Not too long ago, dads onscreen took on the starring role as the fumbling secondary caregiver who didn’t know how to braid their child’s hair or change a diaper, but according to research, the “useless dads” stereotype is very wide off the mark.
In fact, dads currently make up 18% of stay-at-home parents, according to a Pew Research Center analysis. The number of stay-at-home fathers has nearly doubled over the past 30 years, with economic downturns fuelling the trend.
Just 5% of fathers were stay-at-home dads at the turn of the millennium.
Around 2008, this percentage surged to 9%, yet with a strengthening economy, the share of fathers in the primary caregiver role gradually diminished—until the pandemic hit.
In the U.K. as well, research indicates stay-at-home dads surged by a third during the pandemic, highlighting a global cultural shift as many men were compelled, for the first time, to juggle childcare duties while working remotely.
Why dads are staying at home
While mothers still make up the lion’s share of stay-at-home parents—with Pew Research Center finding almost 80% of women are staying at home for the sole purpose of taking care of their household—stay-at-home dads are less likely to be dropping out of the workforce for the same reason.
More than one-third are not working due to illness or disability, some 13% are retired, 13% said they could not find work, and 8% are going to school.
Meanwhile, 23% cited staying at home to care for the home or family.
Still, this represents a big shift from 30 years ago when 56% of fathers were staying at home due to an illness or disability and merely 4% were doing so to look after their kids.
The data suggests dads are increasingly choosing parenting over breadwinning, instead of taking on the role by default after being injured or let go from their job during a recession.
“There is a bit of a shift among the nation’s fathers,” Richard Fry, a senior researcher at Pew who authored the analysis on stay-at-home dads, told Insider. “Is it huge? No. But there seems to be some evidence that changing gender norms are contributing to the rise in stay-at-home dads.”
Moreover, stay-at-home fathers generally have lower education and economic status compared to their employed counterparts. However, the proportion of stay-at-home dads with a bachelor’s degree has increased over the past three decades.
“If you’re a better-educated dad, you’re less likely to be a stay-at-home father,” Fry said.
With childcare expenses often out of reach for numerous families, it becomes economically viable for the lower-earning parent to stay home. As more women pursue higher education and enter the workforce, it’s becoming more probable for fathers to step in as the lower-earning parent who might leave work for child-rearing.
A version of this story originally published on Fortune.com on August 16, 2023.
