Intergenerational Factors, Fatherhood Beliefs, and African American Fathers’ Involvement: Building the Case for a Mediated Pathway

Abstract

Intergenerational factors have been suggested as a critical interactional context shaping African American fathers’ beliefs and parenting practices. However, relatively little attention has been given to the identification of underlying processes guiding the association between intergenerational factors and African American fathers’ involvement with their children. The current investigation builds the case for fathering role ideologies and sense of parenting competence as mediators. The sample was composed of 185 African American fathers ( M = 32.20 years, SD = 8.24) residing in a midsized city in the Southeastern region of the United States. Results revealed that fathering role ideologies, but not sense of parenting competence, mediated the relationship between African American fathers’ intergenerational factors and their involvement. Findings from this investigation highlight underlying mechanisms guiding the relationship between intergenerational factors and African American fathers’ involvement with their children. Implications for intervention and prevention programming for African American fathers are discussed.