A recent study conducted by the Federal Institute for Population Research (BiB), using data from the Generations and Gender Survey (GGS), reveals distinct patterns in how fathers across Europe contribute to childcare. Findings show that fathers are more likely to share time-flexible, interactive tasks-such as playing with children or organizing leisure activities-than rigid, provisioning care duties, like cooking or assisting with dressing.
The research specifically examined which childcare tasks fathers perform at least as frequently as their partners. The pattern is clearest concerning interactive and leisure activities. In all countries studied, the majority of fathers reported performing tasks like playful interaction, doing bedtime routines, or planning activities equally often as their partners. Playing is the most consistent example, with seven out of nine countries showing that fathers share this task equally often with partners. The reported sharing rates vary significantly across nations, ranging from 68% in Germany to 95% in Norway.
However, when analyzing roles requiring provisioning care-such as preparing meals, managing laundry, or looking after sick children-the geographical differences are much starker. For example, while 80% of fathers in Norway and 67% in Finland reported sharing the care of sick children equally often with their partners, these figures drop substantially in the Czech Republic (around 29%) and Germany (42%). Similar lower figures are observed for German fathers when compared to other countries in relation to other provisioning duties.
The study also explored the connection between specific childcare tasks and the fathers’ own sense of well-being. Fathers who reported playing with their children at least as often as their partners reported higher levels of life satisfaction. Conversely, the study found that sharing the care of sick children equally often with their partners was associated with lower life satisfaction.
According to Stefanie Hoherz, a research associate at the BiB and co-author of the study, provisioning duties tend to be tied to fixed schedules and are harder to integrate with paid employment. In contrast, interactive and leisure activities offer greater temporal flexibility, making them easier to handle outside standard working hours, such as after work or on weekends.
The institution concluded that childcare cannot be viewed as a singular, uniform activity; rather, different tasks possess different demands. These varying demands correlate with different impacts on fathers’ well-being. Consequently, Claudius Garten, a research associate at the BiB, highlighted the growing importance of family policy and organizational workplace frameworks. To encourage a more balanced distribution of childcare responsibilities, policy efforts must particularly improve the compatibility between paid work and care duties that are time-constrained or necessary at short notice-suggesting the implementation of more flexible working hours for parents.