Eighty percent of fathers in Taiwan said their income was insufficient to cover family expenses, a survey released today by the Child Welfare League Foundation showed.
In addition, 43.3 percent of those surveyed reported showing signs of moderate to severe depression as measured by the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21, 14.4 percent of whom fell into the "severe" or "extremely severe" categories.
Ten percent of fathers reported feelings of worthlessness or that life lacked meaning, and another 47 percent reported believing that expressing such emotions would make them appear weak.
Photo: Taipei Times
The online survey, conducted between April 21 and May 26, collected responses from 547 fathers with children aged 18 or younger, including 46.4 percent in their 30s and 43.5 percent in their 40s.
About 49.5 percent of respondents had one child, 42.4 percent had two and 8 percent had three or more.
It was published ahead of Father's Day in Taiwan, which falls on Friday.
A total of 62.9 percent of respondents identified themselves as their household's primary earners, while 32.4 percent said they shared that role with their spouse.
Finances — such as covering living expenses, insufficient income or debt — were the leading source of stress, with nearly 80 percent of respondents saying they had struggled to cover essential family expenses since becoming parents.
The next primary causes of stress were parenting, work, family responsibilities and relationships.
Additionally, 59.6 percent of respondents said their finances were stretched, 16.6 percent reported their salaries were often insufficient and 2.7 percent said that their income was not at all sufficient.
Among those who expressed higher levels of depression, 21.9 percent felt that salaries were insufficient and 5.9 percent reported that they did not make enough at all.
About 23 percent cited US tariffs as affecting their work and income, with another 60 percent reporting no impact, but saying they were still concerned.
Only 16 percent reported no impact at all.
The foundation called on the government to provide and promote more resources for men, citing how 70 percent of survey respondents did not know about a mental health support program it launched last year.
It also said that workplaces should be more supportive of parenting and allow parents to have a better work-life balance.
Parents can face pressure to not take parental leave, which can affect their advancement and performance reviews, it said.
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