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Journal Article The parenting dynamics of batterers can be the source of considerable trauma and abuse to children, in addition to that incurred by witnessing violence against their mothers. Bancroft and Silverman describe how batterers are at high risk of physically, sexually, and psychologically abusing and exploiting their children, and how a batterer's attempts at pathological control of the family often continue after separation through custody disputes and during visitation. Intimidation by batterers also prevents mothers from protecting their children and using their parenting strengths. This article…
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Journal Article Prenatal parenting attitudes and parenting behaviors during infancy and early childhood were used as predictors of attachment in children of adolescent mothers at ages 1 and 5. Seventy-eight adolescent mother - child dyads participated. Data were collected at five time points from the third trimester of pregnancy through the children's 5th year. A high percentage of children exhibited disorganized and insecure attachment during both infancy and early childhood; only 30% were securely attached at 1 year and 41% at 5 years. Quality of maternal interactions and cognitive readiness to parent…
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Journal Article Based on adolescent mothers' reports, longitudinal patterns of involvement of young, unmarried biological fathers (n = 77) in teenage-mother families using cluster analytic techniques were examined. Approximately one third of fathers maintained high levels of involvement over time, another third demonstrated low involvement at both time points, and the final third started out highly involved at Wave 1 but decreased to low levels of involvement by Wave 2. Multinomial logistic analyses suggest that mothers' positive relationships with both the father and his family predict a greater likelihood…
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Journal Article This special issue focuses on teen parenthood and includes articles that address the developmental trajectory for children born to teenage parents, protective factors for teen parents and their children, intervention efforts to promote resiliency, and the experiences of infants of teenage parents. An introductory article discusses the risks associated with adolescent parenthood and community-based strategies to support young families. The following article reviews findings from large national studies on the effects of early care and intervention on the children of adolescents. The next…
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Journal Article This study used the theory of human values to explore parents' involvement with their children. The relationships between maternal and paternal value priorities and various forms of involvement in child care were examined in a sample of 209 couples with 1 child between 6 and 36 months of age. As predicted, giving high priority to openness-to-change values (e.g., self-direction, stimulation) and low priority to conservation values (e.g., tradition, conformity, security) is associated with more father involvement and less mother involvement. Moreover, and as predicted, the priority given by a…
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Journal Article The effects of both childhood and teenage experiences of domestic violence on adolescent-parent attachments were examined. Israeli adolescents (M = 15.9 years) who were either victims of physical abuse, witnesses of physical spouse abuse, victims and witnesses of abuse, or neither victims nor witnesses of abuse were questioned about attachments to their parents using the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment [IPPA; Armsden, G. C., & Greenberg, M. T. (1987). The inventory of parent and peer attachment: Individual differences and their relationship to psychological well-being in…
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Journal Article This article describes Fit 2-B FATHERS, a social and parenting skills program for males in the corrections system that has been found to improve participants attitudes about themselves, their role as fathers, and their understanding of positive parenting practices. The program is designed to help participants become less of a security risk during the remainder of their sentence and reduce rates of recidivism following their release. Components of the program are discussed, as are results from a study of 227 participating inmates. Results indicate a statistically significant program impact on…
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Journal Article This study examined fathers' participation in Early Head Start programs using quantitative and qualitative data from 326 Early Head Start fathers when children were 36 months of age. About half (49%) of the fathers were involved in at least one program activity. A quarter (26%) of the fathers participated at a higher level, in two or more types of program activities. Fathers participated in parent education programs (17%), group socializations (15%), father-only activities (6%), policy councils and program committees (9%), home visits (32% ever, 17% monthly), and in dropping children off at…
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Journal Article The use of group interventions with parents to prevent child maltreatment and to support positive parenting has been demonstrated to be effective. This article describes an experiential group approach to working with fathers in diverse settings. The format provides both content about parenting and a context for fathers to develop their own '"voice'" as parent through a combination of leader directed parenting education and opportunities for participant fathers to build positive supportive relationships with one another. In this article, the curriculum for this group approach is described,…
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Journal Article The nature of the contribution that fathers make to families is the subject of intense debate by both academics and policymakers. Contact between non-resident fathers and their children has been promoted by government and the courts, but remains difficult to achieve. This paper reports on interview data collected from fathers, mothers and their adolescent children in intact families on the perceptions of fathering practices and the factors that influence them. In addition, the nature and extent of fathers' involvement with their children is explored in relation to the problem of "boundary…
