8. Family and Partnership

Avtorji

Danijela Lahe
Univerza v Mariboru, Filozofska fakulteta
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7595-4077
Andrej Naterer
Univerza v Mariboru, Filozofska fakulteta
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5947-8808
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18690/um.ff.7.2025.8

Kratka vsebina

This chapter examines how the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped family relationships, partnerships, and youth well-being in Croatia and Slovenia. The findings reveal that family ties acted both as a protective buffer and a source of strain. Slovenian youth reported significant declines in satisfaction with family life and parent-child relationships, likely linked to strict lockdowns, economic pressures, and rising individualism. In contrast, Croatian youth demonstrated greater relational stability, reflecting strong familial norms and resilience reinforced during concurrent crises. Friendships weakened in both countries, particularly in Slovenia, while romantic partnerships proved comparatively stable, with evidence of accelerated cohabitation among Croatian youth. Across both contexts, mothers and family networks remained the dominant influence on young people’s key decisions. Mental health, however, emerged as the most negatively affected domain. Policy implications stress the need for targeted family support, expanded youth mental health services, and programmes that rebuild peer connections and address evolving aspirations for family life.

Biografije avtorja

Danijela Lahe, Univerza v Mariboru, Filozofska fakulteta

Dr. Danijela Lahe, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at the Faculty of Arts, University of Maribor, and a researcher at the Centre for the Study of Post-Socialist Societies (CePSS). Her academic work focuses on family dynamics, lifestyles, education, and social gerontology, with particular expertise in quantitative research methods. She actively contributes to sociological research and teaching, combining methodological rigor with applied perspectives. Through her research, she addresses contemporary social challenges related to demographic change, ageing, and family transformations in post-socialist societies, thereby enriching both national and international academic discussions in sociology.

Maribor, Slovenija. E-pošta: danijela.lahe@um.si

Andrej Naterer, Univerza v Mariboru, Filozofska fakulteta

Dr. Andrej Naterer, je izredni profesor antropologije na Oddelku za sociologijo Univerze v Mariboru. Raziskuje otroke in mladino, mladinsko deviantnost, prestopništvo ter majhne skupnosti. Sodeloval je pri več kot 20 projektih kot vodja, raziskovalec ali svetovalec. Pri delu uporablja kvalitativne metode, analizo vsebin in antropološke pristope. Je avtor številnih znanstvenih knjig in člankov ter urednik zbirke Subcultures. Deluje kot raziskovalec na CePSS, je član Kraljevega antropološkega inštituta, Slovenskega antropološkega društva ter uredniških odborov več mednarodnih znanstvenih revij.

Maribor, Slovenija. E-pošta: andrej.naterer@um.si

Prenosi

PDF

Izdaja

Two Countries, One Crisis: The YO-VID22 Pandemic Study

Strani

185-210

Izdano

03.09.2025

Kategorije

Avtorske pravice (c) 2025 Univerza v Mariboru, Univerzitetna založba

Licenca

Creative Commons licenca

To delo je licencirano pod Creative Commons Priznanje avtorstva-Deljenje pod enakimi pogoji 4.0 mednarodno licenco.

Kako citirati

Lahe, D., & Naterer, A. (2025). 8. Family and Partnership. In A. Naterer & D. Potočnik (Eds.), Two Countries, One Crisis: The YO-VID22 Pandemic Study (pp. 185-210). Univerzitetna založba Univerze v Mariboru. https://doi.org/10.18690/um.ff.7.2025.8