Who Cares?

This book examines the time spent by co-resident fathers on childcare, across the European Union during the period 1994-2001. It is argued that individual level factors and institutional factors will both impact on a fathers ability to spend as much time with his children as he would like to. This book combines descriptive comparison with explanatory analyses. Where household data are used longitudinally, the basic approach for the analysis is panel data modeling. Estimates show cross-national variation in paternal time and in the proportion of childcare done by fathers (as opposed to mothers). Intrinsically linked to levels of paternal time is the issue of the gender division of labour. With regard to the latter, the dominant sociological and economic theories are particularly interested in explaining how parents combine care and financial duties towards their children. Two competing models in this context are those of specialisation and non-specialisation. Whilst the book routinely observes the employment of both strategies, the key finding is that they are defined not only by the mothers financial contribution, but also by the fathers contribution to care.