Nonresident Father Involvement, Social Class, and Adolescent Weight

Abstract

Body weight issues disproportionately affect children with nonresident fathers. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, the authors investigate the relationship between nonresident father involvement and adolescent weight, specifically adolescents' risk of being underweight, overweight, and obese. The results show that nonresident father involvement is associated with adolescent weight and that the effect varies according to social class, fathers' obesity, and the gender of the child. Among both males and females, greater involvement with fathers increases their risk of obesity. Among females, the effect of father involvement on obesity is even greater if her father is obese. Among males, greater father involvement is also associated with lower risk of underweight. The effect of father involvement on adolescent obesity also varies by social class: Involvement with a more highly educated nonresident father is associated with a lower risk of obesity. Child support payments are not associated with being at risk of overweight or underweight among males or females. These results suggest that nonresident fathers must be included in policy discussions of adolescent weight, especially given the positive association between nonresident father involvement and adolescent obesity.