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Journal Article Incarcerated fathers or men in the role of father or surrogate father in the US are approaching rates that could be considered epidemic in proportion. Children are adversely affected by the absense of fathers. This study explores the efficacy of a programmed parenting intervention for incarcerated men, derived from the Real Life Parenting Skills Program. (Author abstract modified)
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Journal Article Findings from a study of casework outreach to birthparents of children in out-of-home care are presented. The study explored whether the birthfather was being ignored as a resource for discharge planning. It examined the outreach and interventions of caseworkers in three New York City out-of-home care agencies. Casework activity levels were found to be higher for birthmothers than for birthfathers, and a complex relationship among the variables of gender, outreach, and response was revealed. The nature and value of more specific outreach toward birthfathers of children in care, and the risk…
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Journal Article This article describes the development of solution-focused psychotherapy groups for incarcerated fathers at a medium security correctional facility. The solution-focused approach was implemented to avoid the strategies used by inmates to undermine insight-oriented and non-directive therapies. Emphasis was placed on the identification of problems, desired outcomes, and behaviors that would achieve the participant's goals. Program planners selected the cognitive-behavioral approach to group psychotherapy for its focus on the recognition of feelings and identification of successful methods of…
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Journal Article Interviews were conducted with 20 young men who used General Assisstance, many of whom were the fathers of children of poor, unwed mothers. The relationship respondents had with their fathers was examined. For those young men who were themselves fathers, it also explored how those relationships influenced their own paternal identity and the relationships with their children. Findings from this research suggest that the relationship a man has with his father and the influence this has on his development of generativity and univocal reciprocity may be more influential to the son's paternal…
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Journal Article Research on child development has increasingly emphasized the complexity of developmental processes, and this reconceptualization is reflected in recent research on the effects of child maltreatment as well. The author illustrates the value of studying maltreatment in the context of children's relationships, not only with their biological mothers, but with biological fathers and father figures as well. Ambiguities remain, however, suggesting that more must be discovered about the quality and longevity of the relationships between these men and both their partners and surrogate children to…
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Journal Article A shortened form of the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) was used to examine the relationship between parenting styles and the psychological distress and offending patterns of a group of young male offenders held in custody in Scotland. High levels of psychological distress were linked with low parental care, but there was no association between psychological distres and parental control. Parental care was not a distinguishing factor in offending patterns, although high paternal control was linked with a younger age of first arrest. When interactions of paternal and maternal parenting styles…
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Journal Article The authors provide an overview of two issues of the Children and Youth Services Review that report the findings on a study of the impact of welfare reform on unwed parents. The Fragile Families and Child Well-Being study compared the family situations of 3,600 children of unmarried parents and 1,100 children born to married parents during the same time period. Mothers and fathers were interviewed shortly after the birth of their child with additional interviews planned for 12, 30, and 48 months. The questions addressed the characteristics of parents eligible for welfare benefits in the…
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Journal Article About 2.5 million nonresident fathers are poor and do not pay child support. According to the National Survey of America's Families, most noncustodial fathers face the same multiple employment barriers as poor custodial mothers, but are significantly less likely than those mothers to participate in work-support programs such as training, education, job search activities, or income security programs. Before 1996, the government offered an array of financial assistance, housing, and employment training for single mothers. However, nonresident fathers qualified only for food stamps and were not…
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Journal Article Two alternative theoretical models of parenting, identity theory and parental investment theory, are investigated as sources of explanation of men's fathering attitudes and behaviors. Four dimensions of fathering are explored: responsivity, harshness, behavioral engagement, and affective involvement. Concepts from identity theory operationalized as predictors include father role salience, role satisfaction, and reflected appraisals. From parental investment theory, concepts included investment maximization, contingent commitment, and paternity certitude. Using telephone survey data drawn from…
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Journal Article Providing as a form of paternal involvement is not readily acknowledged in contemporary fatherhood literature. Providing is often overlooked because it is taken for granted, is invisible to the family, holds negative connotations, and is inadequately conceptualized. This article expands paternal involvement to include economic provision. Providing as a form of paternal involvement is considered as it affects father, child, and family well-being. In conslusion, practice and policy implications related to an expanded view of economic provision and paternal involvement are shared.
