Researchers from demography, developmental psychology, sociology, evolutionary psychology, economics, and the public policy field have examined various aspects of the impact of father involvement on child development. This book summarizes the methodology and findings from research within each of these disciplines to provide a multidisciplinary perspective of the subject. Common themes across areas of interest include the definition of fatherhood and the dimensions of the construct; the individual and environmental variables that explain fathering; the impact of father involvement at each…
This chapter analyzes statistical data from the 1997 Child Development Supplement to the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, the 1995 National Survey of Adolescent Males (third wave), the 1998 Trends in Time Use Study, and the 1999 National Omnibus Study to explore how fathers are involved in the lives of their children. The review focuses on the amount of time that fathers spend with their children, the quality of their involvement, and the types of activities in which they participate. Results are presented for all fathers, fathers of biological children, fathers of stepchildren, and men living…
Recent research has demonstrated the importance of father-child relationships to child development. This chapter reviews the findings about the link between paternal attachment and child development, with a focus on infants. It addresses the ability of fathers to be responsive to their children, the level of interaction between fathers and their infants, and the evolution of father-infant attachments. Studies of paternal sensitivity and responsiveness indicate that most fathers are able to develop attachments with their infants, despite the fact that men spend less time than women with their…
Research about the impact of fathering on child development has prompted questions about the definition of more and less father involvement and the different ways that children are affected by varying levels of involvement. Although there are no definite answers to these questions, this chapter explores issues that should be considered when studying father involvement and its influences on child development. Topics include the identity of fathers (biological or social), the diversity of fathering contexts, conceptualizations of father involvement used by research, and the meanings of more…
This chapter proposes that child social development is influenced by the interaction between the family social system and the peer social system. Fathers have an impact on their children's peer relationships in one of three ways: the characteristics of the father-child relationship; the type of supervision and advice that the father gives to the child; and the father's support of social opportunities for the child to meet and play with peers. Children's peer relationships also can be directly and indirectly affected by their father's marital relationships. Studies have found evidence that…
Studies about the effects of divorce on children have found that children who are separated from their father are more likely than children in two-parent families to have problems in psychosocial development, behavior, school performance, employment, and future interpersonal relationships. Conversely, the research indicates that positive relationships with nonresidential fathers who are actively involved in the lives of their children promote positive adjustment. This chapter suggests that postdivorce child custody agreements should seek to enhance the involvement of the nonresidential parent…
The National Survey of Children (NSC), the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), and the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH) represent the importance of the sociological perspective in explaining the role of father involvement. These studies have been used repeatedly in analyses about fatherhood because they utilized large nationally representative samples and addressed a wide variety of topics about children and families. The National Survey of Children included 2,301 children age 7 to 11 interviewed in 1976, 1981, and 1987. The study focused on the social, physical and…
Qualitative research has provided valuable insights into the relationships between low income, urban, African American men and their children. This chapter summarizes findings from classic and recent studies about the impact of neighborhood characteristics, negotiations between fathers and mothers and their extended families, the social construct of fathers and mothers, and the variety of father figures who take responsibility for paternal tasks. Conducted by researchers in the fields of anthropology, education, human development, and sociology, the studies used techniques such as open-ended…
Economic theory can be used to explain family behavior and trends in marriage, divorce, births, and child development. This chapter provides an economic perspective to explore questions about why some nonresident fathers withhold financial and emotional support from their children. The economic model includes variables such as the level of consumption by each parent and child, shared and private goods, the amount spent on children, parental cooperation, and differences in spending of fathers and mothers. The text summarizes evidence about trends in child support and visitation and the ability…
