That's actually a bit of a fallacy and really interesting to look into as one of our inherent biases.
Women get the jump start as they have the pregnancy hormones like oxytocin etc that make them fiercely protective, and they're culturally raised to be nurturing caregivers. Show me a woman who doesn't bond with their child or doesn't act motherly and I'll show you a social outcast or at least a women who has suffered trauma or feels deep guilt about her inability to function as expected as a mother.
However, there's also studies that show men, if exposed to the infant early (I know two men whose wives died in labour and took on the primary caregiving role) have a similar hormonal response eg increased oxy. It's actually the primacy of care - increased and close exposure - that gives the 'maternal' instinct. If culture expected men to be caregivers in the same way as woman, you bet they would and could be.
I think of how many don't like interacting with babies so much until their kids are like, two. It's more because a) Mum is busy with them and is expected to be eg breastfeeding, changing nappies, attentive to every need and b) it takes longer for men to truly bond as they ARENT undertaking primary care.
Sorry for the long response... It's something I thought you might take on board as it's not something we pull apart often as we tend to assume it's woman who are better at caregiving.
Women are very much culturally raised to be attentive to the needs of others. No wonder women who choose to work, and can't, get frustrated.
That's actually a bit of a fallacy and really interesting to look into as one of our inherent biases.
Women get the jump start as they have the pregnancy hormones like oxytocin etc that make them fiercely protective, and they're culturally raised to be nurturing caregivers. Show me a woman who doesn't bond with their child or doesn't act motherly and I'll show you a social outcast or at least a women who has suffered trauma or feels deep guilt about her inability to function as expected as a mother.
However, there's also studies that show men, if exposed to the infant early (I know two men whose wives died in labour and took on the primary caregiving role) have a similar hormonal response eg increased oxy. It's actually the primacy of care - increased and close exposure - that gives the 'maternal' instinct. If culture expected men to be caregivers in the same way as woman, you bet they would and could be.
I think of how many don't like interacting with babies so much until their kids are like, two. It's more because a) Mum is busy with them and is expected to be eg breastfeeding, changing nappies, attentive to every need and b) it takes longer for men to truly bond as they ARENT undertaking primary care.
Sorry for the long response... It's something I thought you might take on board as it's not something we pull apart often as we tend to assume it's woman who are better at caregiving.
Women are very much culturally raised to be attentive to the needs of others. No wonder women who choose to work, and can't, get frustrated.