Children and Housework in the Single Father Family

Findings from a self-selected sample of 1136 single fathers raising children alone following separation and divorce showed that as children got older, they participated more in housework, that fathers raising teen-age girls received more help from them than fathers raising teen-age boys, and that fathers may expect less from children in the way of participation in housework than had been found in a study of two-parent families. The fathers, who were members of Parents Without Partners, responded to a questionnaire placed in their membership magazine. Also discussed are the fathers' use of outside help and daughters as mother substitutes. Recommendations for practitioners are included.