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Journal Article A total of 82 separated and divorced fathers were interviewed in a study utilizing thematic analysis to examine fathers’ narratives about their divorce experiences, particularly in regard to their relationship with their children, and grounded theory analysis to uncover themes related to fathers’ perceptions of their children’s needs, and parental and social institutional responsibilities to these needs, during the divorce transition. We found that contextual factors, particularly the legal custody determination process, largely determine both the level of paternal involvement and quality…
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Journal Article Paternal involvement with children is associated with better outcomes for children and family functioning. There are, however, few data examining the intersection of cultural norms and paternal involvement. For Latino fathers in the United States, paternal involvement may vary on the basis of cultural and gender norms, acculturation process, and ethnic identity. The current study used self-report surveys to examine the perceptions of 67 Latino fathers regarding their paternal involvement, machismo (i.e., macho and caballerismo), degree of acculturation, and ethnic identity. The bivariate…
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Journal Article One third of all children in the United States have a nonresident parent. On the basis of 13,085 children with a nonresident parent drawn from the 1997 National Survey of America's Families, this study examines nonresident mothers' and fathers' involvement (visitation and child support) with children who reside in different household types: single-parent families, married and cohabiting stepfamilies, and families headed by grandparents, other relatives, or nonrelatives. The relationship between children's living arrangements and nonresident parent involvement is complex and depends on both…
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Journal Article Research on family structure has led some to claim that sex-based parenting differences exist. But if such differences exist in single-parent families, the absence of a second parent rather than specific sex-typed parenting might explain them. We examine differences in mothering and fathering behavior in single-parent households, where number of parents is held constant, and we describe individualist and structuralist perspectives for potential sex-based parenting behaviors. We compare 3,202 single mothers and 307 single fathers in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (Kindergarten Cohort…
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Journal Article Using a sample of 3,977 youths from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97), this study examines the unique characteristics of single-custodial-father families with adolescents and the effects of single fathers' involvement and parenting on outcomes in emerging adulthood. Findings suggest that single-custodial-father families are distinct from single-mother and 2-biological-parent families in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, parenting styles, and involvement. Parenting styles and involvement mediate the differences between single-father families and 2-parent families in…
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Journal Article Cultural imperatives for "good" parenting include spending time with children and ensuring that they do well in life. Knowledge of how these factors influence employed parents' work-family balance is limited. Analyses using time diary and survey data from the 2000 National Survey of Parents (N = 933) indicate that how time with children relates to parents' feelings of balance varies by gender and social class. Interactive "quality" time is linked with mothers' feelings of balance more than fathers'. More time in routine care relates to imbalance for fathers without college degrees. Feeling…
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Journal Article This study investigated whether the amount and nature of parent-child time mediated the association between parental work characteristics and parent-child relationship quality. We based hypotheses on the conflict and enrichment approaches, and we tested a path model using self-collected data on 1,008 Dutch fathers and 929 Dutch mothers with school-aged children. Longer working hours and less work engagement were associated with less parent-child time and longer working hours, more restrictive organizational norms, stress, flexibility, nonstandard hours (mothers only), and work engagement…
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Journal Article This article uses time-diary data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC; N = 2,157 weekday diaries; N = 2,110 weekend diaries) to examine differences in infants' time with a resident father at age 4?19 months according to fathers' duration of leave around the birth. Results showed that those infants whose fathers took 4 weeks' leave or longer spent no more time with their father than did infants whose fathers took a shorter leave or no leave. We observed a positive association between any leave and sole father care on weekend days but not weekdays. The findings suggest that…
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Journal Article This study examined the association between paternal and maternal employment changes and changes in the frequency of fathers praising, showing affection, disciplining, and reading to children. Data were drawn from the Young Adult supplement to the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1979). Supporting economic theory, fathers were more involved when they and their partner were employed full time and were less involved when their employment exceeded that of their partner. Although fathers tended to be less involved when they worked less, fathers who held traditional gender role attitudes…
Webinar
This webinar discussed ways in which fatherhood practitioners can help men understand: the impact of our own upbringing on our attitudes and approach to marriage and parenting; how different stages of marriage and child development impact a relationship; ways to balance the needs of your children with the needs of your wife; essential communication and conflict resolution skills; and, strategies to deal with the inevitable stresses of family life. (Author abstract)
