Study of fathering, and co-parenting, more specifically, is multidisciplinary. Thank you to Suzanne Jones, Colby College, for her extensive proofreading of and other contributions to several drafts of the paper. Co-parenting encompasses several meanings. In some cases, it is synonymous with shared parenting. Other times it basically refers to father presence in the lives of children and their mothers, no matter how limited the parental involvement.
Mothers still carry the lion's share of parenting responsibility.
Diversity in family composition or structure accounts for much of the varied meanings of the term co-parenting. Men's parenting participation varies both within and across family structural arrangements. The three predominant family arrangements present men with somewhat distinctive parenting issues and challenges. At the same time, common patterns prevail across the family forms. These similarities have to do with sociocultural definitions and expectations of gender identities as well as parenting assignments, characteristics, and expectations.