Evans, David K.Jakiela, Pamela2025-08-082025-08-082024-06-10The World Bank Research Observer0257-3032 (print)1564-6971 (online)https://hdl.handle.net/10986/43566The role of fathers in parenting young children varies significantly across societies. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), policymakers are increasingly focused on enhancing early childhood stimulation and other investments to boost human capital, promote school readiness, and improve long-term outcomes. Historically, few interventions targeted fathers, and many impact evaluations assumed fathers had little involvement in parenting. This paper reviews emerging literature on fathers’ participation in early childhood stimulation and parenting in LMICs, summarizing findings from rigorous impact evaluations. It reveals that fathers generally spend less time stimulating their children's development than mothers or other household adults, although mothers’ and fathers’ investments are positively correlated. Additionally, while fathers’ participation in parenting programs tends to be low, such programs have shown success in improving fathers’ knowledge and, to a lesser extent, their behaviors.en-USCC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGOEARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENTPARENTINGFATHERSGENDER ROLESHOUSEHOLD INCOMEJournal ArticleWorld Bank