Israeli parents' role in emergencies

This study involved views of parents concerning whose role it was to take a sick child to the emergency department and their attributions of causes for the absence of a parent in such cases. Most parents in the sample of 511 saw this as a joint role, although the tendency was more pronounced among female respondents. Most of the suggested causes for absence involved external attributions based on stereotypic role expectations—work and army service for fathers and baby minding for mothers. Only a small minority explained mothers' absence by stereotypic, internal attributions involving fear and confusion. Joint attendance may be locally normative and socially desirable because it manifests a caring attitude. Only objective circumstances that differ between fathers and mothers according to their traditional roles are perceived as capable of causing undesirable absence.