Psychosocial factors associated with becoming a young father in Finland: a nationwide longitudinal study

Venla Lehti,Andre Sourander,Lauri Sillanmäki,Fredrik Almqvist,Hans Helenius,Tuula Tamminen,Kirsti Kumpulainen

doi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-560

Abstract

BackgroundLittle is known about the characteristics of boys who become fathers at young age. Some studies have suggested that antisocial adolescents are more likely to be young fathers. The aim of this study was to examine the associations of psychosocial factors in childhood with becoming a young father, and to assess if they are independent of criminal behavior in adolescence.MethodsThe baseline assessment in 1989 included 2,946 boys born in 1981. Information about psychiatric symptoms at age eight was collected with Rutter questionnaires from parents and teachers and with the Child Depression Inventory from the children themselves. Data on criminal offenses at age 16–20 was collected from a police register. Register-based follow-up data on becoming a father under the age of 22 was available for 2,721 boys.ResultsThe factors measured at age eight, which were associated with becoming a young father independently of adolescent criminality, were conduct problems, being born to a young father and having a mother with a low educational level. Having repeatedly committed criminal offences in adolescence was associated with becoming a young father independently of psychosocial factors in childhood.ConclusionsAntisocial tendencies both in childhood and adolescence are associated with becoming a young father. They should be taken into consideration when designing preventive or supportive interventions.

Highlights

Little is known about the characteristics of boys who become fathers at young age
Identifying these factors is crucial for the better understanding of the pathways that lead to being a young father, and if needed, for providing adequate support for young fathers and their families
It has been suggested that the likelihood of becoming a young father is increased for those who have low family socioeconomic status [3,6,7,8], young parents [7,9] and low academic achievement [3,6,7,8,10,11], live in a disadvantaged neighborhood [10], and are clients of child welfare services [12]

Summary

Introduction

Little is known about the characteristics of boys who become fathers at young age. Some studies have suggested that antisocial adolescents are more likely to be young fathers. The. Some studies have shown that young fathers have an increased risk of social exclusion, low income, chronic illnesses and low life satisfaction [4,5]. Some studies have shown that young fathers have an increased risk of social exclusion, low income, chronic illnesses and low life satisfaction [4,5] It is probable, that these problems are largely explained by the pre-existing factors of boys who become young fathers [4]. Studies on internalizing symptoms are fewer and focus almost exclusively on depression, but their results are more consistent; to our knowledge, no independent association with becoming a young father has been shown [8,9,10,14,18]

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