pais), portugueses e brasileiros, que vivenciaram a perda de um/a filho/a. A análise qualitativa dos dados foi orientada por duas dimensões principais: as emoções sentidas e o trabalho emocional empreendido durante o luto. Essas dimensões permitiram identificar os significados atribuídos às emoções e as motivações que orientaram os esforços de gestão emocional, em articulação com normas de género. Os resultados indicam que, embora haja importantes semelhanças entre pais e mães, os sentidos atribuídos às emoções e os modos de geri-las revelam diferenças estruturadas pelo género. Tais diferenças decorrem tanto da forma como o género configurou a relação parental em vida quanto das assimetrias normativas que regulam o modo como determinadas emoções devem ou não ser expressas. Observou-se também que essas normas não operam de forma estática ou determinista: há inversões de expectativas, atenuações de fronteiras e expressões de resistência que revelam a agência dos indivíduos diante das normas sociais. Ainda que pais e mães partilhem ideais semelhantes quanto ao autocontrolo emocional durante o luto, as motivações para o trabalho emocional revelaram a influência de normas sociais ancoradas na estrutura de género. Enquanto a gestão emocional das mães esteve frequentemente orientada pela responsabilidade assumida de serem alicerces para suas famílias, a dos pais associou-se, em muitos casos, a uma reafirmação da identidade masculina em consonância com as normas da masculinidade tradicional ou hegemónica. Esses padrões indicam que o trabalho emocional, longe de ser apenas uma prática individual, constitui uma performance orientada por expectativas morais e culturais que respondem a contextos de poder. Em muitos casos, tais exigências se sobrepõem até mesmo ao cuidado com a própria saúde, o que evidencia os limites de abordagens psicologizantes ou centradas exclusivamente no indivíduo. Ao mostrar como a estrutura de género atua nos níveis individual, interacional e institucional, esta tese oferece um contraponto às leituras essencialistas e naturalistas, contribuindo para uma compreensão crítica da experiência emocional de pais e mães enlutados. A análise revela que as diferenças de género no luto parental não derivam de naturezas distintas entre homens e mulheres, mas da inscrição das emoções em contextos sociais desiguais que orientam sentidos e práticas. Ao evidenciar esses processos, este trabalho reforça a importância de considerar fatores sociais na compreensão do luto e contribui para que profissionais desenvolvam análises mais sensíveis às relações de género e suas consequências.
This doctoral thesis investigates how gender structures the emotional experience of bereaved parents following the death of a son or daughter. In the face of the growing individualization and medicalization of grief, it argues for the need to understand parental suffering as a relational phenomenon, shaped by social norms and power relations. Drawing on an integrative gender approach, the study seeks to describe and interpret the role of gender in the constitution and management of grief-related emotions. The research is based on individual, semi-structured interviews with 33 participants (21 mothers and 12 fathers), both Portuguese and Brazilian, who experienced the loss of a child. The qualitative data analysis was guided by two main dimensions: the emotions felt and the emotion work undertaken during the grieving process. These dimensions allowed for the identification of the meanings attributed to emotions and the motivations that guided emotional regulation efforts, in articulation with gender norms. The findings indicate that, although there are significant similarities between mothers and fathers, the meanings assigned to emotions and the ways they are managed reveal differences shaped by gender. These differences stem both from how gender previously shaped the parental relationship and from normative asymmetries that regulate which emotions may or may not be expressed. It was also observed that such norms do not operate in a static or deterministic manner: inversions of expectations, blurred boundaries, and expressions of resistance reveal the agency of individuals in the face of social norms. While mothers and fathers share similar ideals of emotional self-control in grief, the motivations for emotion work revealed the influence of social norms rooted in the gender structure. For many mothers, emotional regulation was guided by the perceived responsibility of serving as emotional anchors for their families, whereas for many fathers, it was linked to the reaffirmation of masculine identity in line with traditional or hegemonic norms of masculinity. These patterns suggest that emotion work, far from being a purely individual practice, constitutes a performance shaped by moral and cultural expectations embedded in power dynamics. In many cases, such demands even take precedence over self-care, highlighting the limitations of psychologizing or individual-centered approaches. By showing how the gender structure operates at individual, interactional, and institutional levels, this thesis challenges essentialist and naturalistic perspectives and contributes to a critical understanding of the emotional experience of bereaved parents. The analysis reveals that gender differences in parental grief do not stem from inherent traits but from the embedding of emotions in unequal social contexts that shape their meanings and expressions. By highlighting these processes, this study reinforces the importance of considering social factors in understanding parental grief and contributes to the development of professional approaches that are more sensitive to gender relations and their consequences.
This doctoral thesis investigates how gender structures the emotional experience of bereaved parents following the death of a son or daughter. In the face of the growing individualization and medicalization of grief, it argues for the need to understand parental suffering as a relational phenomenon, shaped by social norms and power relations. Drawing on an integrative gender approach, the study seeks to describe and interpret the role of gender in the constitution and management of grief-related emotions. The research is based on individual, semi-structured interviews with 33 participants (21 mothers and 12 fathers), both Portuguese and Brazilian, who experienced the loss of a child. The qualitative data analysis was guided by two main dimensions: the emotions felt and the emotion work undertaken during the grieving process. These dimensions allowed for the identification of the meanings attributed to emotions and the motivations that guided emotional regulation efforts, in articulation with gender norms. The findings indicate that, although there are significant similarities between mothers and fathers, the meanings assigned to emotions and the ways they are managed reveal differences shaped by gender. These differences stem both from how gender previously shaped the parental relationship and from normative asymmetries that regulate which emotions may or may not be expressed. It was also observed that such norms do not operate in a static or deterministic manner: inversions of expectations, blurred boundaries, and expressions of resistance reveal the agency of individuals in the face of social norms. While mothers and fathers share similar ideals of emotional self-control in grief, the motivations for emotion work revealed the influence of social norms rooted in the gender structure. For many mothers, emotional regulation was guided by the perceived responsibility of serving as emotional anchors for their families, whereas for many fathers, it was linked to the reaffirmation of masculine identity in line with traditional or hegemonic norms of masculinity. These patterns suggest that emotion work, far from being a purely individual practice, constitutes a performance shaped by moral and cultural expectations embedded in power dynamics. In many cases, such demands even take precedence over self-care, highlighting the limitations of psychologizing or individual-centered approaches. By showing how the gender structure operates at individual, interactional, and institutional levels, this thesis challenges essentialist and naturalistic perspectives and contributes to a critical understanding of the emotional experience of bereaved parents. The analysis reveals that gender differences in parental grief do not stem from inherent traits but from the embedding of emotions in unequal social contexts that shape their meanings and expressions. By highlighting these processes, this study reinforces the importance of considering social factors in understanding parental grief and contributes to the development of professional approaches that are more sensitive to gender relations and their consequences.
Descrição
Doutoramento em Estudos de Género (uma parceria NOVA - Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas e Faculdade de Direito + Universidade de Lisboa - Instituto Superior de Ciências Sociais e Políticas)
Palavras-chave
Género Luto parental Experiência emocional Emoções genderizadas Trabalho emocional Gender Parental grief Emotional experience Gendered Emotions Emotion work