Strollerderby
Maybe We Are Mr. Moms; Dad Survey Tells All
The University of Texas completed its survey on stay-at-home dads — a survey I reported on a few weeks ago, wondering why there were 9 billion questions about whether I hated gay people. I finally have my answers.
It seems that the happiest stay-at-home dads are those who don’t fit into traditional gender roles. Those who seek dominance over women, have trouble expressing themselves, feel they must do everything alone and have a penchant for John Wayne movies have a tough time on the at-home homefront, according to the results. Whereas those who lust after this guy are doing just fine.
“Overall the sample had significantly lower conformity to traditional masculine norms and values than similarly aged men in the community ….”
Although I spent the past weekend in a sewing class wondering which quilt fabrics I was going to tear apart to make my daughter a skirt — all while mentally working out a recipe for fiddlehead ferns — I have no idea what this survey is talking about.
The early study results (which I’m re-posting in full below because they don’t seem to be online anywhere) offer an interesting glimpse into the makeup of the American stay-at-home dad.
They’re happy, for one — we’ve covered that. But it’s still interesting to note that at-home dad happiness is “slightly higher” than other dads. Considering that I spent yesterday at the ballpark with my daughter, I can’t imagine why.
At-home dads are predominantly white — at least those who responded to the survey. They’re roughly 37 and have 1.8 kids. They’re college educated and tend to do better at home when they have more social support — whether from spouses or friends.
It’s not surprising to me that at-home dads have a different view of gender roles. Whether we like it or not, the at-home world is a woman’s world — and if a dad is going to fit in at the playground or the mothers group, it’s probably not a good idea to rock out without his smock out.
But the study raises a chicken-and-the-egg conundrum in my mind. Do those who have less traditional views of gender roles become stay-at-home dads, or does staying home do that to them?
Take a look at the early results and help me decide:
Dear SAHF research participants,
Thanks again for participating in the research on SAHFs. We will be presenting the results of this project at the American Psychological Association Conference in San Francisco (August, 2007) and preparing the data for publication in an academic men
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5 Comments
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amThanks for the book tip, abstract. I’ll have to find that one — very intriguing.
abstractfigure commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amThis seems to make sense. As I mentioned in an earlier comment;
I’ve been reading Family Man: Fatherhood, Housework, and Gender Equity by Scott Coltrane…though it’s over 10 years old it’s VERY interesting and enlightening. Especially where it discusses how many boys who grow up with absent fathers become sexist/macho men…and how in societies/homes where fathers are involved in routine care of children, the status of/respect for women is much higher. Mr. Coltrane’s studies and the one’s he references seem very much in line with this new study.
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amHey, MailDeadDrop: Don’t forget about class too
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 am
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amYou wrote that “At-home dads are predominantly white”. You then attempted to qualify that statement (“at least those who responded to the survey”). A valiant effort to be sure, but making such sweeping statements without basis is simply wrong. Unless you’re holding out on us, you don’t know the racial distribution of the *possible* respondents. The study author revealed that 213 responded, of which 198 were self-identified as Caucasian, but how many surveys were sent and the selection criteria for sending them was not.
It would be more proper for you to have written “Most of the survey respondents were white (93%). I cannot determine if this indicates that most SAHFs are white, or that the survey somehow unconsciously selected whites.”
It may be interesting to ask the study author questions about the sample selected.
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