Chinese fathers, child rearing, cultural change, father involvement
Abstract
Children’s intelligence but also bolster their confidence and self-esteem. If father has a good relationship with his child, the child will be more confident and have higher self-esteem. Conversely, if father and child have a bad relationship, it will negatively affect child’s mental health and the unconscious relational choices, struggle with healthy relationships when they grow up. In modern society, Chinese father’s child rearing undertakes significant changing today. The big change of social culture in the early 20th century challenges Chinese traditional value. Nowadays, father’s identity cannot simply be explained by tradition. Gender equality legislation enhances Chinese women’s social status. If female wants to expand their role from family to outside family, male also need to change their role in the family. It possibly can increase father’s involvement in raising children. This paper aims to look deep into father involvement and explore the factors influencing paternal involvement. By doing so, we can provide evidence-based insights specific to China’s national conditions.
