Chinese fathers, who have been understudied, traditionally were expected to act as emotionally distant educators and disciplinarians of their children as well as heads of the household. Their dual roles as parents and as men evolved during modern social transformations following divergent paths, with their parental role departing from the Confucian patriarchal ideal further than did their gender role. Today, in Chinese societies, fathers are more involved in child‐rearing and warmer to their children than their predecessors, but comparable progress toward a quantitatively and qualitatively equal division of child‐rearing responsibilities between parents remains lacking. Chinese fathers’ involvement varies by geolocation, social class, and maternal support; their participation in their children’s lives benefits children’s adjustment, possibly through secure father–child attachment, and is influenced by the relationship between fathers and mothers. Researchers should address how Chinese fathers’ increasing but gendered involvement affects children’s and families’ functioning, study fathers in diverse families, and incorporate grandparents into research on fathering.

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Parental warmth is vital for child adjustment, but the expressive practices of parental warmth as gendered and cultural practices have remained understudied so far. The present study examines the expression of warmth among contemporary Chinese fathers who, based on inferences from traditional Chinese emotion philosophy and Confucian family ethics, have been typically portrayed as strict, stern, and inexpressive disciplinarians of their children. This study aims to understand the expression of paternal warmth in the backdrop of China’s drastically transformed sociocultural landscape. Interview data were collected from fathers, mothers, and children in 133 two-parent families in southeast China (girls = 51.9%; Mage = 9.54 years, SD = 0.77), who were asked individually about how the father in their family demonstrated love and affection, among a variety of fathering behaviors. Thematically coded interview transcripts suggested that today’s Chinese fathers are willing to display parental warmth toward their children, contrary to stereotypes. However, Chinese fathers prefer nonverbal expressions such as by providing instrumental support or showing physical intimacy, whereas verbal displays of love and affection were not preferred. The children noticed and valued their fathers’ coveted expression of love through instrumental support and the use of an authoritative parenting style. These findings shed light on the nuances in fathering behaviors and processes in contemporary Chinese families and call for culturally informed reflection and revision of the conceptualization and measurement of warmth in fathering and parenting scholarship.

This study explores the effects of romantic involvement and dating behaviors on adolescent academic and psychosocial functioning in Chinese societies, where adolescent dating is generally discouraged and believed to bear adverse outcomes. Adolescents (male = 48.6%; Mean Age = 15.20 years) from Taiwan (N = 1,081) and Mainland China (N = 684) were recruited through stratified sampling to complete self-report surveys oned their academic performance, depressive symptoms, self-esteem, relationship status, and gender-role beliefs. Adolescents with current or past dating experiences were also asked about specific dating behaviors such as onset of dating, number of relationships, and breakup experiences. Approximately one-third of Chinese adolescents surveyed have past or ongoing dating experience, who showed poorer academic performance and mental health outcomes than never-dated teens. Currently single adolescents with past dating experiences showed the greatest depressive symptoms. Dating experiences also seem to promote boys' self-esteem but dampen girls' self-esteem. Early dating, over-dating, sexual activities, and breakup experiences could undermine adolescents' academic and psychosocial well-being, especially for girls. These findings have significant implications for practice and policy regarding adolescent education and mental health.

Beyond W.E.I.R.D. (Western, educated, industrial, rich, democratic)-centric theories and perspectives: masculinity and fathering in Chinese societies Fatherhood scholarship has made much theoretical progress over the past decades, yet existing models and concepts continue to draw primarily on western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD)-centric assumptions. This review uses demographically sizeable, culturally significant, yet understudied and undertheorized Chinese fathers as an example to reveal the limitations of applying WEIRD-centric perspectives when studying fathering and fatherhood. Specifically, existing models and concepts of fathering and fatherhood, with an emphasis on father involvement, especially in rough-and-tumble play, are predicated on the assumptions of nuclear family and western hegemonic masculinity. The Chinese cultural tradition, in contrast, endorses a literatus masculinity and emphasizes the family lineage, thereby encouraging fathers' educational involvement and