The research world's fascination with the mind of the millennialseems to have no outer limit. Now come the insurers, as TheHartford probes that mind on the matter of parenthood.

Plenty of studies have shown that millennials are much more concerned with an enriched lifeexperience than the generations that preceded them. So perhaps itcomes as no surprise that The Hartford's study found thatmillennials are leading the charge for extended paternity leave.

These Gen Yers have tended to postpone themarriage-and-a-baby-carriage stage. But now, as they begin toconfront their mortality and cast thoughts toward their legacies,they are seriously considering how they want life to be after thelittle one(s) arrives.

The Hartford's study tells us this:

Men consider paternity leave as an essential benefit. Andemployers should catch on, according to a new survey.

31% of millennial dads saidboth parents took more than two weeks off after a baby;

21% said they were the onlyparent who took time off;

Caring for a newborn wasthe No. 1 reason for millennial men to be on a non-disability leaveof absence.

How did parenthood affect those who responded to the survey?Here's what The Hartford reported:

75% of women and 53%of men said having a child affected their career;

16% cited hours worked asthe most affected area;

15% said they took ahigher paying job as a result of having a child;

12% said it “sloweddown” their career;

25% of millennialmoms said they changed jobs to get more flexibility;

22% of moms said they cuttheir hours back.

When asked what they would like employers to do to furtheraccommodate them, millennials cited the following conditions:

More flexibility in timeoff: 97%

More flexible work hours:97%

Disability insurance:96%

Life insurance:92%

“Millennial men are approaching parenthood differently thanprevious generations, which means employers should factor infathers when they build benefit plans and work-life policies,” saidThe Hartford's Millennial Workplace Expert Lindsey Pollak. “Meetingthe needs of this next generation of parents will be critical forbusiness as we countdown to 2020–the year when Millennials areexpected to be 50 percent of the U.S. workforce.”