The best interests of the child are not being served by court practices that severely restrict a father's access to his children. This book describes the negative consequences of father absence for children and outlines the benefits of joint custody arrangements. The chapters summarize psychiatric and psychological literature about the importance of both parents to child development and provide a history of the evolution of the family and family law. Children's rights and international law, injustice in the court system, and demographics are discussed. The book also provides a father's…
All new dads want to bond with their babies -- but how? With seventy-two safe, simple exercises, each illustrated with a fun photograph, Rookie Dad helps busy fathers make a real connection with their little ones -- and have a ball doing it!* "Shake Hands with Dad" promotes motor coordination * "Eyes on the Ball" boosts eye-tracking skills* "Flashlight Tag" is fun at lights-out time * "Crunch Time" helps baby learn balance while tightening Daddy's abs * "Box Score" is a fantastic tool for bedtime, helping babies enjoy snug spaces These and other age-appropriate activities, designed for the…
The Fatherhood Initiative is intended to strengthen the role of fathers in families. Strong families are essential to the future of the nation; both mothers and fathers play an essential role in ensuring the well-being of their children. Changes in the lives of fathers must be supported by the communities in which they live, and communities must know what resources and support are available to help in this effort. This Resource Guide was developed to assist the Head Start community in its effort to support the Fatherhood Initiative. It is not intended as a comprehensive guide. (Author…
This paper discusses the importance of father involvement in the lives of children, describes the increased focus on creating programs to promote father involvement, and highlights Wisconsin's noncustodial parent (NCP) policies and services as the State moves into the next phase of welfare reform. The first half of the paper describes the current landscape of NCP reform, including the barriers to meeting NCPs' needs effectively and the perspectives of those affected by the State's NCP policies. The second half of the paper presents challenges facing the State and opportunities for Wisconsin…
James M. Herzog's Father Hunger: Explorations with Adults and Children will quickly take its place both as a landmark contribution to development psychology and as an enduring classic in the clinical literature of psychoanalysis. We live in an era when a great many children grow up without a father, or, worse still, with fathers who traumatically abuse them. Yet, society continues to ignore the emotional price that children pay, and often continue to pay throughout their lives, for this tragic state of affairs. At the heart of this lack of compassionate responsibility is our collective…
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Journal Article Using data on 189 adolescents who have a living biological father and a resident stepfather, we examined the effects of children's relationships with both fathers on child outcomes. Interview data from mothers and stepfathers provide an assessment of two types of child outcomes, internalizing and externalizing problems. Interviews with the children themselves provide data about the child's relationships with the mother, stepfather, and biological father. Results show a significant positive association between quality of relationship with stepfathers and child outcomes. Relationships with…
The involvement of fathers in their children's' activities is recognized as a critical factor in early child development and the emotional well being of older children. This article examines research data on the importance of fathers' participation in the lives of their children, personal characteristics of involved and disengaged fathers, and activities that fathers more typically share with their children. The author notes that while activities such as helping with homework or engaging in religious activities might not seem special to many fathers, they are special to children and to their…
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Journal Article This study examined the effect of father-child interactions on the behavior and health of young children in a sample of 182 families reported to child protective services. Data were collected from interviews with the child and his or her caregiver and from reviews of child protective service records and teacher reports. Variables included child and family characteristics; parental and family functioning; extrafamilial relationships; community environment; religious affiliation; child outcomes; and service utilization. Whereas the presence or absence of a father or father figure seemed to make…
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Journal Article This paper uses data from the baseline Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study to examine the level and effects of father-involvement on child's birth weight and mother's health behavior during pregnancy (prenatal care, drinking, drug use and smoking). The findings indicate that most fathers, including unwed fathers, are involved with their children at birth and have intentions to remain involved. The effects of father involvement on health and health behavior depend, however, on how the construct is measured. When measured as parents relationship status (married, cohabiting, romantic or…
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Journal Article Previous studies have revealed that marital status is an important predictor of birth outcomes, with unmarried mothers having a higher probability than married mothers of delivering low birthweight babies. However, research on the impact of different mother-father relationships among unwed parents is virtually non-existent and little is known about whether and how father involvement affects birth outcomes. In this study, we use the sample of unwed patents in the 7-cities baseline Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing data to examine the effect of parents relationship status and support…
