Fatherhood and Men’s Lives at Middle Age

This article uses data on 2,024 men who were followed through the third wave of the National Survey of Families and Households to examine the implications of fatherhood experiences for men’s involvement in altruistic social activities at middle age. We find that middle-aged men (ages 45-65) who at s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of family issues 2010-01, Vol.31 (1), p.113-130
Main Authors: Eggebeen, David J., Dew, Jeffrey, Knoester, Chris
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adults
Altruism
Childrearing Practices
Children
Correlation
Educational Attainment
Family roles
Fathers
Households
Males
Men
Middle age
Middle Aged Adults
National Survey of Families and Households
Parent Child Relations
Parent Child Relationship
Public Service
Regression (Statistics)
Social activities
Surveys
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Summary:This article uses data on 2,024 men who were followed through the third wave of the National Survey of Families and Households to examine the implications of fatherhood experiences for men’s involvement in altruistic social activities at middle age. We find that middle-aged men (ages 45-65) who at some point in their lives become fathers are significantly more likely to have altruistically oriented social relationships and be involved in service organizations compared with men who have never become fathers. Furthermore, it appears that the defining aspect of the effect of fatherhood is the level of engagement with children while they are growing up. Neither current residential status nor whether current nonresidence occurs because of nest leaving is found to distinguish men’s altruistic ties.
ISSN:0192-513X
1552-5481
DOI:10.1177/0192513X09341446