It’s official: parents today are dedicating more time to their children than their own parents did half a century ago. So, universe, you can stop lecturing us about putting our phones away, and moms and dads can ease the guilt about those long work hours. A recent study from researchers at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) reveals that between 1965 and 2012, both moms and dads have significantly increased the time they spend with their kids. The research spanned nearly all Western nations—except for France, which is a bit of an outlier.
Back in the mid-60s, the image of the traditional mother often involved her staying at home. However, the findings show that mothers back then were only spending around 54 minutes daily on childcare activities. Fast forward to 2012, and that number nearly doubled to 104 minutes. And let’s not forget about dads—those figures skyrocketed from a mere 16 minutes to 59 minutes a day. Now that’s what we call progress, folks! Equal parenting is a win for everyone involved.
The study involved 122,271 parents from Canada, the UK, the US, Denmark, Norway, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, and Slovenia, all aged 18 to 65 with at least one child under the age of 13. These parents, comprising 68,532 mothers and 53,739 fathers, meticulously logged their daily activities, including meal preparation, feeding, bathing, bedtime routines, nighttime wake-ups, supervision, reading, playing, and even helping with homework.
Researchers attribute this surge in family time to the “intensive parenting” trend—essentially, the cultural craze of making your kids the absolute center of your universe. Today’s parents, especially mothers, are often encouraged to keep their little ones busy with everything from sports to museum visits, language lessons, and tutoring in advanced math. It’s exhausting just thinking about it!
Judith Harris, a UCI professor of sociology and co-author of the study, noted, “The time parents spend with children is regarded as critical for positive cognitive, behavioral, and academic outcomes.” She also pointed out that contemporary fathers, who often hold more egalitarian views, want to be more engaged in their children’s lives than their own dads were.
Interestingly, the study found that parents with a college education tend to spend significantly more time with their children compared to those without. Treas expressed her surprise at this result, saying, “According to economic theory, higher wages should discourage well-educated parents from sacrificing work for extra family time.” Yet, the trend towards intensive parenting seems to be shifting priorities.
As for France, experts are unsure why they didn’t see an uptick in parental time, with some suggesting that the French might believe kids can thrive without parents dramatically altering their lifestyles.
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In summary, modern parents are spending significantly more time with their children than previous generations, driven by trends like intensive parenting and a shift towards more egalitarian family dynamics. While some countries, like France, remain unique in their approach, the overall trend is clear: today’s parents are all in when it comes to family time.