A new study has found that Nigerian men increasingly value emotional connection and active involvement in their children’s lives over the traditional expectation of being the family’s primary financial provider.

The study, conducted by Gatefield’s Opinion Lab, found that emotional connection was mentioned 156 times, compared with 84 mentions for financial provision, highlighting changing perceptions of fatherhood among Nigerian men.

The report, titled The New Breadwinner: Masculinity, Caregiving and Economic Prosperity in Nigeria, examines how men perceive their roles in childcare and the factors influencing their willingness to share domestic responsibilities.

Released in Abuja on Thursday, the study identified economic pressures, workplace restrictions and cultural expectations as major obstacles to more active fatherhood.

It found that men who measure their masculinity primarily by their ability to provide financially often experience shame and withdraw emotionally when economic difficulties prevent them from meeting household expectations.

A male business leader quoted in the report said he felt uncomfortable around people whenever he could not fulfil his financial responsibilities.

A religious leader also acknowledged the need to abandon the belief that a man’s worth depends solely on his earning capacity.

The study further found that advocacy strategies can influence how men respond to calls for shared caregiving.

According to the report, messaging framed around ideological demands, including expressions such as “unpaid care work” and “dismantling the motherhood penalty,” generated six times more defensiveness among respondents.

However, presenting shared caregiving as a means of promoting family prosperity and household peace proved more effective, increasing message resonance by more than 70 per cent.

Family-centred messaging also generated seven supportive responses for every instance of resistance, the report stated.

A religious leader cited in the study said men were more likely to embrace shared caregiving when they understood how it could help their families thrive.

The findings suggest that campaigns promoting active fatherhood could achieve greater acceptance by emphasising the benefits to children, marital relationships and household stability.

Beyond cultural attitudes, the report identified workplace policies as a significant barrier to men’s participation in childcare.

It noted that public sector employees receive 14 days of paid paternity leave, while workers in the informal economy risk losing income when they take time off to care for their children.

The report also highlighted disparities in access to domestic support, noting that some middle-class families employ domestic workers to manage household chores, an option that remains beyond the reach of many low-income households.

To address these challenges, Gatefield recommended expanding paid paternity leave beyond the 14-day public sector benchmark to include private sector workers.

It also called for community-based childcare facilities and informal crèche networks to support working-class families and people employed in the informal sector.

The organisation urged advocacy groups to move away from confrontational messaging and focus instead on children’s development, family wellbeing and shared economic resilience.

It also recommended partnerships with religious and traditional leaders to promote active fatherhood, mutual responsibility and more collaborative approaches to family leadership.

According to the report, faith-based institutions and cultural leaders can help reshape perceptions of masculinity by promoting emotional presence and shared caregiving as essential aspects of responsible fatherhood.

Gatefield said translating men’s willingness to become more involved in childcare into widespread behavioural change would require both cultural adjustments and practical reforms that make caregiving more accessible.

Gatefield is a public strategy and media group that uses advocacy and storytelling to promote social change.