Nonresident Fathers’ Parenting, Maternal Mastery and Child Development in Poor African American Single-Mother Families

Abstract

This study examines the relationships between and among economic hardship, mothers’ depressive symptoms, nonresident fathers’ parenting, mothers’ parenting and mastery, and their children’s behavioral and cognitive development in poor African American single-mother families. Informed by stress-coping and family process theoretical perspectives, this study estimates the effects of nonresident fathers’ parenting and maternal mastery on child developmental outcomes. Analyses use the first three waves of longitudinal data from a subsample of single, African American and noncohabiting mothers with low income in the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. Results suggest that nonresident fathers’ parenting is indirectly associated with children’s behavior problems and cognitive development transmitted through mothers’ parenting and mastery. Maternal mastery is also found to be one of the most influential predictors of both developmental outcomes of children. Policy and practice implications of these findings are discussed.