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Journal Article The dramatic increase in nonmarital births in the United States cannot be written off as a simple “lifestyle choice” that has no implications for child well-being. Nor is it simply a result of a rise in casual sexual encounters. The vast majority of children born outside of marriage are born to parents in committed yet fragile relationships. Our challenge in this volume is to explore the ramifications of this new reality and to fashion policy recommendations that reduce the number of fragile families in the first place, and that ensure that children born into fragile families receive the…
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Journal Article Coparenting has emerged as a central family process and relationship. However, a coparenting role may be unfamiliar and uncomfortable to many fathers. This study focused on fathers' perceptions of coparental support to better understand factors that may help fathers adjust to a new and challenging parental role. A conceptual model of coparental support was developed and tested on a sample of 2,062 fathers from the national Fragile Families and Child Well-being study to determine what father and mother characteristics were associated with fathers' perceptions of coparental support. Multigroup…
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Journal Article This study explores the relationship between residential, biological fathers' parental engagement, financial contributions, and psychological well-being in 2-parent families. Specifically, this study focuses on how fathers' parental engagement and financial contributions are related to their self-esteem, self-efficacy, and psychological distress. Analyses utilize data from the first 2 waves of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics' Child Development Supplement and employ a subsample of father-child pairs (N = 771). The most consistent finding was that fathers' engagement in parenting and…
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Journal Article We use longitudinal survey and qualitative information from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine how risk factors such as physical abuse, problematic substance use, and incarceration among unmarried fathers in the study are related to fathers' early involvement with their children. The survey results indicate that nearly half of fathers have at least one risk factor and that each risk is negatively associated with paternal involvement. The results also show that fathers with risk factors are less likely to have romantic relationships with mothers and that relationships…
Brief
This policy brief, published by the Brookings Institute, presents major findings and policy recommendations based on results from The Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. The study shows that a large number of parents are not married when they have a child, which contributes to problems with parenting, couples' relationships, and children's well-being. Also, many unwed parents may be in close relationships when children are born, but few of these relationships last. Unwed parents often have characteristics (i.e., low education, poor health) that make finding employment, forming stable…
Brief
This tip sheet offers six ways that parents can positively influence their teens' daily decisionmaking, impact healthy behaviors, and help them to become responsible adults. (Author abstract modified)
Brief
Out of wedlock births, divorce, and repartnering havebecome increasingly common in America, contributing togreater complexity in family structures. In fact, one-thirdof American children are expected to live with a nonbiologicalparental figure, usually a social father, at somepoint in their lives. As these experiences become moreprevalent, policy makers and public advocates need tounderstand the dynamics and effects of various kinds ofparental relationships.A widespread belief, reflected in training materialsfrom the Department of Health and Human Services forChild Protective Services (CPS)…
Brief
This tip sheet provides a basic plan that schools, community professionals, and youth leaders can use to ease pain following a traumatic death. It explains ways to show teens that their grief is understood and offers suggestions to facilitate communication and provide appropriate support.
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Journal Article This research analyses key findings from qualitative research conducted with (ex) offender fathers and their probation officers. This paper focuses on the critical role of family and social support for (ex) offender fathers who seek to build and maintain relationships with their children. The research reported in this paper shows that the men receive social support, both formal and informal from a wide ranging and complex network of family, friends and practitioners, which facilitates and enables their commitment to fathering. Drawing on social support theory, I argue that identification of…
Across the United States, two phenomena have emerged: high rates of multi-partnered fertility (having children by more than one partner) and high rates of male involvement with the criminal justice system. This paper is a first step in an exploration of the possible connection between these two phenomena. The first part of the paper provides measures of the prevalence of multi-partnered fertility among mothers during the period 1985-2008, for the overall population and for select subgroups, based on a nationally representative survey, the Survey of Income and Program Participation. This…
