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The article aims to identify the development phases in the process of the regional differentiation in the Czech Republic after 1989, & examines whether this differentiation trend is currently changing. The assumption the article's hypothesis is based on is that during recent development the basic 'parameters' of the principal features of the country's regional structure have been stabilized amidst the conditions of parliamentary democracy & a market economy. Unlike the first phases of socio- economic transition, when differentiating trends prevailed, a certain degree of stabilization can now be assumed, alongside the emergence of new trends. The development of regional differences was analyzed using indicators of GDP, the unemployment rate, entrepreneurial activity, & tax revenue from self- employed physical persons. The findings show that over the course of the 1990s regional differences intensified at both the mezo- regional (regional) level & the micro- regional level. It was also confirmed that at the turn of the millennium the phase of divergent regional development ended, & since that time regional differences have hovered around the same level.

When examining the gender of institutions of parenthood, lone motherhood is a key issue. In this article the author focuses on the economic implications of lone motherhood and on the strategies that women living with children without a partner develop in order to ensure their livelihood. The author begins by presenting the theoretical background and some results from European and North American research on lone motherhood. She then provides an overview of research on lone parenthood done in the Czech Republic since 1959. Finally, the author describes the qualitative study she conducted on divorced mothers. The results show how women deal economically with marital separation and which livelihood strategies they opt for. The research methodology was based on constructivist grounded theory and the technique of interviews. From the research results the author distinguishes fi ve basic strategies that can be combined and that are based on the sources that women have at their disposal. Those strategies may differ in terms of their degree of success, dependence/independence on others, and their efficacy at different points in time. The results also indicate that the success of these working strategies depends mainly on the age of the youngest child in the family and the caring responsibilities required by that age. The author argues that while for some women heading one-parent families paid work is an option that allows them to obtain a certain degree of independence and self-confidence, its efficacy depends on the context and immediate conditions in which the women find themselves. Overstressing the employment of lone mothers as a universal solution may thus lead to new dependencies.

This paper is based on a survey among 435 Czech households caring for a dependent senior in the family to inquire into the conditions and circumstances of caring for seniors in the family. The concept of 'care as a labour of love' (Graham) is contrasted with the concept of the 'defamilisation of care' (Glenn) and 'social rights for elderly care' (Fine). The author finds that more demanding family care, measured as the level of IADL or BADL, is reflected in a growing number of hours spent on family care. The author shows the significant differences in the psychological and financial burden experienced by primary caregivers in relation to how demanding the level of care required is. The article presents evidence of the existence of 'collective family care' in situations where demanding personal care for a senior is required. The participation of other family members in providing care for a senior in situations of demanding personal care demonstrates some features of family cohesion.

In many advanced countries housing consumption plays a significant role in the social stratification of households. First, the article sets out to determine whether during the transformation period significant differentiation of housing consumption occurred and social stratification became linked to stratification by housing consumption. In other words, whether alongside the 'standard' criteria (age, education, income, and other socio-economic variables) influencing the stratification of Czech households it is also necessary to take into account the type and quality of housing. Second, in relation to these findings on stratification, Czech households are segmented into 12 segments. The article then makes some general prognoses for each household segment regarding the number of households in selected forms of housing and types of housing development for 2020. These prognoses showed that if 'optimistic' outlooks for economic development are met and Czech citizens' housing preferences remain constant, there could be a substantial increase compared to today in the share of Czech households living in family homes and even to a certain excess of supply of rental flats over demand.