Fathering Identities and Men’s Engagement With Flexible Working Arrangements

Abstract

This research examines how fathering identities and normative gendered expectations shape the way men engage with a broad range of flexible working arrangements (FWAs). Forty-three heterosexual white-collar Australian fathers participated in this qualitative research, involving one-to-one semi structured interviews which were discursively analysed using Foucauldian Discourse Analysis. Three fathering identities emerged from the data: “The Present and Visible Father”, “The Involved and Competent Father”, and “The Father as Helper.” The findings demonstrate that fathering identities have a profound impact on men’s flexible working practices, that fathering identity is fluid and complex, and that a tension still exists between the expectations surrounding involved fathering, persistent traditional fathering norms, and the material reality of men’s work practices.