International Faculty Fathers: Navigating Work and Family in the American Research University

• In Event: International Faculty in the United States: Socialization, Satisfaction, and Work Life

Abstract

This qualitative study of 18 international faculty fathers at two American research universities explores the ways in which these men navigate work and family in a new cultural context. Using Lamb et al’s (1985) typologies of paternal involvement and factors that shape men’s involvement in their home, findings suggest that while the faculty career allows men greater latitude to be involved parents, their involvement was also influenced by simply being in a new cultural context. By moving to the United States to seek employment at an American research university, faculty fathers found their parenting influenced by American norms, the norms of their home country, and norms of the academy.

Authors

• Margaret W. Sallee, University at Buffalo - SUNY

• Jeni Hart, University of Missouri - Columbia