MenCare, a global campaign to promote the involvement of men as equitable, nonviolent caregivers, released their latest report on the State of the World’s Fathers in June, just in time for Father’s Day. I found the report interesting, as it discussed the benefits that gender equality has for men, women, and children. Written by Nikki van der Gaag, Brian Heilman, Taveeshi Gupta, Che Nembhard, and Gary Baker, the manuscript reports on new findings from interviews and surveys of almost 12,000 individuals in seven countries and makes recommendations to close the unpaid care gap. As a mother of 4 children, this all sounds good to me!
Background & Findings
The authors identify unpaid care work as general household tasks, including cleaning and laundry, as well as direct care for other members in the household (children, older adults, people with special needs, people with disabilities, and others).
Achieving gender equality in unpaid care work is the goal of MenCare. What an important goal! One thing I appreciate about this report is how it focuses on the positive influence that men can have as fathers and caregivers. According to the authors, “there is ample evidence from all over the world that engaged fatherhood has a positive impact on boys and girls – and the relationships they will have as adults.”
Globally, women spend significantly more time on unpaid care and domestic work, sometimes up to 10 times as much, according to the authors. The authors included research from other studies and organizations and shared some interesting data. One finding was that the unpaid care gap between men and women has decreased by only seven minutes over the last 15 years! The authors also researched why the unpaid care gap is so wide between genders. Besides social norms and gender expectations, they also found that needed social and government support is lacking.
Recommendations
From their research, the authors developed five keys to achieving gender equality in unpaid care work:
Key 1: Improve laws and policies: Changes are needed at the government level to close the unpaid care gap. Many countries have care policies that are offered only to mothers, including maternity leave and childcare subsidies. These policies are gender-reinforcing and need to change to equitably benefit fathers.
Key 2: Transform social and gender norms: Supportive laws and policies are not enough. The authors suggest education and training to change the attitude that women are the default caregiver. Employers should implement policies that consider the childcare duties of men and women. Advertisers, NGOs, and media producers should create media campaigns to encourage and support men’s caregiving.
Key 3: Build the economic and physical security of families: Social norms dictate that men are the typical financial providers and physical protectors. When this is threatened, it affects their health and self-esteem, which then affects their families. Policies and programs should be created to provide support through physical or economic difficulties while encouraging men’s caregiving.
Key 4: Help couples and co-parents thrive together: Creating programs and policies to help partners thrive together is an important step to “unlocking the power of care.” Programs should include father-specific parenting training, improved communication between partners, and shared decision-making.
Key 5: Put individual fathers’ care into action: This key may be the most important – men have to step up and put in the work to eliminate the unpaid care gap. Only then will any progress be made.
Concluding Thoughts
I’ve seen the impact of men working toward gender equality, and what better place is there to start than in the home? Men can be such a positive influence on their partners, children, and community. This report gives great suggestions for governments, organizations, and individuals to really make a change towards gender equality. Thanks to Nikki van der Gaag, Brian Heilman, Taveeshi Gupta, Che Nembhard, and Gary Baker for the awesome report!
Dr. Susan R. Madsen is a global thought leader, author, speaker, and scholar on the topic of women and leadership. She is also the Orin R. Woodbury Professor of Leadership and Ethics in the Woodbury School of Business at Utah Valley University and the Founder of the Utah Women & Leadership Project. Learn more about her Utah work at http://www.utwomen.org and her global efforts at http://madsengloballeadership.com/.
