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A Today survey of 2,000 moms and dads shows that fathers are more involved than ever before with their children, emotionally and practically. While moms increasingly share the responsibility for the family’s income, dads are assisting with more of the childcare and household chores.
Recent research supports the idea that dads are more "hands on." according to the Pew Research Center. The amount of time fathers spend on childcare and housework has increased significantly over the last half century, from 6.5 hours a week in 1965 to 17 hours a week in 2011.
Economic reasons, especially in the aftermath of the Great Recession, might be partly responsible for the shift.
While some may struggle with the changing definitions of marriage and family, Tom Burns, author of Modern Dads, sees it as a sign the world is becoming more inclusive: “I see just as many men who are seeing so many doors opened and they are thriving.” Men are biologically hard-wired to be nurturing, although they may show it in a different way than women do, according to William Pollack of Harvard Medical School.
While some may feel threatened by a shift in gender roles, Burns said it doesn’t mean that what used to be masculine is no longer masculine. “All it means is the definition is expanding to include things that it didn’t used to."
Those things could include taking paternity leave, attending a child's school play or reading to your 7-year-old daughter.
The definition of what does it mean to be a good dad is constantly changing as the roles of fathers in their families change.