The Changing Context of Fatherhood in Canada: A life Course Analysis

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Abstract
Current sociological research acknowledges the growing complexity of fatherhood and the widening divide observed between men's conjugal and parental careers. Little is known, however, of the importance of these changes in the population at large. What proportion of men, for example, continue to experience fatherhood within a single, durable relationship? How many have to reassess their role at its collapse? To what extent do men have to juggle different paternal roles simultaneously or live through a series of episodes as a father, and how is this diversity of experience evolving from one generation to another? In this paper we attempt to answer some of these questions, using multiple-decrement life table techniques to analyse retrospective data concerning the conjugal and parental histories of Canadian men. Our analysis reveals the extent and speed of the paternal life course transformation, and suggests that this will continue at least in the mid-term.

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