This item is not eligible for Amazon Prime, but millions of other items are. Join
Amazon Prime today. Already a member?
Sign in.
Product Description
Synopsis
This report examines how families come to terms with the connections between the worlds of work and family life, looking in particular at fathers' relationships with their teenage children. Men's family commitments have been under close scrutiny in the last few decades. How do they manage the conflict between their contribution to the labour force and their role as fathers? What influences some men to take an active part in their children's lives whilst others are "psychologically absent", even when they spend a lot of time at home with their families? Drawing on the experience of families in Rochdale, and using sample surveys and interviews, the study compares families with different parental employment patterns to see if there is a connection between work and the way in which fathers engage in everyday interactions and relationships. Secondly, the authors look more generally at the understanding of fatherhood by asking family members, not just fathers, to define what they mean by fathering as an activity. The authors suggest that it is not the amount of time that fathers have available for their families that is important, but whether men believe that providing materially for their families is intrinsic to fathering.