WASHINGTON, D.C. — Equimundo: Center for Masculinities and Social Justice, based in Washington, D.C., released the 2026 State of the World's Fathers report. The report, which included interviews with over 5,000 fathers, identified financial instability as a dominant concern for modern fatherhood.

Three in four fathers interviewed for the report said they were losing sleep over their financial future. A majority of fathers surveyed felt that home ownership remained out of reach. Researchers found that in India, there was a lot of emphasis on the provider role when men were asked what makes a good father.

Taveeshi Gupta, a lead author of the report, said that the finding concerning financial instability crosses geographical boundaries. "That is a cross-cutting finding across the Global North and Global South: manhood, and what it means to be a good man or a good father, is still often tied to being a breadwinner and provider," Gupta said. "It refers to a generalized anxiety that no matter what you do, you may never have financial stability in your life or future."

Gary Barker, CEO of Equimundo, stated that 90% of fathers interviewed found caring for children to be a deep source of happiness. "But the report confirmed what those of us who are fathers and involved in care were already saying: this is happiness in life," Barker said. Barker recalled his experience as a part-time stay-at-home father 28 years ago. "When I was a part-time stay-at-home dad with my own daughter 28 years ago, it was obvious that the world looked at me in two ways," Barker said. "Either I got special credit for being a competent caregiver — as if a man doing this was a superhero — when in reality I was just a bumbling caregiver like all of us are. Or I was seen as incompetent or invisible because men don't really do this work."

The report also indicated that younger and older men tend to adhere more to traditional gender roles.