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Coronavirus and care: How the coronavirus crisis affected fathers' involvement in Germany

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  • Kreyenfeld, Michaela
  • Zinn, Sabine
Abstract
Background:Some have hypothesized that the coronavirus crisis may result in a retraditionalization of behaviour. This paper examines this hypothesis by analyzing how the time fathers and mothers spent with their children changed during the first lockdown in the case of Germany. Methods: Data for this investigation come from the German Socio-Economic Panel. The outcome variable is the time spent on childcare tasks. We investigate how this time changed between 2019 and spring 2020 and how these patterns differed by gender, education, and employment situation. As a method, we employ linear panel regressions where the dependent variable is the change in childcare time between the two survey years. Results: We find that fathers and mothers expanded the time they spent on childcare to similar degrees between 2019 and spring 2020, which marks the period of the first lockdown. However, we also observe large differences by level of education. We find that men with low and medium levels of education spent more time with their children than they did before the onset of the crisis. Contribution: Our study provides novel evidence on the effect of the coronavirus crisis on fathers’ involvement in childcare. Contrary to expectations based on previous research, we find that fathers expanded the time they were spending with their children during the first lockdown. While we also find that women continue to perform the bulk of childcare tasks, our results cast a positive light on the potential of paternal involvement in contemporary societies.

Suggested Citation

  • Kreyenfeld, Michaela & Zinn, Sabine, 2021. "Coronavirus and care: How the coronavirus crisis affected fathers' involvement in Germany," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 44(4), pages 99-124.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:espost:232519
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2021.44.4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Christina Boll & Dana Müller & Simone Schüller, 2023. "Neither backlash nor convergence: dynamics of intra-couple childcare division during the Covid-19 pandemic in Germany," Journal for Labour Market Research, Springer;Institute for Employment Research/ Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), vol. 57(1), pages 1-17, December.
    2. Marta Pasqualini & Marta Dominguez Folgueras & Emanuele Ferragina & Olivier Godechot & Ettore Recchi & Mirna Safi, 2022. "Who took care of what? The gender division of unpaid work during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in France," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 46(34), pages 1007-1036.
    3. Christina Boll & Dana Müller & Simone Schüller, 2021. "Neither Backlash nor Convergence: Dynamics of Intracouple Childcare Division after the First Covid-19 Lockdown and Subsequent Reopening in Germany," CESifo Working Paper Series 9091, CESifo.
    4. Geoffrey M. Ducanes & Vincent Jerald Ramos, 2023. "COVID-19 Lockdowns, Women's Employment, and the Motherhood Penalty: Evidence from the Philippines," Department of Economics, Ateneo de Manila University, Working Paper Series 202304, Department of Economics, Ateneo de Manila University.
    5. Susanne Brandstetter & Tanja Poulain & Mandy Vogel & Christof Meigen & Michael Melter & Angela Köninger & Christian Apfelbacher & Wieland Kiess & Michael Kabesch & Antje Körner & KUNO Kids Study Group, 2022. "Families’ Worries during the First and Second COVID-19 Wave in Germany: Longitudinal Study in Two Population-Based Cohorts," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-13, February.
    6. Natalie Nitsche & Ansgar Hudde, 2022. "Countries embracing maternal employment opened schools sooner after Covid-19 lockdowns," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2022-008, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    7. Hövermann, Andreas, 2021. "Belastungswahrnehmung in der Corona-Pandemie: Erkenntnisse aus vier Wellen der HBS-Erwerbspersonenbefragung 2020/21," WSI Policy Briefs 50, The Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI), Hans Böckler Foundation.
    8. Panayiota Lyssiotou & Ruzica Savcic, 2022. "Parents' Time Allocation in Different Phases of the Covid-19 Pandemic: Evidence from the UK and Implications for Gender Equality," University of Cyprus Working Papers in Economics 03-2022, University of Cyprus Department of Economics.
    9. Myriam Chatot & Julie Landour & Ariane Pailhé & for the EpiCOV team, 2023. "Socioeconomic differences and the gender division of labor during the COVID‐19 lockdown: Insights from France using a mixed method," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 1296-1316, July.
    10. Nicole Hiekel & Mine Kühn, 2023. "Gender inequality in childcare and parental mental health during the Covid-19 pandemic in Germany. Do gender role attitudes matter?," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2023-007, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    11. Ezgi Caki, 2022. "The Plight of Female Employment in Germany under School-Related COVID-19 Control Measures," The CoronaNet Researchers Working Paper Series 04/2022, CoronaNet Research Project, revised Jun 2022.
    12. Li, Jianghong & Bünning, Mareike & Kaiser, Till & Hipp, Lena, 2022. "Who suffered most? Parental stress and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany [Wer leidet am stärksten? Erziehungsstress und psychische Belastungen bei Eltern während der COVID-19 Pa," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 34(1), pages 281-309.
    13. Monika Queisser, 2021. "COVID-19 and OECD Labour Markets: What Impact on Gender Gaps?," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Springer;ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics;Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), vol. 56(5), pages 249-253, September.

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