Work Life Balance In Higher Education

Download Work Life Balance In Higher Education full books in PDF, epub, and Kindle. Read online Work Life Balance In Higher Education ebook anywhere anytime directly on your device. Fast Download speed and no annoying ads. We cannot guarantee that every ebooks is available!

Work-Life Balance in Higher Education

Author : Bruce D. McDonald III
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000684113
Total Pages : 182 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (6 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Work-Life Balance in Higher Education by : Bruce D. McDonald III

Download or read book Work-Life Balance in Higher Education written by Bruce D. McDonald III and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2022-09-05 with total page 182 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the issue and struggle of work-life balance in higher education. It provides a rare opportunity to shape the conversation surrounding work-life balance in academia and provide a venue for dialogue around balance that had previously been forced into secret. The challenges that surround work-life balance are something that we must all confront, but they are also something that is rarely discussed within academia. Faculty and graduate students face increasing demands to publish, while also being expected to effectively teach and engage in service to both the university and the community. The demands of an academic career have been cited as a reason for faculty and students to leave the academy, but they have also been tied with rising rates of depression throughout the community. Concerns about balance have led to challenges in recruiting diverse students and faculty for academic careers. Each chapter explores how faculty and graduate students have sought and found balance. The research included in this book is by leading scholars who discuss the challenge for academia to pay attention to the cultures and policies that may improve, or hinder, work-life balance. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of Journal of Public Affairs Education.

Handbook of Research on Promoting Higher-Order Skills and Global Competencies in Life and Work

Author : Jared Keengwe
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781522563334
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (633 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Handbook of Research on Promoting Higher-Order Skills and Global Competencies in Life and Work by : Jared Keengwe

Download or read book Handbook of Research on Promoting Higher-Order Skills and Global Competencies in Life and Work written by Jared Keengwe and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Global awareness and competency has become an essential part of higher education and professional development. Expanding beyond the traditional ideas of learning and education, it is important to provide research that will help students prepare for the global future. The Handbook of Research on Promoting Higher-Order Skills and Global Competencies in Life and Work is a pivotal reference source that provides vital research on the intersection of life and work skills in higher education and professional development. While highlighting topics such as research engagement, learning assessment, and multicultural competence, this publication explores the preparation of twenty-first century learners, as well as the methods of promoting critical and creative thinking. This book is ideally designed for educators, academicians, education administrators, researchers, and upper-level students seeking current research on global knowledge and skills in contemporary education and organizations.

Mental Health, Substance Use, and Wellbeing in Higher Education

Author : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309124123
Total Pages : 213 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Mental Health, Substance Use, and Wellbeing in Higher Education by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Download or read book Mental Health, Substance Use, and Wellbeing in Higher Education written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2021-03-05 with total page 213 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Student wellbeing is foundational to academic success. One recent survey of postsecondary educators found that nearly 80 percent believed emotional wellbeing is a "very" or "extremely" important factor in student success. Studies have found the dropout rates for students with a diagnosed mental health problem range from 43 percent to as high as 86 percent. While dealing with stress is a normal part of life, for some students, stress can adversely affect their physical, emotional, and psychological health, particularly given that adolescence and early adulthood are when most mental illnesses are first manifested. In addition to students who may develop mental health challenges during their time in postsecondary education, many students arrive on campus with a mental health problem or having experienced significant trauma in their lives, which can also negatively affect physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing. The nation's institutions of higher education are seeing increasing levels of mental illness, substance use and other forms of emotional distress among their students. Some of the problematic trends have been ongoing for decades. Some have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic consequences. Some are the result of long-festering systemic racism in almost every sphere of American life that are becoming more widely acknowledged throughout society and must, at last, be addressed. Mental Health, Substance Use, and Wellbeing in Higher Education lays out a variety of possible strategies and approaches to meet increasing demand for mental health and substance use services, based on the available evidence on the nature of the issues and what works in various situations. The recommendations of this report will support the delivery of mental health and wellness services by the nation's institutions of higher education.

Shaping Work-Life Culture in Higher Education

Author : Laura Koppes Bryan
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136312242
Total Pages : 189 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (363 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Shaping Work-Life Culture in Higher Education by : Laura Koppes Bryan

Download or read book Shaping Work-Life Culture in Higher Education written by Laura Koppes Bryan and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-07-11 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shaping Work-Life Culture in Higher Education provides strategies to implement beneficial work-life policies in colleges and universities. As compared to the corporate sector, higher education institutions have been slow to implement policies aimed at fostering diversity and a healthy work-life balance, which can result in lower morale, job satisfaction, and productivity, and causes poor recruitment and retention. Based on extensive research, this book argues that an effective organizational culture is one in which managers and supervisors recognize that professional and personal lives are not mutually exclusive. With concrete guidelines, recommendations, techniques, and additional resources throughout, this book outlines best practices for creating a beneficial work-life culture on campus, and documents cases of supportive department chairs and administrators. A necessary guide for higher education leaders, this book will inform administrators about how they can foster positive work-life cultures in their departments and institutions.

Handbook of Research on Future of Work and Education: Implications for Curriculum Delivery and Work Design

Author : Ramlall, Sunil
Publisher : IGI Global
ISBN 13 : 1799882772
Total Pages : 640 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (998 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Handbook of Research on Future of Work and Education: Implications for Curriculum Delivery and Work Design by : Ramlall, Sunil

Download or read book Handbook of Research on Future of Work and Education: Implications for Curriculum Delivery and Work Design written by Ramlall, Sunil and published by IGI Global. This book was released on 2021-10-08 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Higher education has changed significantly over time. In particular, traditional face-to-face degrees are being revamped in a bid to ensure they stay relevant in the 21st century and are now offered online. The transition for many universities to online learning has been painful—only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing many in-person students to join their virtual peers and professors to learn new technologies and techniques to educate. Moreover, work has also changed with little doubt as to the impact of digital communication, remote work, and societal change on the nature of work itself. There are arguments to be made for organizations to become more agile, flexible, entrepreneurial, and creative. As such, work and education are both traversing a path of immense changes, adapting to global trends and consumer preferences. The Handbook of Research on Future of Work and Education: Implications for Curriculum Delivery and Work Design is a comprehensive reference book that analyzes the realities of higher education today, strategies that ensure the success of academic institutions, and factors that lead to student success. In particular, the book addresses essentials of online learning, strategies to ensure the success of online degrees and courses, effective course development practices, key support mechanisms for students, and ensuring student success in online degree programs. Furthermore, the book addresses the future of work, preferences of employees, and how work can be re-designed to create further employee satisfaction, engagement, and increase productivity. In particular, the book covers insights that ensure that remote employees feel valued, included, and are being provided relevant support to thrive in their roles. Covering topics such as course development, motivating online learners, and virtual environments, this text is essential for academicians, faculty, researchers, and students globally.

Helping Faculty Find Work-Life Balance

Author : Maike Ingrid Philipsen
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 0470540958
Total Pages : 244 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (75 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Helping Faculty Find Work-Life Balance by : Maike Ingrid Philipsen

Download or read book Helping Faculty Find Work-Life Balance written by Maike Ingrid Philipsen and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2010-10-19 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Helping Faculty Find Work-Life Balance gives voice to faculty and reveals the myriad personal and professional issues faculty face over the span of their academic careers. Based on years of in-the-field research and two gender-based studies, Maike Ingrid Philipsen and Timothy Bostic give the issue of work-life balance a fresh perspective by taking a comparative approach to the topic in regard to both gender and career stage. The authors' research reports on the experiences of male and female faculty at early-, mid-, and late-career stages. In addition, the book goes beyond the typical "family-friendly" approach and takes an all-encompassing "life-friendly" view, recognizing the need to strive for balance in the lives of all faculty members. Philipsen and Bostic describe enablers and obstacles that faculty encounter during their careers and how policies and programs might more effectively address the needs of faculty. Helping Faculty Find Work-Life Balance is filled with illustrative cases from exemplary institutions to showcase what they are doing to reform the system. Praise for Helping Faculty Find Work-Life Balance "As a junior faculty member and father of three, I know that balancing family and work can be a significant challenge. Philipsen and Bostic's research provides a wonderful opportunity to consider different approaches I can take to successfully navigate the road ahead." —Scott J. Allen, assistant professor of management, John Carroll University "The authors have presented a best-practices approach to real work-life dilemmas that they have documented among American faculty. Administrators should find this book of great practical help." —Teresa A. Sullivan, president, University of Virginia

Mothers in Academia

Author : Maria Castaneda
Publisher : Columbia University Press
ISBN 13 : 0231160054
Total Pages : 290 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (311 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Mothers in Academia by : Maria Castaneda

Download or read book Mothers in Academia written by Maria Castaneda and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2013-06-18 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Featuring forthright testimonials by women who are or have been mothers as undergraduates, graduate students, academic staff, administrators, and professors, Mothers in Academia intimately portrays the experiences of women at various stages of motherhood while theoretically and empirically considering the conditions of working motherhood as academic life has become more laborious. As higher learning institutions have moved toward more corporate-based models of teaching, immense structural and cultural changes have transformed women's academic lives and, by extension, their families. Hoping to push reform as well as build recognition and a sense of community, this collection offers several potential solutions for integrating female scholars more wholly into academic life. Essays also reveal the often stark differences between women's encounters with the academy and the disparities among various ranks of women working in academia. Contributors--including many women of color--call attention to tokenism, scarce valuable networks, and the persistent burden to prove academic credentials. They also explore gendered parenting within the contexts of colonialism, racism, sexism, ethnocentrism, ageism, and heterosexism.

Slow Professor

Author : Maggie Berg
Publisher : University of Toronto Press
ISBN 13 : 1442645563
Total Pages : 126 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (426 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Slow Professor by : Maggie Berg

Download or read book Slow Professor written by Maggie Berg and published by University of Toronto Press. This book was released on 2016-01-01 with total page 126 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Slow Professor, Maggie Berg and Barbara K. Seeber discuss how adopting the principles of the Slow movement in academic life can counter the erosion of humanistic education.

The Emotional Self at Work in Higher Education

Author : Ingrid Ruffin
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781799835202
Total Pages : 332 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (352 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Emotional Self at Work in Higher Education by : Ingrid Ruffin

Download or read book The Emotional Self at Work in Higher Education written by Ingrid Ruffin and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book generates conversations around the practical implementation of healthy emotional workspace practices in the sphere of higher education and investigates tools, frameworks, and case studies that can create a sustainable and healthy work environment"--

How Ideal Worker Norms Shape Work-Life for Different Constituent Groups in Higher Education

Author : Lisa Wolf-Wendel
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 1119347572
Total Pages : 112 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (193 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis How Ideal Worker Norms Shape Work-Life for Different Constituent Groups in Higher Education by : Lisa Wolf-Wendel

Download or read book How Ideal Worker Norms Shape Work-Life for Different Constituent Groups in Higher Education written by Lisa Wolf-Wendel and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2017-01-10 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Work and family concerns are increasingly on the radar of colleges and universities. These concerns emerge out of workplace norms suggesting that for employees and students to be successful, they must be “ideal workers”. This volume explores work norms in higher education, focusing on the ways that employees and students interpret and experience ideal worker expectations in light of family responsibilities. Chapters address how the ideal worker norms vary for tenured and non-tenure track faculty, administrators, undergraduate and graduate students, and offers recommendations for modifying work norms to promote work-family balance for all constituents. This is the 176th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series New Directions for Higher Education. Addressed to presidents, vice presidents, deans, and other higher education decision makers on all kinds of campuses, it provides timely information and authoritative advice about major issues and administrative problems confronting every institution.

Work-life Balance in the 21st Century

Author : Jessica Nicklin
Publisher : Nova Science Publishers
ISBN 13 : 9781536125269
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (252 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Work-life Balance in the 21st Century by : Jessica Nicklin

Download or read book Work-life Balance in the 21st Century written by Jessica Nicklin and published by Nova Science Publishers. This book was released on 2017-10 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The world of work is constantly evolving, as is the interplay between work and other life domains. As such, it is critical that practitioners and scholars recognise the complexities of balancing work and life in the 21st century. The goal of this book is therefore to meet the demand for knowledge and skills to help employees, employers and families successfully navigate work and life. The chapters address problems and propose solutions for diverse issues, ranging from classic, yet prevalent, topics (i.e., gender disparities) to novel ideas and new directions for research (ie: chronotypes and recovery experience). To best serve the needs of the readers, both academic and applied, this volume includes empirical studies, practical reflections, review chapters, and research recommendations for the future. The idea of work-family conflict is not a new one and has been of interest to scholars and organisational leaders for nearly five decades. Yet, we know now that balancing work and life goes beyond the needs of the traditional family and the traditional nine-to-five job. We also know that in addition to the negative consequences associated with work-family conflict, there are indeed benefits associated with balancing multiple life roles. As such, the first section of this volume examines work-life balance in unique (and often, overlooked) populations of workers. The second section goes beyond the traditional idea of work-family conflict to explore innovative ways in which to conceptualise work-life balance for the future.

Leaving Science

Author : Anne E. Preston
Publisher : Russell Sage Foundation
ISBN 13 : 1610444604
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (14 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Leaving Science by : Anne E. Preston

Download or read book Leaving Science written by Anne E. Preston and published by Russell Sage Foundation. This book was released on 2004-04-29 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The past thirty years have witnessed a dramatic decline in the number of U.S. students pursuing advanced degrees in science and an equally dramatic increase in the number of professionals leaving scientific careers. Leaving Science provides the first significant examination of this worrisome new trend. Economist Anne E. Preston examines a wide range of important questions: Why do professionals who have invested extensive time and money on a rigorous scientific education leave the field? Where do these scientists go and what do they do? What policies might aid in retaining and improving the quality of life for science personnel? Based on data from a large national survey of nearly 1,700 people who received university degrees in the natural sciences or engineering between 1965 and 1990 and a subsequent in-depth follow-up survey, Leaving Science provides a comprehensive portrait of the career trajectories of men and women who have earned science degrees. Alarmingly, by the end of the follow-up survey, only 51 percent of the original respondents were still working in science. During this time, federal funding for scientific research decreased dramatically relative to private funding. Consequently, the direction of scientific research has increasingly been dictated by market forces, and many scientists have left academic research for income and opportunity in business and industry. Preston identifies the main reasons for people leaving scientific careers as dissatisfaction with compensation and career advancement, difficulties balancing family and career responsibilities, and changing professional interests. Highlighting the difference between male and female exit patterns, Preston shows that most men left because they found scientific salaries low relative to perceived alternatives in other fields, while most women left scientific careers in response to feelings of alienation due to lack of career guidance, difficulty relating to their work, and insufficient time for their family obligations. Leaving Science contains a unique blend of rigorous statistical analysis with voices of individual scientists, ensuring a rich and detailed understanding of an issue with profound consequences for the nation's future. A better understanding of why professionals leave science can help lead to changes in scientific education and occupations and make the scientific workplace more attractive and hospitable to career men and women.

Juggling Flaming Chain Saws

Author : Joanne M. Marshall
Publisher : IAP
ISBN 13 : 1617359114
Total Pages : 429 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (173 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Juggling Flaming Chain Saws by : Joanne M. Marshall

Download or read book Juggling Flaming Chain Saws written by Joanne M. Marshall and published by IAP. This book was released on 2012-11-01 with total page 429 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Challenges of work-life balance in the academy stem from policies and practices which remain from the time when higher education was populated mostly by married White male faculty. Those faculty were successful in their academic work because they depended upon the support of their wives to manage many of the not-work aspects of their lives. Imagine a tweedy middle-aged white man, coming home from the university to greet his wife and children and eat the dinner she’s prepared for him, and then disappearing into his study for the rest of the evening with his pipe to write and think great thoughts. If that professor ever existed, he is now emeritus. Juggling Flaming Chainsaws is the first book in a new series with Information Age Publishing on these challenges of managing academic work and not-work. It uses the methodology of autoethnography to introduce the work-life issues faced by scholars in educational leadership. While the experiences of scholars in this volume are echoed across other fields in higher education, educational leadership is unique because of its emphasis on preparing people for leadership roles within higher education and for preK-12 schools. Authors include people at different places on their career and life course trajectory, people who are partnered and single, gay and straight, with children and without, caring for elders, and managing illness. They hail from different geographic areas of the nation, different ethnic backgrounds, and different types of institutions. What all have in common is commitment to engaging with this topic, to reflecting deeply upon their own experience, and to sharing that experience with the rest of us.

Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research

Author : John C. Smart
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 1402045123
Total Pages : 648 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (2 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research by : John C. Smart

Download or read book Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research written by John C. Smart and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2006-05-11 with total page 648 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Published annually since 1985, the Handbook series provides a compendium of thorough and integrative literature reviews on a diverse array of topics of interest to the higher education scholarly and policy communities. Each chapter provides a comprehensive review of research findings on a selected topic, critiques the research literature in terms of its conceptual and methodological rigor, and sets forth an agenda for future research intended to advance knowledge on the chosen topic. The Handbook focuses on twelve general areas that encompass the salient dimensions of scholarly and policy inquiries undertaken in the international higher education community. The series is fortunate to have attracted annual contributions from distinguished scholars throughout the world.

Universities in the Flux of Time

Author : Paul Gibbs
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317574907
Total Pages : 285 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (175 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Universities in the Flux of Time by : Paul Gibbs

Download or read book Universities in the Flux of Time written by Paul Gibbs and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-11-27 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Higher education and the institution of the university exist in time, their essential nature now continually subject to change: change in students, in knowledge, in structure and in their own communities and those they service. These changes are accompanied by a quickening of time, leading to a heightened intensity of academic life. Yet the nature of time in all the contemporary work on the university has been largely overlooked. This is an important omission and Universities in the Flux of Time has gathered leading academics whose contributions to the volume raise a debate as to the influence and use of time in the university. They do this in an exploration of how these changes are perceived in higher education and how these affect its temporality from local, national and global perspectives. By dealing with the time within the university, the book opens new spaces for the development of the university and civic society. The book develops an interdisciplinary understanding of the temporal issues of engaging with the past, present and future of higher education and its institutions, through consideration of the increased speed demanded for the production of able students and innovative research, to the accountability pressures from central governments and commerce. Reflecting on these issues in the higher education sector, Universities in the Flux of Time is split into three parts, with each one addressing time and its multiple relationships with the university: Past, present and future Knowledge and time Living with time This volume will provide essential reading for those on higher education studies courses as well as a wider audience of managers, practitioners, policy makers, academics and students and from many disciplinary perspectives including sociology, organisation studies, social psychology and the philosophy of education.

The Professor Is In

Author : Karen Kelsky
Publisher : Crown
ISBN 13 : 0553419420
Total Pages : 450 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (534 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Professor Is In by : Karen Kelsky

Download or read book The Professor Is In written by Karen Kelsky and published by Crown. This book was released on 2015-08-04 with total page 450 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The definitive career guide for grad students, adjuncts, post-docs and anyone else eager to get tenure or turn their Ph.D. into their ideal job Each year tens of thousands of students will, after years of hard work and enormous amounts of money, earn their Ph.D. And each year only a small percentage of them will land a job that justifies and rewards their investment. For every comfortably tenured professor or well-paid former academic, there are countless underpaid and overworked adjuncts, and many more who simply give up in frustration. Those who do make it share an important asset that separates them from the pack: they have a plan. They understand exactly what they need to do to set themselves up for success. They know what really moves the needle in academic job searches, how to avoid the all-too-common mistakes that sink so many of their peers, and how to decide when to point their Ph.D. toward other, non-academic options. Karen Kelsky has made it her mission to help readers join the select few who get the most out of their Ph.D. As a former tenured professor and department head who oversaw numerous academic job searches, she knows from experience exactly what gets an academic applicant a job. And as the creator of the popular and widely respected advice site The Professor is In, she has helped countless Ph.D.’s turn themselves into stronger applicants and land their dream careers. Now, for the first time ever, Karen has poured all her best advice into a single handy guide that addresses the most important issues facing any Ph.D., including: -When, where, and what to publish -Writing a foolproof grant application -Cultivating references and crafting the perfect CV -Acing the job talk and campus interview -Avoiding the adjunct trap -Making the leap to nonacademic work, when the time is right The Professor Is In addresses all of these issues, and many more.

Comparative Perspectives on Work-Life Balance and Gender Equality

Author : Margaret O'Brien
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 3319429701
Total Pages : 266 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (194 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Comparative Perspectives on Work-Life Balance and Gender Equality by : Margaret O'Brien

Download or read book Comparative Perspectives on Work-Life Balance and Gender Equality written by Margaret O'Brien and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-12-06 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is open access under a CC BY-NC 2.5 license. This book portrays men’s experiences of home alone leave and how it affects their lives and family gender roles in different policy contexts and explores how this unique parental leave design is implemented in these contrasting policy regimes. The book brings together three major theoretical strands: social policy, in particular the literature on comparative leave policy developments; family and gender studies, in particular the analysis of gendered divisions of work and care and recent shifts in parenting and work-family balance; critical studies of men and masculinities, with a specific focus on fathers and fathering in contemporary western societies and life-courses. Drawing on empirical data from in-depth interviews with fathers across eleven countries, the book shows that the experiences and social processes associated with fathers’ home alone leave involve a diversity of trends, revealing both innovations and absence of change, including pluralization as well as the constraining influence of policy, gender, and social context. As a theoretical and empirical book it raises important issues on modernization of the life course and the family in contemporary societies. The book will be of particular interest to scholars in comparing western societies and welfare states as well as to scholars seeking to understand changing work-life policies and family life in societies with different social and historical pathways.