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Article analysis:

The article "Fathers’ Changing Contributions to Child Care and Domestic Work in Very Low–Fertility Countries: The Effect of Education" by Oriel Sullivan, Francesco C. Billari, and Evrim Altintas explores the connection between fathers' participation in unpaid work and fertility behavior in European countries that have recently experienced very low fertility rates. The authors hypothesize that a process of cross-national social diffusion of more egalitarian domestic gender relations, particularly among highly educated fathers, is facilitating a turnaround in the pattern of postponed and foregone fertility.

The article provides a comprehensive background on the second demographic transition theory and its limitations regarding gender perspectives. It also highlights the stalled revolution in gender equality and emphasizes the need for men to adapt to women's new engagement in the labor force to continue moving towards gender equality.

The authors use cross-national time use data to compare trends in father's contributions to child care and core domestic work by educational level in very low-fertility countries with those from liberal and Nordic clusters. They find significant evidence of recent increases in the contribution of younger, more highly educated fathers to child care and core domestic work in very low-fertility countries that have recently experienced upturns in fertility. However, they do not provide enough evidence or analysis on how these changes are affecting women's employment opportunities or how they are impacting other aspects of family life.

One potential bias is that the study focuses only on European countries, which may limit its generalizability to other regions with different cultural norms and values regarding gender roles. Additionally, while the authors acknowledge that their findings are suggestive rather than direct evidence for a process of cross-national social diffusion of more egalitarian domestic gender relations, they do not explore alternative explanations for their results.

Overall, this article provides valuable insights into the relationship between fathers' participation in unpaid work and fertility behavior but could benefit from further exploration of potential biases and limitations.