Fatherhood Practices and Shared Parental Leave: Advancing Gender Equity in Parenting

In this article, we examine the theoretical concept of hybrid masculinities from a praxeological perspective, focusing on fathers as caring parents. Examining the development of parenting practices and parental knowledge exchange, we conducted couple interviews with 42 couples (n = 42, 2021 and 2022) and analyzed how fathers’ and couples’ motivations for sharing parental leave (PL) and childcare allowance (CA) in Austria shape fatherhood practices. All interviewees had claimed CA for a minimum duration of five months. Since infant care has only recently been incorporated into normative constructions of masculinity, our praxeological analysis centers on fathers. By applying the theoretical concept of hybrid masculinities, we examine these practices which are still perceived as “new”. In the couple interviews we conducted, we analyzed the reports and views of both parents, which tended to be more fully expressed when the parents interviewed were in conversation with each other. We applied topic-specific content analysis and Informed Grounded Theory to analyze the empirical data, guided by semi-structured interview protocols and coded with MAXQDA. Our findings indicate that fathers successfully take on and embody caregiving responsibilities. However, they also continue to conform to traditional constructions of masculinity, particularly in their long-term reconciliation of childcare and employment. Considering international PL and CA policies, we discuss the relationship between parents’ dual PL uptake and social sustainability in the transformation of gendered parenting norms and the reduction in gender inequalities.