Predictors of Fathers’ Participation in a Longitudinal Psychological Research Study on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology

Abstract

When compared with mothers, fathers continue to be considerably underrepresented in developmental research on child and adolescent psychopathology. The present study examined the factors contributing to fathers’ participation in such studies in which both mothers and fathers were asked to participate. The sample consisted of 477 families which were examined four times over the course of ten years (Pre to Follow-up after ten years [FU10]). The average age of the children at Pre was 4 years, and that of the adolescents ten years later was 14 years (FU10). On average, 70.4% of fathers participated in the assessments. The average transition probability for participation over four assessment points was 93.1%. Fathers from two-parent families participated significantly more often than fathers from single-parent families. Household income, a good father-adolescent relationship, and joint custody, if applicable, were related to paternal participation. For fathers from two-parent families, participation at previous assessment points was the decisive predictor. For fathers from single-parent families, the relationship between the adolescent and the father was the decisive predictor. Fathers who had participated in previous assessments remained involved in the study over the long run. Therefore, the primary goal should be to encourage as many fathers as possible to participate when starting clinical empirical studies. Monetary incentives could be used to recruit families with low household incomes.