The father figure in the early childhood services between center and outskirts

Abstract

Sociological researches highlight that in Italy the division of work and parental care is still very asymetrical, being burdening especially on women (Saraceno: 2003). The care of young children is still predominantly carried out by women at home, and increasingly, within early childhood education institutions although – in relation to the latter – significant differences exists among different geographical areas. The promotion of the encouragement of a culture of gender differences can only go through the services for early childhood. In this context, educational policies play a significant role in the cultural promotion of early childhood services and in the valorization of parental roles in the perspective of educational co-responsibility. In fact, in the last decades, we are witness to significant changes in relation to the role of fathers within the family, changes that are connoted by an increasing involvement of fathers in the life of their child. This paper aims to discuss the findings of a qualitative study that investigated and compared the lived experiences of fathers with the representations of fathers’ parental role produced by mothers and early childhood educators.