Modern science ignored fathers for decades. Thousands of studies document how motherhood impacts women but, until recently, we weren’t even sure that having children makes men happy—let alone how it impacts their biology or psychology. And, even now, as more research take an interest in the male experience of family, undisputed facts remain few and far between. “There’s some conflicting work out there,” explains Margaret Kerr, a psychologist who studies the emotional experiences of parents at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “Some say overall life satisfaction declines, others that it stays the same, and some work says it increases. So… that’s not super helpful.”
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