Today’s dads more engaged with their kids ‘than ever before,’ study says

Parents play an essential role in ensuring the livelihood of their children, and dads are especially involved. In fact, today’s fathers are more engaged with their children than ever before, according to a new report.

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Researchers from Brigham Young University recently conducted a study, published in the Journal of Marriage and Family, to determine how much time daddies are spending with their little ones.

To do so, they examined 2,194 men from a national study on fathers of children aged 2 through 18. They assessed the subjects’ perception of masculinity by reviewing their responses to a variety of statements including, “It is difficult for men to express warm and tender affectionate feelings toward children.”

After analyzing the results, they found that dads are physically and emotionally providing for their kids more. They said their views on masculinity were also shifting.

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"We found that today's dads spend more time, provide more care and are more loving toward their kids than ever before," coauthor Kevin Shafer said in a statement. "Most dads see themselves as playing an equally important role in helping their children as mothers do. At the same time, however, there is a group of dads who believe they are to be breadwinners, disciplinarians and nothing more."

Based on the answers they reviewed, they discovered that on average fathers of younger children engaged with them several times a week and fathers of older kids engaged with them between once and several times a week.

Furthermore, the scientists said that fathers often acted warm towards their children and that their youngsters turned to them for emotional support.

While they noted previous research indicated that fathers struggled with traditional masculine norms, their latest findings show that “more fathers [are] stepping up to engage more actively in their children's lives in various ways.”

“As we teach boys and men to be more emotionally aware and cultivate emotional well-being, these men and boys will be able to become better fathers for their children,” coauthor Lee Essig added, “as they will be able to provide for them not only through financial contributions, but by being emotionally and mentally present for their children and their wellbeing.”

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