The Effect of Fatherhood on Employment Hours

Variation by Birth Timing, Marriage, and Coresidence

Bibliographic Data

ID2347339
AuthorsMatthew Weinshenker (0000-0002-6437-6109, Fordham University, Bronx, NY, USA, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume36
Issue1
Pages3-30
Publication date2015-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Family Issues (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0192-513X • E-ISSN: 1552-5481
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0192513x13493280
PMID28280281
OpenAlexW2141055930
LanguageEN
Citations received14
References cited33

Drawing on the life course paradigm, I assess how the effect of fatherhood on employment hours varies by age of becoming a parent and time elapsed since the birth. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-1979 Cohort from 1979 to 2002 ( N = 28,514 observations), separate effects are estimated based on fathers' marital status and coresidence with own children. Only unmarried men who became fathers before 24 years work longer hours immediately after a first birth, but in the long run, most early fathers work fewer hours as a result of parenthood. Over time, unmarried but coresident men who became fathers between 24 and 29 years increase their hours, as do married, coresident men who delayed fatherhood until 30 years or older. However, the latter increase is moderated by support for egalitarian gender roles. The findings shed light on the contemporary transition to adulthood and on men's work-family balance

Cohort · Demographic economics · Developmental psychology · Life course approach · Longitudinal data · Longitudinal study · Marital status · National Longitudinal Surveys · Population · Sociology · Work hours · Demography · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Medicine · Psychology · Work-Family Balance Challenges