Public perceptions of fatherhood changed dramatically during the Machine Age in the 1920s and 1930s as gender roles became less polarized and social science advocated the benefits of father-child relationships. This book describes the economic, political, and social factors that contributed to the modern view of fatherhood, emphasizing the similarities with today's image of fathers as provider, playmate, and male role model. The social construction is important to contemporary fathers and mothers as they consider the evolution and future of fatherhood in the United States. The chapters…
This report provides an overview of State trends to promote responsible fatherhood, identifies and profiles specific State strategies to encourage fathers to be responsible, and summarizes State-by-State fatherhood-related data. Data was gathered between February and May of 1997 by the staff of both the National Center for Children in Poverty and the Council of Governors' Policy Advisors. The analysis is based on responses from all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Findings indicate that by 1996, 27% of all families were headed by mothers only and that the number of…
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Journal Article Research into adolescent parenting involvement has focused primarily on mothers while neglecting fathers. This article concentrates on ecological factors that influence the parental involvement of adolescent fathers, such as the stresses of adolescent fatherhood, role during pregnancy, and the father's relationship with the child's mother and her parents. These factors must be acknowledged and addressed by practitioners working with adolescent parents. Issues relevant to the parental involvement of African American adolescent fathers are highlighted in order to balance the negative portrayal…
This manual provides an overview of the evaluation process, with special considerations for programs funded by the Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF). The text describes why evaluations are important and explains each step of the process, whether an outside evaluator is used or the evaluation is being conducted by in-house staff. Topics include: purpose, cost, types of evaluation teams, selecting and managing outside contractors, organizational preparation for the evaluation, evaluation plans, data collection, analysis, and reports. In general, program managers should…
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Journal Article This article attempts to explore the tendency of child protection workers to concentrate upon mothers, and ignore or avoid fathers or male cohabitees. The article suggests that ignoring or avoiding men constitutes a serious problem in child protection work, and makes suggestions on how trainers and managers may prepare workers more effectively, enabling them to engage men who are significant in the lives of abused children. 49 references. (Author abstract)
This program evaluation assessed the effectiveness of the Young Men as Fathers (YMAF) program administered by the California Youth Authority. The program offers parenting education to 15 to 20 wards of the state living in four institutions to help them become more involved in their families, prevent child abuse and neglect, and provide greater emotional and financial support to their children. Data for the evaluation was collected for 822 program participants from July 1993 through December 1995 and for a comparison group of 847 wards in two non-participating institutions. While the…
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Journal Article This article reviews the five key social work journals for the years 1988-1996. These journals had a total subscription of 168,000 during the mid-point of this nine-year span. The five journals published a combined total of 30 issues per year, ranging from 4 to 10 issues. A total of 2,323 feature articles were published in 270 issues during that period. The earlier depictions of fathers in the articles as perpetrators and as embattled have been superseded. The emerging view of fathers as nurturing is reflected in other sources. Thus, the view of the father as perpetrator and as someone to…
In this intergenerational collection of poetry by new and established African American writers, fatherhood is celebrated with honor, humor, and grace. Folami Abiade, Dinah Johnson, Carole Boston Weatherford, Dakari Hru, Michael Burgess, E. Ethelbert Miller, Lenard D. Moore, David Anderson, Angela Johnson, Sonia Sanchez, and Davida Adedjouma all contribute. Javaka Steptoe, who also offers a poem, employs an inventive range of media to bring each of the poems to life. In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall testifies to the powerful bond between father and child, recognizing family as our greatest gift, and…
This report details the experiences of six two-generation intervention projects in New York City supported by grants from the Foundation for Child Development. The two-generation projects help low-income families gain access to employment-related services for parents, and developmental services such as quality child care and health care for children. Although programs varied, all included voluntary services, used counseling, and had a moderate level of openness to parent input and decision making. Chapter 1 of the report describes recent changes in the welfare system and efforts to develop…
Divorced But Still My Parents is a textbook, workbook and storybook for children ages six through twelve. Based on the grief recovery model, this guide gently encourages boys and girls to understand the feelings caused by the parents' separation, and gives them specific strategies to cope. Parents can read Divorced But Still My Parents along with their children, and support the acceptance of changes in the family structure. Instructors in childrens' groups recommend Divorced But Still My Parents as an invaluable textbook for children. (Author abstract)
