A research Report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements toward the degree of Master of Arts in Social and Psychological Research by Coursework and Research Report, University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Humanities, School of Human and Community Development. / Current research on fatherhood in South Africa highlighted a shift in the perceptions of the fathering role entailing an increase in emotional involvement with their children. In addition, existing research on fatherhood indicated ways in which the fathers’ experience of emotional support systems influence their fathering roles, in terms of paternal involvement. This research explores young fathers’ perceptions of the importance their emotional involvement with their children. In addition, it explores young fathers’ experience of emotional support systems. This further highlight how such support influences participants’ perceptions of the importance of the father’s emotional involvement with his child. The sample for this study consisted of four young fathers between the ages of 18 to 22 years old. With the use of semistructured interviews as the method of data collection, interview transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. This study used a social constructionist approach as its theoretical framework. The findings of this study suggest that these young fathers perceived the importance of the father’s emotional involvement and the formation of the bond between father and child as the personal growth that they experienced. Both types of growth resulted in emotional rewards for participants. In addition, the young fathers’ constructions of a ‘good father’ and their constructed understanding of fatherhood as a form of ‘ownership’, accompanied their strong sense of duty to fulfil these roles. This involved being emotionally invested in their child’s lives. For these young fathers their emotional support systems consisted of friends, family members, the mother of their child and the mother of their child’s family. This emotional support was in the form of advice and behaviour. This behaviour consisted of their behaviour toward the fathers, such as… In addition, it also included their behaviours as role models, for example these fathers’ involvement in their children’s lives were actively learnt through the guidance of their support systems. It was found that such support assisted the transition into fatherhood and provided these young fathers with a sense of reassurance of their roles and duties, prompting their emotional involvement with their children. / NG (2020)

Even though Sweden is perceived to be on the gender equality frontline parenthood is still, according to previous research, influenced by parent ideals which are based on traditional ideas about gender. This is visualized through the fact that women usually spend more time on childcare and household work than men, whereas men mainly provide for the family. Parenthood can therefore be understood as a part of the process of doing gender. We do gender through interaction with others and it is also through interaction that traditional ideas about gender can be maintained and reproduced. In today's society we interact through social media and digital platforms to a large extent, which implies that social science research should study this context more. Based on this argument, this study is designed as a qualitative thematic content analysis which examines how parenthood ideals are visualized through members’ interaction on Familjeliv.se. The aim is to study if traditional ideas about gender are maintained, reproduced and challenged through this interaction. The posts on Familjeliv.se were analyzed using West and Zimmerman’s concept doing gender and Connell’s gender theory. The results show that traditional ideas about gender are both maintained, reproduced and challenged through the discussions on the forum. The users mainly express more equal parent ideals but seem to have difficulty putting this into practice. The conclusion is that the users on Familjeliv.se are doing gender in both normative and different ways. / Trots att Sverige anses vara i framkant gällande jämställdhet präglas föräldraskap, enligt tidigare forskning, till stor del av föräldraideal som baserar sig på traditionella föreställningar om kön. Detta synliggörs genom att kvinnor ägnar mer tid än män åt barnomsorg och hushållsarbete medan män ägnar mer tid åt förvärvsarbete än kvinnor. Föräldraskapet kan således ses som en del i görandet av kön. Görandet av kön sker genom interaktion med andra och det är även på detta sätt som traditionella föreställningar om kön kan upprätthållas och reproduceras. I dagens samhälle interagerar vi människor i stor utsträckning på sociala medier och digitala plattformar, vilket innebär en ny typ av kontext som samhällsforskning bör studera. Baserat på detta resonemang utformades en kvalitativ tematisk innehållsanalys som undersöker hur användare på forumet Familjeliv.se interagerar kring föräldraideal. Syftet är att studera om och i så fall hur traditionella föreställningar om kön upprätthålls, reproduceras och utmanas genom denna interaktion. Diskussionsinläggen på forumet analyserades med utgångspunkt i West och Zimmermans teori om doing gender och Connells genusteori. Resultaten visar att traditionella föreställningar om kön både upprätthålls och reproduceras samt utmanas i diskussionerna på Familjeliv.se. Användarna framställer framför allt mer jämställda föräldraideal men verkar ha svårt att realisera detta i praktiken. Slutsatsen blev således att användarna gör kön på både normativa sätt och annorlunda sätt.

With an increase in diagnosis rates of autism in Trinidad, more parents of children with autism, especially single fathers, face numerous challenges on a daily basis. There is a lack of research on this topic and therefore an inadequate understanding of the experiences of Trinidadian single fathers as primary caregivers for children with autism. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and depict the lived experiences of single fathers of children with autism. Social support theory was the guiding conceptual framework to explore and understand how single fathers effectively manage their daily challenges. Ten single fathers from Southern Trinidad were recruited through criterion sampling and they engaged in semi-structured interviews individually. Moustakas's steps to phenomenological analysis were used to analyze the data. There were seven major themes that emerged from describing the lived experience of single fathers of children with autism: (a) challenges, (b) social support systems, (c) day-to-day experiences, (d) the role of the father within the family, (e) effects on social life, (f) sibling reactions, and (g) adaptive coping mechanisms. This study may engender social change, as the findings may be used to support single fathers to continue to provide care for their children. This study could result in improved understanding and support for their children both at home, in school, and in the community. The findings will be available to other fathers who share similar experiences. Special education service providers may gain further information to improve their services to families of children with disabilities.

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The South African workforce has been transforming over centuries. Post -1994 South Africa brought about liberal changes in labour laws and policies, which saw women getting a four months maternity leave but there was a shortfall when it came to fathers in the workplace. The laws are mute about the father’s time off during birth of the child; the only provision made is the three days family responsibility leave. The purpose of this research was to explore the perceptions and experiences of fathers with regard to the absence of paternity leave in the legislation and their experiences in early child care with new-borns. The study used a qualitative strategy and a case study design to better understand the perceptions and experiences of employed fathers. A purposive and convenience sampling procedure were used, with a sample of 15 fathers with reproductive age ranging from 25 to 55. The fathers that were interviewed came from three different companies, where a semi structured interview was employed to collect data. Data was analysed using thematic analysis that allowed the researcher to identify the recurring themes. The findings of the study demonstrated a need for paternity leave to allow fathers to be involved with their new-borns. Various factors that came up during the analysis include bonding, the helper and supportive partner, and emotionally absent. These factors contributed to an emphasised need for paternity leave as participants narrated their experiences and challenges. With the implementation of paternity leave participants felt that ten days of leave provision in South Africa would be the first steps to moving towards gender equality in the workplace and strict measures need to be put in place to ensure that fathers do not misuse the paternity leave. The study recommends further research to be conducted on the mother’s perspective on paternity leave. It is also anticipated that the result may support the amendment of Basic Conditions of Employment Act, or develop progressive policy which can equally cater for both men and women in equal terms. Keywords: Basic Conditions of Employment Act, Paternity leave, Fatherhood, Family. / GR2018

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There has been an increase in literature involving female academic staff on precarious employment contracts and how they balance their work and family lives. However, research involving male academic staff on insecure contracts with children is limited, particularly within the South African context. My thesis addressed this gap by exploring how precariously employed men in higher education institutions in Cape Town understand the concepts of fatherhood, their own practices of fathering, and what influence their employment has on their involvement with their children. Given that precarious employment in higher education institutions is a salient problem in South Africa, this study investigated the ways in which such employment conditions in higher education shape fathering practices. This study was informed by a broader study, which aimed to understand (a) how men in precarious employment in the formal and informal employment sectors define fatherhood, (b) what practices they associate with fathering, and (c) how, if at all, their employment conditions shape their fathering practices. I conducted a qualitative research study using purposive and snowball sampling methods to procure a sample of seven men aged 34 to 57 years old. Data was collected through individual, semi-structured interviews. I used Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis to understand the fathers' experiences. Findings from the study show that fatherhood is constructed through the participants' ability to provide for their families and be responsible role models to their children. Having a good relationship with their children is important for the men, and they establish these relationships by spending time with their children. The findings also show that participants perceived HEIs as exploitative, relying on PhD students who are in the process of establishing their academic careers for teaching purposes. The income received by the men on these non-permanent contracts is not sufficient for them to provide for themselves and their families, and they therefore work multiple jobs so that they can receive a better income. The fathers' experiences also show that precarious employment conditions in higher education institutions enable some fathers to be involved in their children's care due to flexibility in their working hours. However, for some of the men, father and child co-residence was prohibited by migration, resulting in reduced contact with their children.

Feminist literary critics have long focused on the female gender role in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. This essay turns instead to the role of fatherhood in Frankenstein. This has been achieved by applying Judith Butler’s feminist theory, the Theory of Performativity, and by examining the different examples of fatherhood in the novel, performing a comparative study whilst applying a historical context. The main point of focus has been to compare the effects, of the existing types of fatherhood in the novel, on family and society, using the Theory of Performativity. This has resulted in the understanding that Frankenstein gives much consideration to the constituents of fatherhood which may represent the most immediate threat to the family as a building block, to the happiness of children, and the improvement of society.

For approximately the last 45 years, researchers have examined a standardized pathway for an individual’s life course, involving leaving the parents’ home, building a stable career, getting married, having children, followed by retirement and death. Contrary to what was been previously discovered, the life course is no longer considered as linear as it was once thought to be. This statement has been further investigated and proven more specifically among families of children with special needs. This Master’s thesis reviews the perspective of 11 (eleven) fathers of children with cerebral palsy located in Canada and in the United States. Fathers voluntarily participated in a qualitative 90-minute qualitative structured interview, followed by the construction of a historical timeline of key events pertaining to their journey to becoming a father. Qualitative analyses consisted of a content analysis to investigate how fatherhood is constructed and the experiences of being a father to a child with cerebral palsy consist of. In essence, becoming a father to a child with cerebral palsy is an extremely emotional experience as complex and continuous feelings emerge in those transitioning into fatherhood.

Research in life-course criminology has been studying turning points away from criminality. There is although a limited amount of research that has been focusing on parenthood and especially on fatherhood as a potential turning point. The available studies show mixed results in this topic and the findings suggest that there are factors that can both form and restrict fatherhood as a potential turning point towards desistance. The aim for the present thesis is therefore to get a better understanding of fatherhood as a potential turning point from persistent offending and to examine the role and meaning of fatherhood in the criminal careers of Swedish former criminals. Qualitative method in the form of retrospective semi- structured interviews has been used to collect data and five former offenders that became fathers during their criminal career participated in the study. The data have been analysed with systematic text condensation and the results indicate that the men did not desist after becoming fathers. They did however have both intended and unintended breaks from criminality when their child was born, but the criminal lifestyle was their first choice and their children were put on the second place. Relationships to friends and in some cases to the mother of the child was a restricting factor for fatherhood to become a turning point. Another factor that restricted fatherhood from being a potential turning point was human agency. The men concluded that an offending father can not receive help from society if there is no will for the father to desist.