Constructing stay-at-home fathers’ work-care identities in China

Abstract

This article examines how stay-at-home fathers (SAHFs) position their primary caregiving identity in relation to paid work that they either used to have or currently have part-time/freelance. The aim is to understand how their sense of masculinity is shaped by and/or rebelled against normative gender expectations. 22 Chinese SAHFs participated in this qualitative research, involving one-to-one repeat structured interviews over a year. Four fathering identities emerged from the data: “Ambivalent SAHFs”, “Reluctant SAHFs”, “Proud SAHFs”, and “Reflective SAHFs”. The juxtaposition of these subject positions indicates the tensions between assuming the primary caregiving role and conforming to normative gendered expectations for men. However, the findings also demonstrate that stay-at-home fathering identity is not fixed, but subject to change over time, with spousal support being crucial to their transition. This constant evolution challenges oversimplified categorizations of SAHFs as purely choice-driven or circumstantial.