Working Fathers: Overworked and Under-Familied?

This symposium seeks to understand the experience of working fathers – from opportunities and constraints to support and stereotypes. The default for many working fathers is to fulfill the “ideal worker”—fully devoted to and available for the job, with no personal responsibilities or interests that interfere with this commitment to work – in their organizations and a “bread winner” – the sole or primary financial provider in their families. However, many working men also want to be engaged fathers. Given the competing pulls between roles at home and in organizations, many men are left feeling, as Erin Reid (2015) wrote: “over-worked and under-familied.” Diving into the research on working fathers at this point in time is an opportune moment for scholars to support working fathers fulfilling their professional and caregiving ambitions, which can benefit them, their organizations and their families.