Fatherhood: A Summary

1
Fatherhood A Summary

• Rosalie Bakken
• CED Adolescent Specialist
• UNL-Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences
• Email rbakken_at_unl.edu

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Fatherhood A trend?

• Fathers largely ignored for decades
• Demographic trends inspire a new focus on
  fatherhood
• Divorce
• Dual career families
• Father absence
• Nebraska similar trends
• Deluge of research
• Evolving nature of research
• Federal encouragement of fatherhood research

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What does the research show?

• Healthy father involvement associated with
  positive outcomes
• Cognitive development
• Academic success
• Social and emotional development
• Healthy choices and behaviors
• Studies at a variety of stages across the
  lifespan
• Father absence associated with risk
• Even after adjusting for other factors

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A sampling of other key research findings

• ? involvement of nonmarital divorced fathers
• ? involvement in 2-parent hhs
• Quality over quantity
• Involvement goes far beyond financial support
• Delayed age of fatherhood
• Esp. highly educated
• Nonresidential and teen fathers face barriers to
  continued involvement with children
• Fathers role depends on mother

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Areas of Burgeoning Research

• Fatherhood among diverse racial and ethnic groups
• Fatherhood among special populations (teens,
  incarcerated fathers, etc.)
• Roles of nonbiological father-figures
• Stepfathers
• Grandfathers
• Legal fathers
• Foster fathers, etc.
• The meaning of becoming a father
• Its effect on mens personal development
• How fathers roles affect mothers
• Fatherhood within the context of gay and lesbian
  parenthood

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• Questions to be answered
• How do characteristics of the child affect father
  involvement?
• Under what circumstances is father involvement
  unhealthy?
• Abusive situations
• Parental conflict
• What specific dimensions of father involvement
  are most important?
• Are there certain times in the development of a
  child when father involvement is most salient?
• How does the father-child relationship evolve
  over time?
• How are fatherhood roles transmitted across
  generations?

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Policy Issues The Fatherhood Initiative

• Social policy has begun to reflect research
  findings
• National level, Began by President Clinton, 1995
• Programs and policies put into place to encourage
  further study and programming related to
  fatherhood
• National level
• Head Start, Early Head Start
• State level initiatives
• Nebraska Fatherhood Initiative, HHSS
• Our Fatherhood Team
• Others
• Local level initiatives
• Many, Clearinghouse needed

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Policy and Programming Issues to be Addressed

• Validating father involvement for all fathers in
  homes, schools, medical systems, child-care
  facilities, justice system, etc.
• Education, policy, programs
• How do we do this for diverse groups?
• Nonresidential fathers child support, custody,
  barriers to involvement
• Rights and responsibilities of teen fathers
• Influence of fatherhood movement on motherhood
• Creating father-friendly workplaces

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Nebraska Fatherhood Team

• Convened in July 2001
• CED involvement
• Department and College
• Other faculty, UNL UNO
• Others in the Community
• Long term goals
• Create a Nebraska clearinghouse
• Create supportive environment
• Examine laws, procedures, barriers to father
  involvement
• Bring lens to systems in NE
• Ecological perspective

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• Short term goal
• Working conference to bring together key people
  and organizations to focus on needs related to
  fatherhood in Nebraska
• Explore needs, funding opportunities
• Stimulate communication, research , education,
  and programming activities
• Sept or Oct 2002
• Omaha, 50-60 participants
• National speakers
• Create issue-based action plans
• Research
• Policy
• Program application
• Role for Extension will develop out of this
  conference
• Mean time.