Do you know new studies suggest that having a sense of purpose makes dads healthier, happier, and more robust in the face of challenges we’re all facing?

Sooner or later, our kids will make us suffer. When they’re babies, their crying keeps us up at night. Later, their teenage shenanigans might rob us of more sleep. Some of us stay at jobs we hate so that our kids will never have to wonder where their next meal will come from. We can battle with our co-parents over housework and discipline, testing love we might have once thought would last forever.

The chances are good that your purpose differs from those held by your father and grandfathers. Scholars say that fathers of previous generations saw their purpose as financially supporting their families and providing discipline to their children. Some saw themselves as leaders and role models for their families, especially regarding religious instruction. Inherent in these missions is a sense of authority, which could sometimes become authoritarianism— “the enforcement of strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom,” as the dictionary says.

As a group, today’s fathers see their role somewhat differently.

What does this have to do with purpose? As women made more money, men’s participation at home started