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Home › Articles › Fatherhood › 21st Century Dads

21st Century Dads

Today's Fathers Are Taking on a Bigger Parenting Role

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Shields calls this a win-win situation. The children benefit in every possible way. "The children of involved dads are more confident, secure, curious, compassionate, have more advanced math and verbal skills and see themselves as more in control of themselves and the world around them," she says.

Happier Dads, Too
The benefits extend beyond children. "Dads who are active parents are healthier, less stressed out, have happier marriages, are less likely to divorce, have sex more often with their wives and have closer relationships with their children," says Shields. "Mothers whose husbands are actively involved have more free time and are closer to and more appreciative and prouder of their husbands."

When asked the reason for this gender shift, Shields says many dads have to be more involved because they're part of dual-income households, where Mom is no longer specializing in the areas of childrearing and housework and Dad is no longer specializing in providing income.

Also, in the wake of the women's movement, many women are asking for and expect dads to help out or partner with them, even when Mom doesn't work for pay or cuts back on her work hours, says Shields. "We have a lot more information now that dads matter quite a lot, and we know that the idealized 1950s Ward and June Cleaver type of arrangement left many dads and their children unhappy and feeling too distant from each other," Shields says.


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