像扎克伯格那樣 灑脫地做個陪產奶爸

There’s growing political support for some sort of paid family leave, and it’s clear that many mothers use it when it’s offered. What has been less clear is whether it would make a difference for fathers. A new study shows how it would.

帶薪產假正獲得越來越多的政治支持，很顯然，如果有這樣的機會，很多媽媽會去利用它。一直以來，相對不那麼清楚的是，它是否會對父親們產生影響。現在，一項新研究顯示了它會產生怎樣的影響。

In California, one of three states that offer paid leave for both parents, new fathers have been 46 percent more likely to take leave since the law went into effect in 2004 — especially first-time fathers and those who work at jobs where it’s more common. Still, even in a state that pays for parents to take leave, the study showed that it is much less common among fathers than mothers.

在加利福尼亞，即給父母雙方都提供帶薪產假的三個州之一，自該法律自2004年生效以來，新生兒父親休帶薪產假的機率增加了46%，第一次當爸爸或其所在單位休產假較普遍的人機率尤其大。但研究也顯示，即使是在給父母雙方都提供帶薪產假的州，父親休陪產假也遠遠沒有母親休產假那麼普遍。

Advocates of parental leave say they hope prominent examples like Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook co-founder and chief executive, who just started a two-month paternity leave after the birth of his daughter, Max, will change attitudes. “Studies show that when working parents take time to be with their newborns, outcomes are better for the children and families,” he wrote on Facebook last month.

支持雙親休產假的人士表示，他們希望類似Facebook聯合創始人兼首席執行官馬克·扎克伯格(Mark Zuckerberg)這樣的傑出榜樣可以改變人們的態度。最近，扎克伯格在女兒麥克斯(Max)出生之後，開始休時長兩個月的陪產假。“研究顯示，雙職工父母花時間陪伴新生兒，其結果對孩子和家庭都更會好，”他上週在Facebook上寫道。

The results of California’s program — the first to offer government-supported paternity leave in the United States — show how policies can help families adapt to the fact that most parents now work, and men report as much stress over work-family balance as women do.

加州在美國率先給父親們提供由政府買單的陪產假，這個項目的結果顯示了政府政策可以在多大程度上幫助家庭適應當前的現實狀況——大多數父母現在都要工作，在維持工作與家庭的平衡方面，男性表示揹負的壓力和女性一樣大。

Though men still face a strong stigma when they take leave, paid leave policies seem to help alleviate that. And when men spend time caring for children early on, they are more involved for years to come, studies show, while women are able to work more hours and earn higher wages.

儘管男性休陪產假依然要面臨強烈的社會偏見，但帶薪產假政策似乎有助於減輕這種影響。而且研究顯示，如果男性在孩子出生之初花時間照顧他們，在接下來幾年他們也會在這方面投入更多，這樣女性就可以有更多時間工作和賺取更高的薪資。

“It wasn’t clear until now if this would have an effect on men, too, because of gender stereotypes and norms,” said Maya Rossin-Slater, an economist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and an author of the study. “It’s important to know that fathers do have a demand for leave, and when it’s offered, they do respond.”

“此前我們一直不清楚，這是否也會對男性產生影響，因爲有性別偏見和程式化認知的存在，”這項研究的作者、加州大學聖巴巴拉分校(University of California, Santa Barbara)經濟學家馬婭·羅森·斯萊特(Maya Rossin-Slater)說。“現在我們知道，父親們的確有休陪產假的需求，如果有機會，他們會響應，這點很重要。”

The researchers used state and federal data to study leave-taking among California fathers who live with their children. They found that paid leave had evened out the division of labor in California families: Solo leave-taking by fathers (when mothers are back at work) increased 50 percent. Leave-taking at the same time as mothers increased 28 percent.

研究人員利用州和聯邦數據，研究加州和孩子們一起生活的父親們休陪產假的情況。他們發現，帶薪產假使加州家庭內部的勞動分工變得更加平均：父親單獨休產假（母親返回職場工作）的情況增加了50%。在母親休產假的同時父親也休陪產假的情況增加了28%。

Fathers of sons were twice as likely to take leave as fathers of daughters, though it is unclear why. There is other evidence that parents spend more time with children of their gender. California mothers were slightly more likely to take leave with daughters than with sons, and single mothers tend to invest more in daughters.

生兒子的父親們休產假的機率，幾乎是生女兒的父親們的兩倍，不過目前還不清楚其中的原因。還有其他證據顯示，父母會花更多時間陪伴和自己性別一樣的孩子。加州的母親們休產假陪女兒的機率會略微大於休產假陪兒子的機率，單身母親也傾向於在女兒身上投入更多。

The economists also found that the increase in men’s leave-taking was almost entirely driven by first-time fathers. Mothers, meanwhile, were equally likely to take leave with additional children.

經濟學家們也發現，男性休陪產假情況的增加，幾乎完全是由第一次當父親的人羣所推動。相比之下，母親們則在後面的孩子們出生時，也同樣有可能休產假。

The researchers speculated that first-time fathers might be responding to the sharp learning curve with a first baby, or else they start families with lofty ideals for fatherhood but later revert to more traditional gender roles, perhaps because of employer pressure.

研究人員猜測，第一次當父親的人休陪產假，可能是因爲第一個孩子出生後需要學習的東西太多，或者他們在成立家庭時有着比較崇高的有關父親角色的觀念，但後來可能因爲來自僱傭單位的壓力，又迴歸到更傳統的父親角色定位。

Men who worked in jobs with a large share of female workers were also more likely to take leave. There is most likely less stigma about men taking time off at jobs where many women have already done so.

工作環境裏有相當多女性員工的男性也更有可能休陪產假。在很多女性已經休產假的地方，休陪產假的男性受歧視可能性也很有可能更低。

“These are places where norms are such that when a male or female worker has a child, they are more likely to take leave,” said Ms. Rossin-Slater, who wrote the paper with Jane Waldfogel and Ann Bartel of Columbia University, Christopher Ruhm of the University of Virginia and Jenna Stearns of the University of California, Santa Barbara.

“有些地方存在這樣的常規，即在一個名男性或女性員工有孩子以後，他們更有可能休假，”羅森·斯萊特說，和她一起撰寫這份報告作者還有哥倫比亞大學的簡·沃爾德福格爾(Jane Waldfogel)和安·巴特爾(Ann Bartel)，弗吉尼亞大學的克里斯托弗·魯姆(Christopher Ruhm)和加州大學聖巴巴拉校區的詹納·斯特恩斯(Jenna Stearns)。

Previous studies have shown that peer influence — as when co-workers, brothers or bosses take paternity leave — has a strong effect on men’s leave-taking. That is one reason Mr. Zuckerberg publicly announced his leave. He also promotes leave by explicitly saying in meetings that people are on parental leave instead of just out of the office. Facebook offers four months of paid parental leave, but while most women there take all the time, men take less.

之前的研究顯示，同儕影響——比如同事、兄弟或老闆休陪產假——會對男性休產假產生很大作用。這是扎克伯格公開宣佈他休陪產假的一個原因。而且他也通過在會議中明確表示某位員工在休產假，而不只是說他／她沒來上班，來宣傳休產假的概念。Facebook給員工提供四個月的帶薪產假，但相比於那裏大多數女性員工都會休滿四個月產假，男性休假時間還是相對短一些。

Paternity leave seems to set lifelong patterns for families. In another study co-written by Ms. Waldfogel of 10,000 children in the United States, researchers found that fathers who took two or more weeks of leave were significantly more likely to do child-care tasks like diapering and feeding later on. Fathers who took less than two weeks were no more likely to be involved than those who took none at all.

父親休陪產假似乎可以設定家庭以後的親子模式。在沃爾德福格爾與他人合寫的另一篇論文中，研究人員發現休兩三週陪產假的父親們後來可能更願意完成換尿布或餵奶等照料孩子的任務。休假不到兩週的父親的參與度則不會比那些不休假的父親高。

Still, Mr. Zuckerberg is the exception. Although 89 percent of fathers took some time off after their baby’s birth, almost two-thirds took one week or less, according to research by Ms. Waldfogel.

但扎克伯格是一個例外。沃爾德福格爾的研究發現，雖然89%的父親在孩子出生後會休假，幾乎三分之二的人只休一週或更少時間。

In California, few fathers take the full six weeks. Again, stigma associated with leave plays a role. Social scientists have found that men pay a price in earnings and promotions when they do not seem wholly committed to work. There is also evidence that many people simply do not know the leave is available.

在加州，休完六週陪產假的父親不多。針對男性陪產假的社會偏見又一次發揮了作用。社會科學家發現，當男性看起來沒有完全致力於工作時，他們的收入及晉升前景會受到影響。還有證據證明，很多人只是不知道可以休產假。

Even countries with generous paternity leaves have had trouble getting fathers to take them. In places like Sweden and Canada, policy makers have enforced so-called daddy quotas to encourage more men to take leave.

甚至那些提供較長陪產假的國家也存在難以讓父親們休這種假的問題。在瑞典和加拿大等國，決策者們強迫執行所謂的爸爸配額政策，鼓勵更多男性休陪產假。