Ziarat Hossain

Father involvement in child care and household work in common-law dual-earner and single-earner Jamaican families

Abstract The division of chile care and household labor and beliefs about the roles of mothers and fathers were examined in 86 low-income dual-earner and single-earner Jamaican couples in common-law unions. Analysis revealed that there was a markedly gender-differentiated pattern of involvement in child care and household tasks by parents and that they held very traditional conceptions of the roles of mothers and fathers. Both mothers and fathers were more likely to spend time playing with rather than feeding or cleaning their babies. Involvement in child care did not differ as a function of the gender of the infant, but involvement in child care and household work did vary by mothers employment status. Jamican mens participation in child care and household activities was quite similar to what has been reported for men in other cultural groups. The data are discussed in terms of the commonly accepted notion of the “marginal” role of Jamaican men in the family and in the context of gender roles.

Touch among Children at Nursery School.

Naturalistic observations of touching behaviors were conducted among 33 preschool children, ranging from 3 to 64 months of age. Touch was coded for direction (received/initiated), type, body area touched, responses to touch, and purpose. Infants received significantly more touch than older children. Preschool children engaged in touching behaviors similar to those observed among adults. Touch involved “vulnerable body parts” more often among toddlers than among preschoolers. ‘Negative’ responses to being touched occurred more often among toddlers than among preschoolers, and task‐related touch occurred less often in the preschool than in the toddler and infant classes.

Fathers’ Participation in Childcare Within Navajo Indian Families

Fathers’ and mothers’ reports of their participation in early caregiving tasks and the amount of social support they received regarding their involvement with their infants were examined for 28 two‐parent Navajo Indian families. Mothers were significantly more involved in basic caregiving activities than fathers. Fathers invested about sixty percent as much time as mothers did in direct caregiving tasks. Mothers and fathers did not differ on the degree to which they reported receiving social supports for childcare tasks. Navajo parents received significantly more extrafamilial and/or institutional sources of support than family support for early caregiving activities. Navajo fathers were highly involved with their young children. The results are discussed in relation to role differences in early caregiving within Navajo families.