red dot icon
Journal Article This study uses early descriptive data from the National Evaluation of Welfare to Work Strategies (NEWWS) Child Outcome Study, a sub-study of the larger random assignment evaluation of the Federal JOBS program, to answer two timely and important questions. First, what factors predict father involvement among nonresident fathers of young children who receive welfare? And second, is nonresident father involvement associated with better outcomes for these children? The three measures of nonresident father involvement examined are father-child visitation, formal child support payments received…
red dot icon
Journal Article The facilitation of a positive relationship between the children of abused women and the perpetrator of the violence is extremely complex in the light of the potential danger for women and children and the conflicting needs, interests, and rights of different family members. Nevertheless, social service agencies can no longer ignore the role of abusive men as fathers. Holding men accountable for their children's well being may, under certain conditions, contribute to the healthier emotional development of affected children. This article critically discusses this controversial issue by…
Data from the Baltimore Parenthood Study, a 30-year longitudinal study of teenage parents, were analyzed to identify the long-term consequences of paternal involvement and the generational transmission of patterns of fatherhood. A subsample of 110 males were examined with an occasional reference made to a subsample of females. Results indicated that a strong link existed between the stable presence of a biological father in the histories of the young men and the timing of their own family formation. Early fatherhood, both during the teen years and early twenties, is much more likely to occur…
Drawing on more than a quarter of a century of Panel Study of Income Dynamics data, this paper examines links between childhood home environment (as reported by fathers during those childhood years) and children's outcomes in early adulthood. The emphasis is on the role of fathers and the unique contribution of their activities and characteristics to children's development, measured in terms of the children's completed schooling, wage rates, and nonmarital childbearing in early adulthood. Results indicate that fathers' abilities add substantial predictive power to models based on maternal…
The expanding consensus about the advantages of two-parent families, together with the rising number of children growing up without the presence of both parents, has stimulated policy-makers to look for ways of increasing fathers' involvement. This paper examines two sets of questions relevant to these policy initiatives. The first concerns the patterns of involvement between fathers and children born outside of marriage. The paper defines father involvement as a continuum ranging from no visitation, to frequent visitation, to co-residence with the child, and to co-residence along with…
Written for the October 1996 Conference on Father Involvement, the papers in this volume examine the effect of father involvement on child development and the patterns and determinants of father involvement in intact and separated families. The papers represent the diverse perspectives of anthropology, demography, economics, family science, psychology, and sociology. Specific topics include: the history of research about father involvement, cultural factors, the impact of parental activities on child outcomes, child well-being in families receiving welfare, and the effect of marital quality…
red dot icon
Journal Article The last few decades have seen a dramatic increase in the number of children raised in homes where the biological father is not present. Many of these children, mired in secrecy, guilt, and family conflict, are left with unanswered questions and self-doubts about this absence. Depression and behavioral problems often result. This article reviews the clinical literature around relevant issues such as father hunger, developmental deficits, and the varying effects on the child depending on age, sex, and the degree of the father's absence. Several case examples are offered to illustrate these…
This report synthesizes research conducted in Great Britain about the effect of paternal involvement on child development and effective interventions for families in the child welfare system. Recent studies have found that 75 percent of British children are living in two-parent families. Despite a trend in single and step-parenthood, about half of non-resident fathers report that they have regular, monthly contact with their child(ren). Fathers still earn the majority of the family income, but about half of British men disagree with the traditional view of men as the primary breadwinner.…
red dot icon
Journal Article Administrative data was used to compare pre-reform and post- reform cohorts of teenage parents regarding the impact of reform on welfare enrollments, case closures, child maltreatment, and subsequent births. The relationship between mandated living arrangements to outcomes was also examined. Cohort differences were observed in enrollments and reasons for closure, but not in maltreatment or birth rates. Living arrangements were found to be associated with case closure. 12 references and 2 tables. (Author abstract)
red dot icon
Journal Article The California Supreme Court has held that in order for an absent father to exert his rights in foster care proceedings he must demonstrate a prior relationship and commitment to his children. It has also ruled that failure to notify an absent or putative father of pending adoption proceedings does not violate his due process right, even if the state knows his whereabouts. If fathers want to protect their parental rights, they must assume parental responsibilities. The California statute requires that every effort be made to identify the father of a child. Once a father is notified, he has 30…
