Father
Facts:
|
Children who have fathers
who regularly engage
them in physical play
are more likely to be
socially popular with
their peers than children
whose fathers do not
engage them in this
type of play.
Source: Carson, J.,
V. Burks, & R.D.
Parke. "Parent-child
Play: Determinants and
Consequences."
In K. MacDonald (Ed.),
Parent-child Play: Descriptions
and Implications. Albany,
NY: State University
of New York Press, 1993:
197-220; see also Parke,
R.D. "Fathers and
Families." In M.H.
Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook
of Parenting: Vol. 3,
Status and Social Conditions
of Parenting. Mahwah,
NJ: Erlbaum, 1995: 27-63 |
|
For predicting a child's
self-esteem, it is ...physical
affection from fathers
that matters for daughters.
Source: Duncan, Greg
J., Martha Hill, and
W. Jean Yeung. "Fathers'
Activities and Children's
Attainments." Paper
presented at the Conference
on Father Involvement,
October 10-11, 1996,
Washington, D.C., pp.
5-6. |
|
Children with "hands-on"
fathers (fathers who
are involved, set reasonable
household rules, monitor
TV and internet use,
etc.) are much less
likely to use drugs
than children with "hands-off"
or absent fathers.
Source: The National
Center on Addiction
and Substance Abuse
at Columbia University.
"National Survey
of American Attitudes
on Substance Abuse VI: |
|
In a study of fathers'
interaction with their
children in intact two-parent
families, nearly 90%
of the fathers surveyed
said that being a father
is the most fulfilling
role a man can have.
Source: Yeung, W. Jean,
et al. "Children's
Time with Fathers in
Intact Families."
Paper presented at the
Annual Meeting of the
American Sociological
Association, Chicago,
IL, August, 2000. |
|
A study using a national
probability sample of
1,250 fathers showed
that children whose
fathers share meals,
spend leisure time with
them, or help them with
reading or homework
do significantly better
academically than those
children whose fathers
do not.
Source:
Cooksey, Elizabeth C.
and Michelle M. Fondell.
"Spending
Time with His Kids:
Effects of Family Structure
on Fathers' and Children's
Lives." Journal
of Marriage and the
Family 58 (August 1996):
693-707 |
|
Utilizing a sample of
1,052 children born
between 1956 and 1962
and followed until 1985,
it was found that the
children whose fathers
were substantially involved
in parent-teacher activities
completed more schooling
and enjoyed higher wages
and family income as
adults compared to those
whose fathers had little
or no involvement in
parent-teacher activities.
Source:
Duncan, Greg J., Martha
Hill, and W. Jean Yeung.
"Fathers' Activities
and Children's Attainments."
Paper presented at the
Conference on Father
Involvement, October
10-11, 1996, Washington,
D.C., pp. 5-6 |
|
Father-child interaction
has been shown to promote
a child's well-being,
perceptual abilities,
and competency for relatedness
with others, even at
a young age.
Source:
Krampe, E.M. and P.D.
Fairweather. "Father
Presence and Family
Formation: A Theoretical
Reformulation."
Journal of family Issues
14.4 (December 1993):
572-591. |
|
A study on parent-infant
attachment found that
fathers who were affectionate,
spent time with their
children, and overall
had a positive attitude
were more likely to
have securely attached
infants.
Source:
Cox, M.J., et al. "Prediction
of Infant-Father and
Infant-Mother Attachment."
Developmental Psychology
28 (1992): 474-483. |
|
Fathers with more flexible
work schedules report
less role strain and
lower levels of marital,
professional, and parental
stress.
Source:
Guelzow, M.G., G.W.
Bird, and E.H. Koball.
"An Exploratory
Path of the Stress Process
for Dual-Career Men
and Women."
Journal of Marriage
and the Family 53 (1991):
151-164. |
|
According to a 1996
Gallup Poll, 90.3 percent
of Americans agree that
"fathers make a
unique contribution
to their children's
lives."
Source:
Gallup Poll, 1996. National
Center for Fathering.
"Father Figures."
Today's Father 4.1 (1996):
8. |
|
A survey by the Radcliffe
Public Policy Center
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
found that over 80 percent
of men ages 20 to 39
said having a work schedule
that allows them to
spend time with their
family is more important
than doing challenging
work or earning a high
salary.
Source:
Life's Work: Generational
Attitudes toward Work
and Life Integration.
Cambridge, MA: The Radcliffe
Public Policy Center,
2000. |
|
Seventy percent of men
ages 21-39 said they
want to spend more time
with their families
and would be willing
to sacrifice to do so.
Source:
Life's Work: Generational
Attitudes toward Work
and Life Integration.
Cambridge, MA: The Radcliffe
Public Policy Center,
2000. |
|
Using a national probability
sample, father involvement
correlates with fewer
behavior problems exhibited
by their children. This
finding holds after
controlling for the
level of maternal involvement.
Source:
Amato, Paul R., and
Fernando Rivera. "Paternal
Involvement and Children's
Behavior Problems."
Journal of Marriage
and the Family 61 (1999):
375-384 |
|
Mothers and fathers
are equally sensitive
to the needs of infants
and preschoolers.
Source:
Goossens, F.A., and
M.H. Van Ijzendoorn.
"Quality of Infant's
Attachment to Professional
Caregivers: Relation
to Infant-Parent Attachment
and Day-Care Characteristics."
Child Development 61
(1990): 832-837 |
|
"Fathers tend to
play games with their
children that involve
more physical activity,
teamwork, and mental
skills. Often their
games involve more competition,
independence, risk-taking,
and initiative. Fathers
may act as if they are
teachers and their children
are apprentices. They
focus on the long-term
development and well-being
of their children. "
Source:
Popenoe, David. Life
Without Father. New
York: Martin Kessler
Books, The Free Press,
1996. 143-145. |
|
"Children whose
fathers were highly
involved in their schools
were more likely to
do well academically,
to participate in extracurricular
activities, and to enjoy
school, and were less
likely to have ever
repeated a grade or
been expelled compared
to children whose fathers
were less involved in
their schools..."
Source:
Nord, Christine Windquist.
Students Do Better When
Their Fathers Are Involved
at School (NCES 98-121).
Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Education,
National Center for
Education Statistics,
1998 |
|
A study of 1330 children
from the PSID showed
that fathers who are
involved on a personal
level with their child
schooling increases
the likelihood of their
child's achievement.
When fathers assume
a positive role in their
child's education, students
feel a positive impact.
McBride,
Brent A., Sarah K. Schoppe-Sullivan,
and Moon-Ho Ho. "The
mediating role of fathers'
school involvement on
student achievement."
Applied Developmental
Psychology 26 (2005):
201-216 |
|
Higher levels of father
involvement in activities
with their children,
such as eating meals
together, helping with
homework, and going
on family outings, has
been found to be associated
with fewer child behavior
problems, higher levels
of sociability, and
higher levels of academic
performance in children
and adolescents.
Source:
Mosley, J., and E. Thomson.
"Fathering
Behavior and Child Outcomes:
The Role of Race and
Poverty."
In W. Marsiglio (ed.),
Fatherhood:
Contemporary Theory,
Research and Social
Policy. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage Publications,
1995: 148-165. |
|
A Mastercard survey
found that close to
85% of fathers polled
said "the most
priceless gift of all"
was time spent with
their family.
Source:
Harper, Jennifer. "Americans
Celebrate Dad Today
in All of His Different
Guises."
Washington Times, June
18, 2000: c1. |
|
"Statistics show
that when children grow
up without a mom and
dad at home, they're
more likely to fall
behind in school, more
likely to experiment
with drugs and alcohol,
more likely to be in
trouble with the law.
And boys who grow up
without fathers are
more likely to become
fathers themselves at
a young age, perpetuating
a cycle of absentee
fatherhood that has
terrible consequences
generation after generation.
The evidence is clear:
Children need fathers
in their lives."
First
Lady Laura Bush, Speaking
at National Fatherhood
Initiative's 2005 Fatherhood
Awards Gala in Washington,
D.C., April 19, 2005 |
|
"Dad is my buddy."
JOSH,
AGE 10, AS QUOTED BY
MARY JAY SHANLEY IN
WHEN
I THINK ABOUT MY FATHER |
Statistics:
According
to 72.2 % of the U.S. population,
fatherlessness is the most significant
family or social problem facing
America. --Source: National
Center for Fathering, Fathering
in America Poll, January, 1999.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
An estimated 24.7 million children
(36.3%) live absent their biological
father. --Source: National Fatherhood
Initiative, Father Facts, (3rd
Edition): 5.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Children who were part of the
"post war generation"
could expect to grow up with
two biological parents who were
married to each other. Eighty
percent did. Today, only about
50% of children will spend their
entire childhood in an intact
family. --Source: David Poponoe,
American Family Decline, 1960-1990:
A Review and Appraisal Journal
of Marriage and Family 55 (August
1993).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With the increasing number of
premarital births and a continuing
high divorce rate, the proportion
of children living with just
one parent rose from 9 percent
in 1960 to 28 percent in 1996.
Currently, 57.7 percent of all
black children, 31.8 percent
of all Hispanic children, and
20.9 percent of all white children
are living in single-parent
homes. --Source: Saluter, Arlen
F. Marital Status and Living
Arrangements: March 1994., US
Bureau of the Census, Current
Population Report. p28-484.
Washington, DC: GPO, 1996. US
Bureau of the Census. Statistical
Abstract of the United States
1997, Washington, DC: GPO, 1997.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services states, "Fatherless
children are at a dramatically
greater risk of drug and alcohol
abuse" --Source: U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services.
National Center for Health Statistics.
Survey on Child Health. Washington,
DC, 1993.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Children growing up in single-parent
households are at a significantly
increased risk for drug abuse
as teenagers. --Source: Denton,
Rhonda E. and Charlene M. Kampfe.
"The relationship Between
Family Variables and Adolescent
Substance Abuse: A literature
Review." Adolescence 114
(1994): 475-495.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Children who live apart from
their fathers are 4.3 times
more likely to smoke cigarettes
as teenagers than children growing
up with their fathers in the
home. --Source: Stanton, Warren
R., Tian P.S. Oci and Phil A.
Silva. "Sociodemographic
characteristics of Adolescent
Smokers." The International
Journal of the Addictions 7
(1994): 913-925.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Children in single-parent families
are two to three times as likely
as children in two-parent families
to have emotional and behavioral
problems. --Source: U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services.
National Center for Health Statistics."National
Health Interview Survey."
Hyattsville, MD, 1988.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Three out of four teenage suicides
occur in households where a
parent has been absent. --Source:
Elshtain, Jean Bethke."Family
Matters: The Plight of America's
Children." The Christian
Century (July 1993): 14-21.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In studies involving over 25,000
children using nationally representative
data sets, children who lived
with only one parent had lower
grade point averages, lower
college aspirations, poor attendance
records, and higher drop out
rates than students who lived
with both parents. --Source:
McLanahan, Sara and Gary Sandefur.
Growing up with a Single Parent:
What Hurts, What Helps. Cambridge:
Harvard University Press, 1994.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fatherless children are twice
as likely to drop out of school.
--Source: U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. National
Center for Health Statistics.
Survey on Child Health. Washington,
DC; GPO, 1993.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
School children from divorced
families are absent more, and
more anxious, hostile, and withdrawn,
and are less popular with their
peers than those from intact
families. --Source: One-Parent
Families and Their Children:
The School's Most Significant
Minority. The Consortium for
the Study of School Needs of
Children from One-Parent Families.
National Association of elementary
School Principals and the Institute
for Development of Educational
Activities, a division of the
Charles f. Kettering Foundation.
Arlington, VA 1980.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Children in single parent families
are more likely to be in trouble
with the law than their peers
who grow up with two parents.
--Source: U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. National
Center for Health Statistics.
National Health Interview Survey.
Hyattsville, MD, 1988.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Adolescent females between the
ages of 15 and 19 years reared
in homes without fathers are
significantly more likely to
engage in premarital sex than
adolescent females reared in
homes with both a mother and
a father. --Source: Billy, John
O. G., Karin L. Brewster and
William R. Grady. "Contextual
Effects on the Sexual Behavior
of Adolescent Women." Journal
of Marriage and Family 56(1994):
381-404
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A white teenage girl from an
advantaged background is five
times more likely to become
a teen mother if she grows up
in a single-mother household
than if she grows up in a household
with both biological parents.
--Source: Whitehead, Barbara
Dafoe. "Facing the Challenges
of Fragmented Families."
The Philanthropy Roundtable
9.1 (1995): 21.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Over half of Americans agree
that most people have unresolved
problems with their fathers.
Cumulatively, 55.6% agreed with
this statement, up from 54.1%
in our 1996 poll. More non-whites
(70.4%) than whites (56.3%)
were in agreement. Interestingly,
the generation who has experienced
more father absence, 18- to
24-year-olds, displayed the
highest level of agreement (67.2%).
Income was also a differentiating
factor: of the respondents making
$25,000 or less, 70.1% agreed,
compared to only 48.0% among
those who make more than $50,000.
Source National Center For Fathering
1996
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Direct
Result of Fatherlessness:
·
63% of youth suicides are from
fatherless homes.
(Source: U.S. D.H.H.S.,
Bureau of the Census).
· 90% of all
homeless and runaway children
are from fatherless homes.
· 85% of all
children that exhibit behavioral
disorders come from fatherless
homes.
(Source: Center for
Disease Control).
· 80% of rapist
motivated by displaced anger
come from fatherless homes.
(Source: Criminal Justice
and Behavior, Vol. 14, pp. 403-26).
· 71% of all
high school dropouts come from
fatherless homes.
(Source: National Principals
Assoc. Report on the State of
High Schools).
· 85% of all youths sitting
in prisons grew up in a fatherless
home.
(Source: Fulton County
Georgia jail populations, Texas
Dept. Of Corrections, 1992).
Study:
Non-Resident Fathers Who Stay
Involved In Children's Lives
Have Positive Effect
February
9, 2007 4:31 p.m. EST
Linda Young - All Headline
News Staff Writer
Boston, MA (AHN) -
Researchers at Boston College
have found that even fathers who
don't live with their children
can have a positive effect if
they simply stay involved in
their children's lives.
"Greater involvement from
fathers may help adolescents
develop self-control and
self-competence, and may
decrease the opportunities
adolescents have to engage in
problem behaviors," researchers
at Boston College said in a
statement released Wednesday.
The study revealed that
youths were less likely to take
part in behavior such as drug
and alcohol use, violence,
property crime and school
problems like truancy and
cheating if their fathers stayed
involved with them.
That is good news for a
nation where more juveniles live
in single-parent homes.
According to statistics from
the U.S. Department of Justice's
Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention, the
proportion of children living in
single-parent homes more than
doubled between 1970 and 2005.
It increased from 12 percent to
28 percent.
"Nonresident fathers in
low-income, minority families
appear to be an important
protective factor for
adolescents," said Rebekah
Levine Coley, professor of
applied development and
educational psychology at Boston
College and the study's lead
author.
Over 16-months, researchers
studied 647 adolescents from
primarily African American and
Hispanic families, most of them
living with their mothers in
poverty.
Researchers also found, that
black parents, unlike white
parents, did not pull away from
their children when they became
involved in delinquent behavior.
That is also important
because more than half of all
black children (55 percent) live
with only one parent, compared
to less than one-quarter (23
percent) of white children,
according to Office of Juvenile
Justice figures.
The Boston College study is
published in the
January/February issue of the
journal "Child Development."
|
