“How Can You Really Step Up?”: The Dad-Double-Bind Grounded Theory of Fathering in the United States During COVID-19

Amy A. Morgan, Sonia Molloy, Pond Ezra, Theresa J. Smith

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Recent research suggests fathers are engaging more with their children, with an overall convergence in the amount of time mothers and fathers spend with their children. However, little is known about how fathering engagement was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, in which families found themselves working and living in new ways. Using a constructivist grounded theory methodology, we conducted 44 semistructured interviews with U.S. fathers of at least one child aged four or younger between May and July 2020. Interviews explored fathers’ perceptions of how COVID-19 affected fathering and family dynamics. Participants included fathers from 23 states who were predominantly White (86.36%), married (93.18%), college-educated (45%), and employed full-time (79.54%), with gross family incomes greater than $50,000 (70.4%). Axial and selective coding were used to inductively generate findings. Sensitized by a family systems perspective, our grounded theory analysis revealed that, for some families, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in increased father engagement, couple subsystem changes, stronger family cohesion, and a redefining of fathering roles and rules. A new theoretical fathering concept also emerged: the daddouble-bind, described as conflicting societal messages that told fathers to “step aside” (e.g., lack of fathering classes and support, their kids preferring mom) as “contemporary fatherhood” concurrently asked them to “step up.” We explore how the dad-double-bind was highlighted due to the fathers’ experiences early in the pandemic, which is shaped by a cultural lag between fathering desires, expectations of actions, and societal constraints. We conclude with recommendations to support fathering engagement.

Original languageEnglish (US)
JournalPsychology of Men and Masculinity
DOIs
StateAccepted/In press - 2024

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Gender Studies
  • Social Psychology
  • Applied Psychology
  • Life-span and Life-course Studies

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