2013年公共英语考试二级阅读材料（三）wｗw.ExamＷ.CoM

　The more fathers care, the more problems they have. This is not surprising for a society that has focused on motherhood for hundreds of years. Why do scientists close their eyes to the problems surrounding fatherhood? What is the relationship between fathers and children?

"Sometimes children decide to end contact with their fathers for one or two years. I think it’s difficult for fathers," Ed Spruijt, a social scientist, said. He has shown that a pause of contact could lead to the restoration of the father-child relationship. Different opinions of parents likely have little to do with this. Ending contact has more to do with the amount of time fathers spend taking care of their children.

"If you’ve spent a lot of care-giving time with your children, there is a greater chance that the father-child relationship will continue," a research found.

Fatherhood researcher Duindam supports Spruijt’s statement with two research papers. However, in one of the papers, he tries to show that taking on a classic parental role results in a better chance that the father-child contact will continue. The latter study spoken of by Duindam describes traditional care by fathers, such as visiting the school and discussing with the mother any problems with the children, rather than the physical care giving, such as feeding.