Words or actions? Mothers’ beliefs, fathers’ deeds, and the next generation

This study examines the intergenerational transmission of gender ideology in Türkiye, asking how parents’ stated attitudes and everyday practices relate to the gender-role attitudes of their adolescent children. Using data on 1,367 adolescents aged 15–17 living in two-parent households from the 2021 Türkiye Family Structure Survey, the analysis models both parents’ attitudes and behaviours jointly, a combination rarely examined outside Western, high-female-employment settings. Regression models reveal distinct channels for the reproduction of gender norms. For daughters, transmission is primarily maternal and attitudinal. Mothers’ attitudes are the dominant predictor and carry significantly more weight than fathers’ views. For sons, the attitudes of both parents matter equally, and behavioural cues carry additional weight. A father holding primary responsibility for female-typed housework, a visible departure from the prevailing script, is associated with less traditional attitudes in sons. Maternal employment matters for sons through its type rather than its amount, with a salaried mother linked to less traditional views. These patterns suggest that daughters internalize parental beliefs, particularly their mothers’, while sons read the behavioural signals their parents send. Fostering gender equality may therefore require policies that go beyond female labour force participation and explicitly address men’s engagement in the domestic sphere.