• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.103-120
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• 2021

Recently, the importance of the fathers role in the care of young children has been emphasized in Korea for the balance of childcare responsibilities between mothers and fathers. This study investigates the trends in paternal childcare in Korea over the last 15 years. Childcare is divided into primary and developmental care and fathers's Childcare time and participation rates are inverstigated for dual- and single-income households. Data are collected from the four waves of the five-yearly Statistics of Korea Life Time Surveys between 2004(t₁) and 2019(t₄) including the workday time diaries of fathers with preschool children(n₁=2,264, n₂=1,242, n₃=959, n₄=952). Three major results are identified. First, paternal childcare time and participation rates have increased with dual-income fathers spending 24 more minutes a day with their young child(ren) in 2019 than in 2004, which is nearly double. Second, in the analysis of fathers' childcare time use and participation rates comparing primary and developmental care, primary care is found to have increased more than developmental care, especially among dual income fathers: this further exhibits a reversed relation between primary and developmental care over time. Third, the determinants of paternal childcare time are fathers' age, market labor time, commuting time, gender equality consciousness, and education. In particular, market labor time was significant in all four waves, while gender equality consciousness is only significant for single-income fathers. Based on these results, a specific agenda is provided for family-friendly policies to improve the balance of childcare roles between fathers and mothers, especially encouraging increased(significant and sufficient) participation of fathers in primary care activities.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.151-162
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• 1997

The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of various stressors among dual-earner families on parenting stress and marital satisfaction. Using a survey data collected from 168 dual-earner couples, this study investigated impact of various stressors, including husband division of labor, the satisfaction of childcare arrangement, husband's support on wife's outside work, family socioeconomic status, and strains from job. The finding suggested that, after controlling background variables(length of marriage, the number of children, and family income), high husbands' support on wife's outside work and low strains about their work hours had influenced on higher parenting stress among fathers, while high strains about their work hours had related to high parenting stress among mothers. It also found that high satisfaction on childcare arrangement and low depression were the factors predicting higher marital satisfaction of mothers, and high support on their wife's outside work, low work role strain, low depression, and low parenting stress had influenced on higher marital satisfaction among fathers. Discussions and recommendations for future research were added.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.61-81
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to investigate the policy demands of the family sector for work-family balance, with a focus on the child care and household labor provisions. For empirical analysis, data were collected from 197 dual-income families with at least one young child under age 10 in the metropolitan area via self-administered questionnaires. The major findings of this study were as follows. First, child care provisions for working mothers and fathers were insufficient and unfair, and the ratio of child care provisions offered by familial child care network was high. The characteristics of child care provisions for working parents were associated with family structure, working conditions, and demographic variables. Second, household labor provisions for working mothers and fathers were also insufficient and unfair, and the ratio of socialization was high. Third, the level of family satisfaction varied by the level of child care and household labor provisions, respectively, controlling family structure, working conditions, and demographic variables. The empirical results of the study provided policy implications for work-family balance.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.39-52
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to examine the workday leisure time of dual-income fathers and mothers with preschool children. Data were gathered from the Statistics Korea Life Time Surveys from 2004(y1) and 2019(y2) (n=2,697). Life time was composed of three types(inevitable time, compulsory time, and leisure time) and leisure time was categorized into 11 activities(voluntarism, participation, social relationships, religion, rituals, culture and tourism, sports, game and play, media, rest, and others) to investigate gender differences and time effects. The major results were as follows: First, both working fathers and mothers with preschool children spent less inevitable time, more compulsory time, and less leisure time, than other adult group. Second, fathers spent more time on 10 leisure activities except religion in y1, and on all activities than mothers in y2. In y2, less time on three activities(social relationships, rituals, and media) for both fathers and mothers, less time on religion for mothers only, more time on two activities(participation, game and play) for both groups were spent than y1. Third, in the regression analysis of fathers' and mothers' leisure time on three leisure activities(sports, game and play, and media) with a distinct pattern from leisure time for adult group between y1 and y2, socioeconomic variables and lifetime variables showed different effects by gender and waves. Based on the results, family policy and programs to improve the work-life balances of working fathers and mothers discussed.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.351-363
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• 2005

This study examined the relations between dual-earner parents' attitudes toward the employer-supported day care service and their expectations of well-being improvement. The data of this study were collected from 271 dual-earner couples. The main results of this study were as follows: 1) Dual-earner parents showed more positive attitudes toward the employer-supported day care service. 2) Significant difference by sex was observed in dual-earner parents' attitudes toward the service: Mothers displayed more positive attitudes than fathers. Also, either being positive or negative in the attitude differed according to the respondents' income and job. 3) Parents' attitude toward the day care service was significantly correlated with expectations of well-being improvement. The more positive attitudes they showed about the service, the more expectations of well-being improvement they reported, and vice versa. 4) Positive (employers, parents, children) and negative (parents) attitudes were significant variables predicting parents' expectations of well-being improvement.

• Human Ecology Research
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.361-375
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• 2018

This study recognizes the changes of the father's role and the importance of family mealtimes as well as examines the individual, family and social contexts surrounding the father's family mealtime. This study analyzed the trend of the father's family mealtime frequency and factors affecting them in order to explore the current conditions of their father's work and family balance through family mealtimes. Data from 492 fathers who have school aged children were collected through an online survey. The overall trend of the frequency of father's family meals showed an average of 2.4 breakfasts and an average of 3.2 dinners per week. The frequency of the father's family meals showed statistically significant differences according to the father's age, children's school age, dual income, weekly working hours, working flexibility, leaving on-time and the priority of work and family. The analysis of hierarchical linear regressions was conducted to determine factors affecting the frequency of father's family mealtime to show that the frequency of father's family mealtime was best explained by father's working conditions and perception variables. Working conditions such as working hours, leaving work on time, working flexibility were significant variables in regards to the father's family mealtime frequency. The father's perception towards parental efficacy, wife's support, and work-family priority were significant factors in regards to the father's family mealtime frequency. This study is meaningful in that it provides basic data on policy making for the compatibility of the father's work and family.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.71-84
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• 2022

This study analyzed 2019 time survey data from the National Statistical Office to examine the childcare behaviors of fathers with preschool children and their determinants, considering types of care and working/nonworking days. The main results of this study are as follows. First, paternal childcare time of nonworking days was three times more than that of working days, and the participation rate was also higher on nonworking days. Second, there was no significant difference in the amount of time spent on primary care and developmental care by fathers, whether from dual- or single-income families. Third, it seems that fathers adjust their participation in childcare between working days and nonworking days in consideration of the mother's time availability. Fourth, the variables related to childcare needs had a significant influence on paternal childcare time on both working and nonworking days. Fathers' developmental care time was not explained by the independent variables entered into the regression analysis. As a result of the study, it is necessary to reduce fathers' working hours and increase family-friendly systems to increase fathers' participation in childrearing. Fathers' perception of parental responsibility must also be changed.