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Child support in the United States used to be straightforward: mothers were given custody of the children, and fathers, who normally had higher incomes, were ordered to pay child support. The situation may be growing more and more complex, however, as men increasingly receive custody of their children. Daniel R. Meyer, an IRP affiliate, and Steven Garasky, an economist at Iowa State University, have examined current trends in male custody and find that the reality differs in many respects from the common conceptions about custodial fathers. This article is based on their paper exploring the…
Men are increasingly receiving custody of their children, and single-father families with children are growing at a faster rate than even single-mother families. However, many observers still believe that custodial fathers are small in number. Indeed, there are a number of myths concerning custodial fathers, myths that are dispelled by empirical data. The authors examine data from the Current Population Survey, the Survey of Income and Program Participation, and Wisconsin court records, and determine that many assumptions about custodial fathers are simply not true. Many child support…
A perennial bestseller, now revised and updated for a new generation of fathers, this readable, inspiring guide to the world of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers is an indispensable treasury of advice, ideas, and suggestions. (Author abstract)
Chapter 1. The Voices of Effective Fathers; Chapter 2. Applying the Seven Secrets; Chapter 3. Secret 1: Commitment; Chapter 4: Secret 2: Knowing Your Child; Chapter 5: Secret 3: Consistency; Chapter 6. Secret 4: Protecting and Providing; Chapter 7: Secret 5: Loving Their Mother; Chapter 8: Secret 6: Active Listening; Chapter 9. Secret 7: Spiritual Equipping; Chapter 10: The Eighth Secret; Appendices: About the Research; Fatherlessness: A National Epidemic; Resources From the National Center for Fathering; The Mike Harper Story; Development of a Questionnaire to Measure the Seven Secrets of…
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Journal Article Paternity and child support can be essential to the family stability of children of unmarried teen mothers. While the number of births to teen mothers decreased between 1970 and 1985 from 656,000 to 477,700, the number of unmarried teen mothers increased from 199,900 to 280,300. This paper presents guidelines for counselors to assist young mothers. Establishing paternity is essential for the emotional health of the child, providing a sense of belonging and family ties with the father's family. Child support is important, even at a minimum if the father is unemployed, to establish a pattern…
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This paper describes the federally funded teenage parent demonstration initiative to address the problems of teenage parenting. Child welfare agencies in Chicago, Illinois, and Camden and Newark, New Jersey, participated in the initiative, providing services that encouraged the self-sufficiency of the parents. The mandatory program was employment-oriented, focusing on education, job training, and working. Transportation and child care assistance was provided, as well as in-house workshops on home management, parenting, health and nutrition, and workplace skills. Lessons learned from the…
This report explores the circumstances and opinions of 71 parents who were interviewed to help inform a project aimed at increasing the employment and earnings of disadvantaged fathers, and child support payments made by them. That project, the Parents' Fair Share Demonstration (PFS), tackles a social problem that is crucially linked to child poverty in the United States: the failure of noncustodial parents -- most of whom are fathers -- to contribute financially to their children's support. Through a unique combination of job training, personal support, and incentives, Parents' Fair Share…
