Consequences of Fathers Parental Leave Use: Evidence from Sweden

Fathers parental leave use is often assumed to affect gender equality both at home
and in the labour market. In the home, fathers parental leave is expected to improve
father-child contact later on in the childs life. In this study the associations between
fathers parental leave use and further adaption to family life and contact with children
are investigated. The first research question is whether fathers who have used parental
leave are more likely to have shorter working hours during their childrens first years
compared to fathers who have not used the leave. The second question is whether the
contact between separated fathers and their children is associated with the fathers
previous parental leave use. We use a survey carried out in 2003 with a sample of
approximately 4000 parents of children born in 1993 and 1999. The findings indicate
that fathers parental leave is associated with both shorter working hours later in the
childs life and more contact between separated fathers and their children.