Parenting hypocrisy: Why are dads praised by society for doing the bare minimum?

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In a now viral video on TikTok posted by Emily Benson, the mom of two addressed the frustrating hypocrisy of different parental expectations from mom and dad, by the society.

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"If a dad takes his kids to McDonald’s, he’s a “fun dad”. If a mom does, she’s a “lazy mom” - double standard," an Instagram user commented on the video shared by Today.

Another added, "Love when people say the dad babysat the kids!!! It's like no he parented!! Woman parent, cook, clean, shop, work, buy bday presents etc etc. Mom's are undervalued and surely underpaid!"

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"There is a stereotype that both women and men tend to reinforce, which is that women are naturally better at raising children than men," Belson told Today, adding that her husband said the comments by other people on his parenting were "nice but ridiculous."

In many households, childcare is still considered to be the primary responsibility of the mom and the dad can ‘help’ based on his availability and bandwidth. The mother is assumed to take the responsibility of helping the kid with homework or cooking all their meals and feeding them on time, even if she is working and earning equal, less or higher than the father.

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"The person complimenting a neutral behavior such as grocery shopping is usually comparing what they see to their own personal schema of what a father looks like," Belson explains. "If one has low expectations for a father and someone exceeds that, that's when you might hear, 'Wow!'"

It is important for society as a whole – men, women, children – to appreciate the moms for doing a good job and being a great parent. She deserves it as much as the father, and in some cases, even more!