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Journal Article This study examines the role of biological and social fathers in the lives of low-income African American adolescent girls (N= 302). Sixty-five percent of adolescents identified a primary father; two thirds were biological and one third were social fathers. Adolescents reported more contentious and less close relationships with biological than with social fathers. Multivariate regression analyses indicated that daughters' perceptions of anger and alienation from fathers was related to greater emotional and behavioral problems for adolescents, whereas perceptions of trust and communication…
This fact sheet discusses the influence fathers have on children's health habits. Two of the most important modeling behaviors fathers can provide are their own diet and exercise habits. A 1999 study by Child Trends concluded that, "the most serious threat to the health of American children is the behavior of their own parents." Other research has found that families whose fathers modeled and supported good eating habits tended to eat more meals together, watch TV less, and exercise more often.
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Journal Article Family practitioners who provide divorce education programs should be aware that a child in a sole-custody household (especially one headed by the father) is highly likely to lack insurance coverage for access to health care services for healthy development. Examining 543 divorce records in New Hampshire, the author analyzed coverage across divergent family types following custody negotiations and found that a child in a sole-custody household was at higher risk for lacking coverage than was one in a shared-custody household. These results were confirmed by a chi-square test and logical…
This study addresses four sets of related questions: (1) What are the conditions and capabilities of new unmarried parents, especially fathers? How many of these men hold steady jobs? How many want to be involved in raising their children? (2) What is the nature of the relationships between unmarried parents? How many of these couples are involved in stable relationships? What proportion expects to marry? What proportion is exposed to high levels of conflict or domestic violence? (3) What factors push new unmarried parents together? What factors pull them apart? In particular, how do public…
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Training Materials Previous studies focused exclusively on fatherinvolvement and outcomes for U.S born adolescentsfrom white middle class populations. The present study explores how father involvement is related to adolescent risk behaviors among a wider classification of youth than previously examined.
