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According to Dr Elaine Eaker,.the key to the problem is that some men became stressed about performing a role not traditionally assign to them by society. Men who stay at home tend not to have the same levels of support from friends and family as women do the same.
Jack O'Sullivan, of the Fathers Direct group, was quoted as saying: "Society expects the main career should be a woman and society is structured around that. Day care is called mother and toddler groups and some men feel awkward about belonging to those groups.
Professor Gary Cooper, a psychologist at the University of Manchester, said many men tend to underestimate the task of caring for a family. He said 'Most men think being a house husband involves putting on a bit of washing, taking the kids to school and then putting their feet up with a cup of coffee.
They are crazy. Most men are not used to performing a variety of activities simultaneously - the kind of multi-tasking which is second nature to most women.'
It is estimated that men have taken over the main homemakers role in one in seven homes, as increasing numbers of women become the main breadwinner. The study also found that women in high-powered jobs were more likely to develop heart disease than those in more junior positions.
