122.2
The Transition to Parenthood As Experienced By New Fathers
Abstract
While many studies have explored the transition to motherhood, literature on the transition to fatherhood remains scarce. This qualitative study sought to broaden the knowledge on the transition to fatherhood by analyzing the experiences of fathers to first children aged one year and under, and looking at how they cope with the challenges presented by their transition to fatherhood.
Data was collected during an unstructured group interview held in a focus group of 9 married men in Israel. The study findings reveal that, contrary to common gender stereotypes, men were mostly concerned about emotional issues, and not instrumental ones, emphasizing their needs for emotional support.
Four main themes were raised during the men's discussion, with which they were required to cope in their transition to fatherhood: new insights about the meaning of love in their relationships with their spouses and the changes it undergoes, as a central experience in the way they feel as men; the need to adapt to new circumstances and changes in their relationship with their spouses; a sense of delay in their emotional bonding with the child in comparison to their wives, and with the new paternal identity they must adopt; and finally their emotional need to have access a "safe place", outside their relationship with their spouse and role of parent, where they can share their experiences with other men and emerge stronger.
The study findings shed light on three areas where new fathers grapple with mixed feelings of discomfort, difficulty and vulnerability: the personal, the spousal and the parental. These findings indicate the importance of developing a unique intervention program for new fathers in which all three areas will be addressed.