Ep 17. Brad Harrington: Fathers at Home
“If you believe in women’s advancement and you don’t proactively and visibly support the role of fathers in the home, then you’re talking out of both sides of your mouth.”
-- Brad Harrington
Brad Harrington is Executive Director of the Boston College Center for Work & Family and leads research focusing on the changing role of fathers, career management, and work-life integration. He recently completed a series of papers collectively titled The New Dad Research that examines how fathers manage their career and parenting responsibilities. He is also author of Career Management and Work/Life Integration: Using Self-Assessment to Navigate Contemporary Careers.
In this episode, Brad and Stew explore findings of The New Dad Research and discuss the changing roles of men and women in society and the workplace. Brad found that despite the upward trend of fathers as primary caregivers, there are still organizational and societal barriers to achieving equality between men and women at home and at work. This episode features three short conversations between Stew and listeners of the Work and Life radio show, each one with a unique story about fathers.
Listen below or on Stitcher, SoundCloud, iTunes, or Google Play
Transcript of Stew's conversation with Brad
Show Notes (times when new topics start)
2:30: Emergence of research on fathers. What brought Brad to this research and how the idea of fathers-as-caregivers has changed over the years. There remains a large gap between the aspirations of fathers and the current realities they face.
12:15: Traditional, Egalitarian, and Conflicted Dads. Brad’s research shows there are three types of fathers -- and one of them is worse off than the others.
19:05: Advice for Conflicted Dads. Conflicted fathers can benefit most from talking with their spouse, co workers, and communities about what it means to be an active and engaged father.
27:45: Listeners call in to share their stories. Three fans of our podcast call to talk with Stew about modern fatherhood. Stew offers advice to each of them about their unique situation.