Pregnancy and the transition to parenthood can be one of the utmost exciting, unsettling, and major developmental phases in parent’s lives. While men and women become parents at the same time it has been found that mothers and fathers experience parenthood differently. Practically all studies and research from the past have been focused more on the welfare of the mother and child without any regards to what the father may be feeling during this same adjustment period. However, with the new social changes in society such as increasing maternal participation in paid employment, and the emergence of smaller isolated families has resulted in fathers playing a greater role in partner support, the care of their children, and various studies focused …show more content…
A recent study concluded that mothers and fathers are more likely to have better postnatal mental health when they attend antenatal care that is delivered to couples and models shared infant care, addresses couple-relationships, and sensitizes men to the experiences of women (Fletcher & May, 2012). This type of education that focuses on preparing fathers for the relationship and role changes that they are likely to experience by providing information on what to expect and how to build and sustain a healthy parenting partnership with communication lessens the likely hood of unnecessary conjugal stress once the new baby arrives (Fletcher & May, 2012). Couple educational classes provide the skills required to assist partners effectively maintain their level of satisfaction within the relationship while successfully supporting each other through the transition to …show more content…
It is reported that fathers’ have to take on an even more active role in parenting by caring for the first born on top of additional responsibilities while the mother and newborn are recuperating (Berk, 2012). Hence adding any additional children to the family system ultimately adds more challenges and responsibilities to any couples life. New fathers’ report that the most difficult part of transitioning to parenthood is spending time with their children, sharing household tasks, and developing the ability to handle conflicts within their relationship before adding another child to the family (Bader, Talbot, Watson, Watson, & Wetzel, Transition to Parenthood,
...selves as fathers (Doucet 2006: 217). By the use of several theoretical perceptions, the book provides a breakdown on the division of household responsibilities and manliness (Doucet 2006). Furthermore, it also renders literature on parenting as a result of analyzing the role of the fathers by the maternal points of view. Do Men Mother?: Fathering, Care and Domestic Responsibility explores the concerns of men who choose to stay as full time fathers in order to meet the needs of their children rather than to work outside their home (Doucet 2006). The book is tremendously impactful in terms of being able to make readers realize the difference between the roles of the mother, as well as the responsibilities of the fathers while the common objective of providing adequate care and love for their children is shared between both sexes.
Many people believe that a mother being in a child’s life is more important than the father because of the initial bond they have for nine months while in mommy’s stomach and the moments they share during birth. However, “Just like women, fathers bodies respond to parenthood,
To go into more detail, the typical role of the father as far as childcare is concerned is usually to go to work so that he can receive the income to provide for his family. That’s not to say every family is like this but majority of people would consider this to be normal. Not only are males usually linked with providing income but they are also usually correlated with the act of discipline within the home. I think it’s safe to say that anyone who has ever heard these words “wait until your father...
...nder roles that lack this maternal instinct. Culturally fathers are perceived to be the “bread-winners” and be more involved in playing with children, whereas mothers are often involved in the daily care of children, such as feeding and bathing children. Although women are commonly the head of sole-parent families, the Ministry of Social Development state that there is a growing rate of sole-parent fathers accounting for 14% of all sole-parents with dependent children in 1986 rising to 17% in 2006 (2010). It is evident that single-mother parenting is different to single-father parenting; however the rising rate of single-fathers suggests that the stigma of gender roles in sole-parenting is on the rise towards equality.
Whiteman, Shawn D., Susan M. McHale, and Ann C. Crouter. "What Parents Learn from Experience: The First Child as a First Draft?" Journal of Marriage and Family 65.3 (2003): 608-21. ProQuest. Web. 7 Apr. 2014
Families Commission (2005). Let’s give a fair go to families. Retrieved April 26, 2005 from the World Wide Web: http://www.familiescommission.govt.nz/media/20041222.php
In present time dads share with mothers the same level of emotional response to new-born babies and are just as sensitive and affectionate when looking after their babies (Secunda, 1992). Today more than half of all children are raised by single mothers and twenty eight percent of children are raised in single parent homes. Fathers are now the main care givers for children when mothers are working. In thirty percent of dual earner families, it is now the father more than any other individual, who cares for children when the mother is at work. If it proves true that daughters search for romantic partners like t...
Transition to parenthood is one of the most demanding and increasingly complex life experiences that sets a couple’s future relationship trajectory for determining the quality and stability of their relationship (Kluwer, 2010). The infant’s arrival requires the couple to adjust not only to daily baby care chores but also to the new roles of parents, often leaving the interpersonal relationship between husband and wife to a low priority. The prevailing majority of scholarship describe different levels of decline in the quality of marital relationship postpartum (Wallace & Gotlib, 1990; Helms-Erikson, 2001; Twenge, Campbell, & Foster, 2003; Mitnick, Heyman, & Smith Slep, 2009; Kluwer, 2010; Umberson, Pudrovska, & Reczek, 2010). At the same time, some scholarship explains how couples have more joy, happiness and a sense of fulfillment in life because of the baby (Petch & Halford, 2008; Nelson et al., 2013), while other findings report identical levels of marital happiness before and after birth of the baby (Amato et al., 2003). A genuine controversy lies in whether a decrease or increase of couple happiness takes place at transition to parenthood. During this transitioning process, new sets of tasks challenge the couples to act in new roles and adjust their daily routines, behavior, and relationship. When the couples experience less relationship distress in completing the transition tasks, they have a higher potential to create a positive context for raising an emotionally and physically healthy child and less chances for divorce. Because divorce has negative lasting effects on descendants for the next three generations, including lower education attainment, lower income, higher relationship distress, and higher chances...
Since the beginning of time, fathers have had a profound effect on their child’s development. Over the years, the norm for traditional family dynamics of having a father figure in the household has changed drastically, and so did the roles of the parents. It is not as common as it used to be to have a father or father figure in the home. In this day and age, women are more likely to raise children on their own and gain independence without the male assistance due to various reasons. The most significant learning experience and development of a person’s life takes place in their earlier years when they were children. There are many advantages when there is a mother and father combined in a
Men have the same rights and obligations, as a child’s birth mother, to spend quality time, bond with, and care for a new baby. With some families living isolated from close relatives, it may be difficult for the mother’s family to support her after the birth of the child. “A study released in January found that fathers who took two or more weeks of leave upon their child's birth are more likely to be involved in the direct care of their children beyond leave” (Gringleburg). The time proceeding childbirth is the most stressful and tedious time. Parents have to adjust to the new baby and his or her schedule, especially the mother. With the both parents home, a lot of the stress is taken off the mother be...
The research supports the theory of a father’s absence having negative effects on the child’s life. Nearly one third of
The role of a father is more than just another parent at home (Popenoe, 1996). Having a father, the male biological parent in a child’s life is important because it brings a different type of parenting that cannot be replicated by anyone else (Stanton, 2010). Fathers who are present and active in a child’s life provide great benefits to a developing child (Popenoe, 1996). Having a father brings a different kind of love. The love of the father is more expectant and instrumental, different from the love of a mother (Stanton, as cited in Pruett, 1987).
But what is the role of the father? This paper discusses the role of the expectant father, the birth experience for him, the transition into fatherhood, and the rise of single fathers. Although the expectant father’s role is not as clear and defined as the expectant mother’s, fathers still play a large part in all aspects of the pregnancy and birth. In earlier times, the father’s role was limited and overlooked, but this has changed drastically. Today, they are encouraged, and often expected to attend all doctor’s visits, take birthing classes, and even serve as labor coaches during delivery.
All mothers, especially first time mothers need help moral support and advice during the first few days after their delivery to ensure proper care of their newborn. The care and help given to first time mothers is of utmost important during this period as to maintain the normality in their babies as well as to prevent any further complications. Typically all pregnant women are counseled during their antenatal period on how to prepare themselves mentally on the care of their babies after birth. Upon delivery, majority of the mothers would stay for a short period in the hospital. During this short stay, they would need time to recuperate, need to know what care to give their baby and how to carry out the care and also learn what to do if their baby is feeling unwell. Thus it is important for health care providers to assist first time mothers be it at the hospital or at home since it is a crucial period for them and they often requires more help and moral support especially when it comes to the proper care of their newborn. ("Routine care of a newborn baby")
Mothers are the primary caretakers of the children. The fathers have had minimal care taking responsibilities. Many women, if they had a career before hand, have to give it up to stay at home with the child. Although, many fathers where the wives must work become important in the process of care taking because their role must increase to their children. Studies of human fathers and their infants confirm that many fathers can act sensitively with their infant (according to Parke & Sawin, 1980) and their infants form attachments to both their mothers and fathers at roughly the same age (according to Lamb, 1977).