When sociology professor Richard Petts’s wife was pregnant with their first child, he was interested in taking time off after his son was born.
Petts began researching paternity leave after discovering that Ball State does not have a paid paternity leave policy. The university does have a child care leave policy in place, which guarantees six months of leave for both men and women employees, but it is unpaid.
Petts presented his research on paternity leave, titled “Paternity Leave, Religion, and Father Involvement with Children,” Oct. 16 in the L.A. Pittenger Student Center. Paternity leave is an important topic for families, but there isn't a lot of focus on it, Petts said.
“Being already involved in research on fatherhood, I soon learned that this was a widespread issue that fathers experienced,” Petts said in an email. “Moreover, very little research has been done on paternity leave, which led to begin a research agenda focused on this topic.”
Federal law guarantees new parents 12 weeks off, but only at companies with 50 or more employees, according to the United States Department of Labor. This leave does not have to be paid.
Petts said paternity leave is not an uncommon practice in the U.S., although it is the only developed country to not offer any form of guaranteed paid parental leave. Seventy-four percent of fathers took paternity leave in the datasets Petts researched, usually for just one to two weeks.
The amount of time fathers take is an important factor in paternity leave. While many fathers were able to take off one to two weeks, Petts said that this does not make a big difference for the children.
“Taking more than two weeks of paternity leave is associated with an increased likelihood of playing with young children daily and singing and talking to young children daily,” Petts said. “Shorter periods of leave-taking (less than two weeks) is unrelated to father involvement.”
Petts found that the influence of paternity leave-taking on father involvement varies by religious attendance. Fathers who take more than two weeks of leave and attend religious services frequently were more likely to interact with their young children daily than fathers who attend services less frequently.
These fathers who attend religious services weekly are also more likely to take paternity leave than fathers who attend religious services infrequently. Furthermore, fathers who attend services weekly are especially more likely to take less than a week of paternity leave than no leave at all.
“Religious fathers may view these relationships as having spiritual meaning or significance. As a result, religious fathers who take extended periods of paternity leave may find more meaning in daily parenting tasks, viewing them as more important than nonreligious fathers and thus engaging in them more frequently,” Petts said.
Because paternity leave is not normally paid in the U.S., though, fathers may not always have the chance to create these relationships. Petts said that fathers who are financially more stable are more likely to take paternity leave, but this is not an option for everyone.
Petts said the benefits of paternity leave are important for both men and women. He said it could help people understand and possibly reduce gender inequality in the U.S.
“If paternity leave allows men time to become more involved in childcare duties, this might help to reduce some of the burden and stress placed on mothers,” Petts said. “Moreover, if men were expected to take paternity leave, similar to how women are expected to take maternity leave, this has the potential to reduce the disadvantages that women face as a result of these expectations.”
Sterling Andler, a sophomore women and gender studies major, said childcare is the responsibility of both parents. Both parents should have an equal hand in raising the child, she said.
“If there is one thing that I wish everyone knew, it’s that nurturing is a learned skill,” Andler said. “Anyone can do it. It’s extremely important that both parents are present.”
Erica Somerson, a sophomore women and gender studies and sociology major, said the practice of paternity leave would help people realize that both parents have influential roles in a child’s development.
“Without paternity leave, we’re deeming the father figure as less important,” Somerson said. “I would hope that most men would want [paternity leave].”
Petts said his research shows that paternity leave can encourage men to be more invested in their families, which is advantageous for the child or children.
“This time off of work may allow fathers time to feel comfortable interacting with their children and develop parenting skills without also having to balance work responsibilities,” he said. "Given that father involvement is linked to positive outcomes for children, this increased involvement may also provide benefits to children."
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