Parental leave is more than a policy issue; it is connected to social identity, cultural norms and systemic change. Behind the idealised image of a satisfied, smiling father hides a complex reality: exhaustion, uncertainty, and societal expectations on men who choose to take leave. In Sweden, famed for gender equality and generous leave policies, many fathers take just a slice of the leave or none at all. Swedish photographer Johan Bävman created a project to capture the stories behind the statistics.[1]
Bävman, J. (2015) Swedish Dads. Available at: https://www.johanbavman.se/swedish-dads/ (accessed January 2026).
Thirteen years ago, when my first son was born, I realised that I wanted to be as much of a parent as my wife. I wanted to understand my kid and learn how to be a dad. Thanks to Sweden’s progressive gender equality policies, fathers like me have the option to share parental leave equally with their partners. In the beginning, I was really afraid of it – of the mistakes I would make and of how I could be a “good” dad.
Then, talking to friends and family, I quickly realised that for many men, even here in Sweden, taking parental leave is not a straightforward choice. The way I was getting involved, full-on, wasn’t that common. Many fathers hesitate or take only a fraction of the 16 months of leave available, despite policies allowing parents to share up to 480 days of paid leave, with 90 non transferable days reserved for each parent.
About 85% of fathers in Sweden use some parental leave, yet close to a third of children born in 2017 had fathers who took less than one month of leave. And only around 17% of couples divide their leave evenly, despite the policy being explicitly designed to support gender equality.[2][3]
Fahlén, S. and Duvander, A.-Z. (2023) Fathers Who Do Not Use Parental Leave: A register-based analysis of Swedish fathers to children born between 1994 and 2017. Working Paper 2023:1. Göteborg: ISF Swedish Social Insurance Inspectorate. Available at: https://isf.se/download/18.6cc2b25d18721c5cb1835db3/1680595970005/2023-1WP%20Fathers%20who%20do%20not%20use%20parental%20leave.pdf (accessed January 2026).
Flinkfeldt, M. and Höglund, F. (2024) “The family administrator”: Women take most responsibility for information-seeking, planning and administration of parental benefit in Sweden. Journal of Family Studies 30. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13229400.2024.2330443
I know that fathers with low income or education, self-employed, or not in paid work are least likely to use parental leave, with the education gap widening over time. But I believe that in order for men to take on more responsibility, it’s not just about money and access to parental leave. How society sees men, and the expectations that we place on men, play a huge role. Who is masculine enough to be on leave? These questions led me to my project, Swedish Dads.
I wanted to document the realities of fathers staying at home with their children for six months or longer. Some fathers appeared fatigued, overwhelmed. Many spoke to me about the anxiety of “doing it right”. Becoming a father means facing many situations that are truly beyond our control, which can be especially challenging for men. I felt disconnected from the colourful, curated social media images of happy fathers playing with their children. What about the exhaustion, doubt, fear, and societal pressures?
Being a parent is so much hard work – something I didn’t realise in the beginning. That’s particularly shocking for us men, because we have always taken women and their work for granted, for centuries. Exhibited in 65 countries worldwide, this project has also been transformational for me. Fatherhood demanded patience, vulnerability, and a shift in my worldview. It reshaped my understanding of what it means to be a man – not as a distant provider but as a present caregiver.
Becoming a parent has shown me that caring for someone else is not only good for them – it benefits you and others too. I wanted to inspire fathers – in Sweden and elsewhere – to see positive benefits of taking a more active role in their young children’s lives. And I wanted to do it in a specific way.
I see Swedish Dads as more than a collection of photographs. It’s a call to create environments where men can embrace these roles without stigma or fear. True gender equality requires not just policy but cultural change, where caregiving is valued equally, and all parents are supported.
