The Use of the Internet and Fathers' Family Involvement in Contemporary Japan

• IT Use of Child Caring Fathers and Their Family Relationships in Japan: Evidence From Focus Group Interviews
  Presented by: Katsuko Makino

• Internet Use of Japanese Fathers in their Community and Network Involvement: Findings From Focus Group Interviews
  Presented by: Yoko Hayashi, Kayo Hashimoto

• Fathers’ Internet Use and Their Involvement in Child Care in Japan
  Presented by: Masako Ishii-Kuntz and Mari Nakagawa

• The Impact of IT Use on Co-parenting, Marital Relationships and Networking: A Case of Japanese Fathers
  Presented by: Kuniko Kato, Takayo Sasaki, Nan Liu

Abstracts

The Use of the Internet and Fathers' Family Involvement in Contemporary Japan

Presented by: Katsuko Makino, Yoko Hayashi, Kayo Hashimoto, Masako Ishii-Kuntz, Mari Nakagawa, Kuniko Kato, Takayo Sasaki, Nan Liu

In this symposium, four papers examine the effects of Japanese fathers' IT use on family relationships, community involvement, child caring, and co-parenting and marital relationships. Using focus group interview and quantitative data collected in the government-funded project, “The IT Use and Family Relations in Japan,” we found that fathers use the Internet to gather child care- and parenting-related information, to communicate with their family members and friends, and to expand their support networks. Fathers' use of the Internet is positively related to their involvement in child care, marital relationships, and networking with other fathers.