Expectations of Fathers' Roles Expands from Emphasis on Provider to Equal Partners, Nurturers

WASHINGTON, June 16, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- This Sunday, June 21^st, as we celebrate fathers across the nation, new research finds that contemporary norms of fatherhood emphasize men's involvement with their children in addition to the traditional role of financial provider. Further, the number of hours that fathers work is not strongly related to fathers' involvement with their children. Rather, "new fathers" appear to be cutting back on, or incorporating their children into, their leisure time.¹

"Over the past two decades, fathers have increasingly sought to be more involved in all aspects of their children's lives," says Kenneth Braswell, National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (NRFC) Director. "Fathers continue to feel strongly about providing for their children and are more active in all child care aspects such as meal preparation, bathing, and bedtime routines."

Further, the Pew Research Center notes that six-in-ten Americans (58 percent) say it is "extremely important" for a father to provide values and morals to his children and roughly half say it is extremely important for a dad to provide emotional support (52 percent).²

It's important to note that "new father" attitudes extend to all fathers regardless of marital status, age, or occupation. Researchers found that fathers seek to reduce their leisure time or incorporate their children into leisure time activities to ensure their involvement is not diminished.

NRFC supports fathers and family service organizations throughout the year by providing key resources and webinars, and helping fathers to connect to community resources. The NRFC website, fatherhood.gov, makes the latest parenting information available to fathers across the country and the NRFC toll-free hotline provides guidance one-on-one.

Fatherhood Buzz Celebrates Dynamic Dads in Barbershops Nationwide
For many men, neighborhood barbershops serve far more than their grooming needs. These businesses provide a trusted space to discuss personal and public issues, ranging from family to politics to health, money, and other life issues. For the third consecutive year, NRFC's Fatherhood Buzz initiative will partner with barbershops and other community partners across the country to facilitate conversations with fathers and families on responsible fatherhood and men's health. These partners make a commitment to create opportunities for the sharing of responsible fatherhood information with fathers and families in their communities. To locate a participating Fatherhood Buzz barbershop in your area, visit fatherhood.gov.

¹ "Navigating New Norms of Involved Fatherhood: Employment, Fathering Attitudes, and Father Involvement," Brittany S. McGill, Journal of Family Issues, 2014, Vol. 35(8) 1089-1106.

² "The New American Father," Pew Research Center, June 14, 2013, http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/06/14/the-new-american-father/

HHS
HHS supports responsible fatherhood in diverse ways. Because engaged fathers strengthen families and contribute to healthy outcomes for children, many HHS programs integrate support for fathers. These include Head Start, child support programs, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.  HHS also supports programs that focus on responsible fatherhood, such as the Promoting Responsible Fatherhood grant program administered by the Office of Family Assistance (OFA).

National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse
The National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (NRFC) is funded by the Administration for Children and Families' OFA to assist policymakers, practitioners, and fathers to promote and support responsible fatherhood. NRFC provides evidence-informed materials, resources and tools including timely information on fatherhood issues, and access to print and electronic publications.

SOURCE National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse