In a revelation that hardly raises eyebrows, a new study indicates that fathers tend to kick back and unwind on their days off, while mothers are often busy managing household chores and caring for the kids. The New Parents Project, conducted by researchers at Ohio State University, examined 52 couples—mostly well-educated, dual-income families in the Columbus area who recently welcomed their first child. The results were striking: moms only enjoyed about 46 to 49 minutes of relaxation time on their days off, compared to dads who indulged in a leisurely 101 minutes while their partners took care of the children or household tasks.
Researchers had the couples maintain “time diaries” for both workdays and days off during the third trimester of pregnancy and three months postpartum. After chuckling at the phrase “non-workday,” the participants got down to the nitty-gritty. The findings revealed that on workdays, the division of household responsibilities was more balanced, although women still ended up doing a bit more. However, on days off, while moms juggled baby duties, dads enjoyed their leisure time, spending 47 minutes relaxing during the pregnancy and a whopping 101 minutes once the baby arrived. Apparently, after participating in household chores while their partners were pregnant, they needed a break when the little one finally made their grand entrance.
Interestingly, when fathers did take on child care or household tasks on their days off, mothers often jumped in to assist them. Shocker, right? During these days, dads were relaxing 46% of the time while their partners took care of the baby. In contrast, moms only engaged in leisure activities 16% of the time when the baby was in dad’s care. One must wonder if staring vacantly at a wall could be classified as a “leisure activity.”
“It’s disheartening,” remarked Lisa Harper, the lead author and a human sciences associate professor at Ohio State University. “Even among couples we thought would have more egalitarian views on sharing parenting duties, household tasks and child care remain unbalanced.” While fathers have indeed made progress in their parenting roles over the last 50 years, a Pew Research study shows that 48% of dads feel they spend too little time with their children. Moreover, 53% of Americans believe mothers are better suited for baby care. It seems that while women may not necessarily be more adept, they certainly dedicate more time.
Though the study is based on a limited sample of first-time parents, Harper emphasized the need for further exploration into how dual-income couples share household and child-rearing responsibilities. “You would expect these educated, working couples to have figured out a fair approach to sharing chores and childcare,” she noted. While not all families fit this mold, it appears many fathers still have a ways to go to match their partners in this arena.
For more insights into parenting and family dynamics, check out our other blog posts, including discussions about home insemination and pregnancy resources at WHO’s page on pregnancy.
Summary
A recent study highlights the disparity in relaxation time between dads and moms, revealing that fathers tend to enjoy their days off while mothers handle most child care and household duties. Despite some progress over the last few decades, the findings suggest that many couples still struggle to share parenting responsibilities equally.