Early Fathers Research Articles

Early Fatherhood after a History of Childhood Maltreatment Trauma: Relationships, Experiences, and Intervention Needs

Early Fatherhood after a History of Childhood Maltreatment Trauma: Relationships, Experiences, and Intervention Needs

Early fatherhood and socioeconomic outcomes among young men transitioning from foster care in the United States

PurposeEarly fatherhood among young men transitioning from foster care has received scant research attention. The purpose of the present study was to: (a) examine the rates of fatherhood by age 21 in two distinct samples of youth transitioning from foster care in the United States; and (b) evaluate the impact of fatherhood on youths‘ educational and vocational attainment, and experiences of homelessness and incarceration, at age 21. MethodsWe used data from two cohorts of the National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD), initiated in years 2011 and 2014. The final sample for each cohort consisted of young men who completed a baseline survey at age 17, and two follow up surveys at ages 19 and 21 (N = 2488 and N = 2793, respectively). Data from each NYTD cohort was merged with data from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) for years 2011 and 2014. ResultsThe cumulative rate of fatherhood by age 21 was 19.3% in the 2011 sample, and 16.5% in the 2014 sample. The rates of fatherhood were higher between ages 19–21, as compared to earlier ages. In multivariate analyses, fatherhood was linked to lower educational attainment and higher risk of homelessness and incarceration, but not to employment status. These findings were consistent across both NYTD samples. ConclusionsFathers represent a sizable group of transitioning foster youth, who may exhibit detrimental outcomes in young adulthood. Appropriate services and supports are necessary to assist these vulnerable young men.

“I thought, Oh shit, because I was 19.” Discourses and practices on young fatherhood in Denmark

This article presents the voices of 30 young fathers from the first interview-based study in Denmark on young fatherhood. The findings show that men face significant challenges when they become fathers at a young age and that they often feel stigmatised by society. Young fatherhood, however, can also promote social integration and produce forms of empowerment. Unlike most international research on young fatherhood, this study shows that economic circumstances do not play a crucial role in the ability of fathers to gain access to their children. This may be due to support aimed at socially disadvantaged families provided by the state. The results further indicate that early fatherhood should be seen as a transitional process, rather than as an event, with the young father gradually abandoning teenage life and where a delay in the development of the father-child relationship does not necessarily rule out the later emergence of a stable father-child relationship.

The Meaning of Speaking in Tongues: A Practical Strategy for the 21st Century Church

The meaning of speaking in tongues portrays a language that challenges the church in its interpretation in matters of spiritual gifts from God. This article focuses on the Old and New Testament perspectives on tongues; tongues reveal God’s judgment, promises, fulfilment and its negative usages such as selfishness, jealousy, and discouragement. This is mostly for those who do not speak the language. On its positive side it looks at it as an initial sign of baptism in the spirit in which the Pentecostals and charismatic movements put their emphasis on the faith and practice. As it follows its usage in prayer, thanksgiving, truth, praise to God, the edification of the individual and prophecy to the entire church. Church history provides the understanding of the use of tongues particularly in reference to early church fathers, such as Eusebius, Irenaeus, Dean Ferrar, Chrysostom Bishop of Constantinople, and Augustine of Hippo and briefly on the reformation period. It concludes by proposing the practical strategies for discovering the gift of tongues, through workshops on spiritual gifts, small group discussions, gift discovery group and its application in the church and individual.

Father Involvement in the First Year After Prison: Considerations for Social Work

Purpose: Paternal incarceration poses significant concerns for fathers and their children. Despite the known negative consequences, little is understood about father involvement after prison. This study aims to further understanding of fatherhood following incarceration to inform future intervention strategies. Method: Using data from the Urban Institute’s Returning Home: Understanding the Challenges of Prisoner Reentry Study ( N = 326), we conduct bivariate and multivariate analyses to examine three dimensions of father involvement and predictors of involvement at two time points after prison. Results: Findings reveal generally high levels of father involvement in the first year following incarceration. Father-child contact during prison and increased work hours after prison showed positive effects on early father involvement, while post-prison engagement and contact following release were associated with later involvement. Conclusions: Promoting father-child contact and positive relationships during incarceration may be important for future father involvement after release. Potential social work and criminal justice practice and research opportunities are discussed.

The influence of perceived parental phubbing on adolescents’ problematic smartphone use: A two-wave multiple mediation model

Using a two-wave longitudinal design, the current study examined the relationship between early perceived parental phubbing and subsequent problematic smartphone use. As loneliness is a sensitive indicator of interpersonal problems and fear of missing out is a strong predictor of Internet-related addiction, we examined these two variables as possible mediators in this relationship based on existing literature. A total of 1447 Chinese adolescents (572 males and 875 females, mean age = 16.15 years) completed questionnaires regarding perceived parental phubbing, loneliness, fear of missing out, and problematic smartphone use. The results indicated that: (a) early fathers’ phubbing (fphubbing) and mothers’ phubbing (mphubbing) predicted adolescents’ subsequent problematic smartphone use; (b) loneliness mediated the relationship between early fphubbing/mphubbing and adolescents’ subsequent problematic smartphone use; and (c) loneliness and fear of missing out sequentially mediated the relationship between early fphubbing/mphubbing and adolescents’ subsequent problematic smartphone use. These results suggested that three types of interventions could be effectively used to decrease the risk of problematic smartphone use among adolescents, namely, reducing perceived parental phubbing, relieving loneliness, and decreasing fear of missing out.

Parent and Peer Attachments in Adolescence and Paternal Postpartum Mental Health: Findings From the ATP Generation 3 Study.

Background: When adolescent boys experience close, secure relationships with their parents and peers, the implications are potentially far reaching, including lower levels of mental health problems in adolescence and young adulthood. Here we use rare prospective intergenerational data to extend our understanding of the impact of adolescent attachments on subsequent postpartum mental health problems in early fatherhood.Methods: At age 17–18 years, we used an abbreviated Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment to assess trust, communication, and alienation reported by 270 male participants in their relationships with mothers, fathers, and peers. More than a decade later, we assessed the adult males, now fathers, at 12 months postpartum (N = 409 infant offspring) for symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Logistic regression was used to examine the extent to which attachment dimensions predicted paternal postpartum mental health, adjusting for potential confounding, and with assessment for interactions between parent and peer attachments.Results: Trust in mothers and peers, and good communication with fathers during adolescence, were associated with 5 to 7 percentage point reductions in postpartum mental health symptoms in early fatherhood. Weak evidence of parent-peer interactions suggested secure attachments with either parent or peer may compensate for an insecure attachment with the other.Conclusions: Our results suggest that fostering trust and communication in relationships that adolescent boys have with parents and peers may have substantial effects on rates of paternal postpartum mental health problems. The protective benefits may be preventative in intergenerational cycles of risk for mental health problems.

Child Development Knowledge and Father Engagement: The Mediating Role of Parenting Self-efficacy

Early father engagement is associated with numerous positive child outcomes including cognitive development, emotional regulation, and fewer problem behaviors. Various fathering programs attempt to encourage father engagement through teaching fathers about young children’s development and needs. This study examined 181 low-income fathers’ child development knowledge (self-perceived and objective) as predictors of father engagement (verbal stimulation, caregiving, and physical play) with infants. Additionally, parenting self-efficacy (PSE) was examined as a mediator. Results revealed that fathers’ self-perceived child development knowledge positively predicted engagement with infants (verbal stimulation and caregiving), but objective knowledge did not. PSE did not mediate the relationship between self-perceived knowledge and father engagement. These findings yield important implications for fathering research and interventions, suggesting that it may be particularly beneficial to increase fathers’ confidence in their ability to understand and meet their child’s needs rather than exclusively focusing on improving fathers’ knowledge of child development.

Father involvement in infancy predicts behavior and response to chronic stress in middle childhood in a low-income Latinx sample.

Fathers' involvement in early childhood is important for children's physical, emotional, and cognitive development, particularly in low-income families. However, little is known about the longitudinal relations between early father involvement and children's later physiological responses to chronic stress and behaviors impacted by stress in the context of poverty. These issues are particularly important among Latinx immigrant families who face significant psychosocial and poverty-related risk. In the current study, we examined the relationship between father involvement in infancy and physiological chronic stress in the middle childhood period, as measured through hair cortisol concentration (HCC), and several behavioral measures (attention problems, working memory) in a Latinx immigrant sample with low income. Father involvement in infancy predicted children's later HCC, and working memory in second to third grade. Father involvement also moderated the effect of HCC on working memory, such that increased HCC predicted better working memory when fathers were not involved. These findings suggest that the fathers' involvement in infancy has lasting impacts on health and behavior and that associations between physiological and behavioral measures of stress may be moderated by differences in early father involvement.

Determinants and Consequences of Adolescent Fatherhood: A Longitudinal Study in Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam

PurposeAdolescent parenthood is a major challenge in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, the vast majority of the evidence has focused on adolescent motherhood. Little is known about adolescent fatherhood in LMICs. The aim of this study was to examine the determinants of early fatherhood and its consequences on a range of outcomes among adolescent males. MethodsThis study used three waves of longitudinal data from the multicountry Young Lives cohort study, specifically following a sample of 1,779 adolescent boys at ages 15, 19, and 22 years in Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam. Individual fixed effects models were conducted to investigate the sociodemographic determinants of adolescent fatherhood and the consequences of adolescent fatherhood on males' education, health, psychosocial well-being, and time use outcomes. ResultsThe results indicated that lower educational attainment, absence of the adolescent's mother and father from the home, larger household size, and poverty increased the likelihood of becoming an adolescent father by age 22 years. The results revealed that becoming an adolescent father was associated with a higher likelihood of school dropout, being overweight, smoking, greater internalizing problems, and less time spent on leisure activities and more time spent on caregiving responsibilities. ConclusionsHighlighting the experiences of young men as adolescent parents in LMICs, findings underscore the importance of prevention strategies to delay early parenthood for adolescent boys and multicomponent interventions to support young fathers and their unique health, socioeconomic, psychosocial, and behavioral needs.

Exploring Basotho teenage fathers’ experiences of early fatherhood at South African rural high schools

This study explored the early fatherhood experiences of school-going teenage fathers. Informants were four South African Sesotho speaking teenage fathers, aged 17 to 20 years. They responded to semi-structured interviews on their experiences during schooling. Following thematic analysis, results revealed that Basotho teenage fathers are initially fearful of being early fathers and they initially react with denial of parenthood. The early fathers reported experiencing humiliation by schoolteachers and peer rejection, which also harmed their academic performance. Subsequently, the early fathers underwent a transition becoming resilient, choosing to involve themselves in their children’s upbringing and growth, and building positive relationships with their partners.

‘Working Out Dads’ to promote men’s mental and physical health in early fatherhood: A mixed-methods evaluation

ABSTRACT Mental and physical health problems are common during early fatherhood. The current study aimed to assess a broad range of mental, physical and social outcomes for fathers of young children (aged 0–4 years) participating in a pilot evaluation of ‘Working Out Dads’ (WOD). These results were complemented by a nested qualitative study capturing the perceived outcomes for fathers. The sample consisted of 53 fathers who completed pre-, post- and 3-month follow-up measures. There were significant reductions in psychological distress, depression, anxiety and stress from pre- to post-intervention, which were maintained at 3-month follow-up. There were significant improvements in perceived vitality levels across all time points, and improvements in general physical health, social support and parenting self-efficacy from pre- to the 3-month follow-up. The nested qualitative results revealed that fathers and their partners perceived positive changes to paternal health, social support, parenting and the couple relationship. These findings contribute to the evidence-base for interventions targeting fathers’ health in the early years of their children's lives. The current findings will be used to inform further development of WOD.

Testing a Contextual Model of Effects of Father Involvement on Child Behaviors

To conduct secondary data analyses to test a heuristic contextual model of father involvement (mother and father report of father caregiving) at 5 years of age on children’s internalizing, externalizing, and delinquency behaviors subsequently measured at middle childhood. Data from two waves of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study were analyzed. Path analyses found that mother-reported father involvement was significantly negatively predictive of child externalizing in girls and delinquency in boys, even after controlling for the effects of father age, socioeconomic status, and health, and including the effects of mother involvement in the models. Mother involvement was significantly positively predictive of child externalizing in girls and delinquency in boys. In the context of a model that explicitly considers the confounding effects of father characteristics and mother involvement, early father involvement was found to be predictive of later lessened child externalizing behaviors.

Mary in the Šḥimo and the Early Syriac Fathers

Mary in the Šḥimo and the Early Syriac Fathers

The Daughter of the Word: What Luther Learned from the Early Church and the Fathers

Abstract All the major sixteenth-century Reformers knew something about the early church and used the early Fathers. As an Augustinian monk and professor of theology, however, Luther’s knowledge and use of the great Father was both deeper and more nuanced. While indebted to Augustine, Luther went further in defining what it meant for theology to be ‘scriptural’. He saw history as the interaction of God’s two regimes, and the church of every age as weak and flawed but conquering through the cross of Christ. This led him to a free use of the Fathers without being constrained to always agree with or imitate them. The comfort he received from the Apostles’ Creed in particular led him to appreciate the early creedal statements, and so it was natural for him to use them as models when formulating the new confessions required in his own day. The sixteenth-century heritage of written confessions of faith is a heritage under-appreciated but still vital for church bodies today.1

Early father–child and mother–child attachment relationships: contributions to preschoolers’ social competence

ABSTRACT The main goal of this study was to explore the contributions of early father–child and mother–child attachment relationships to children’s later social competence with their preschool peers; possible unique and shared contributions were tested. Using a multi-method design and focusing on direct observation, attachment was assessed at home at age 3 with the Attachment Behavior Q-sort (AQS) and two years later social competence was assessed at classrooms of 5-year-olds using a set of seven measurement indicators that are part of the Hierarchical Model of Social Competence. Results show that attachment to each parent made unique and significant contributions to children’s social competence and suggested the possibility that each caregiver may have somewhat different patterns of influence on the different indicators of children’s social competence. Findings also suggest the possibility that a secure attachment with one parent may buffer the impact of having an insecure relationship with the other. Due to sample size, these results should be seen as a starting point to generate new and larger studies.

The Sculptor and His Stone: Selected Readings on Hellenistic and Christian Learning and Thought in the Early Greek Fathers, ArchbishopChrysostomos (ed.), James Clarke and Co., 2016 (ISBN 978‐0‐227‐17622‐1), xii + 166 pp., pb £15

The Sculptor and His Stone: Selected Readings on Hellenistic and Christian Learning and Thought in the Early Greek Fathers, ArchbishopChrysostomos (ed.), James Clarke and Co., 2016 (ISBN 978‐0‐227‐17622‐1), xii + 166 pp., pb £15

Measuring the Quality of Early Father–Child Rough and Tumble Play: Tools for Practice and Research

Fathers are increasingly acknowledged as active participants in rearing young children, yet few observational measures recognize gender-differentiated parenting and can be used by practitioners and researchers to assess and improve fathers’ parenting capacity in playful settings, in order to inform program effectiveness. Two potential measures are the Rough-and-Tumble Play Quality Scale (RTPQ), which is based on evolutionary and attachment theory and assesses rough-and-tumble play behaviors related to social-emotional competencies. The second is Dads’ Parenting Interaction with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO-D), which is grounded in a systemic approach linking parenting behaviors to child outcomes. The aim of this study was to compare the two observational measures for suitability of assessment of fathers’ parenting capacity with diverse low-income families. A correlational longitudinal design was used to examine naturalistic rough-and-tumble play extant video observations of 25 fathers and their 2- to 4-year-old children independently coded with each measure, with child prekindergarten and fifth grade outcomes. Convergent validity showed strong association between the two measures. No associations were found with family characteristics. Both measures predicted child prekindergarten attention regulation and aggression (inversely). PICCOLO-D predicted prekindergarten language and cognition, and language/literacy in fifth grade. The similarities and subtle differences between the measures confirm the distinctive theoretical approaches underpinning each measure, and suggest both are suitable tools for practitioners and researchers. PICCOLO-D may be useful for multiple type of play, while the RTPQ may be more relevant to specific qualities of paternal physical play interaction.

Sleep Etiquette and the Education of a Reluctant Gentlewoman in Seventeenth-Century England

ABSTRACTMary Evelyn was an unusual early modern gentlewoman. She refused to wed and failed to perform the duties of a housewife. Yet her father’s greatest concern was not any of these habits, but rather her unconventional sleep habits. Examining Mary Evelyn’s case, this paper argues that it illustrates the significance of good sleep etiquette, as well as the practical methods that an early modern father used in order to raise his daughter to be a proper gentlewoman. These relied not merely on the inculcation of an ideology of good behaviour or gentility, but on the performance of specific, measurable duties.

Paternal Support and Involvement in Unmarried Fragile Families: Impacts on Long-Term Maternal Mental Health.

Fragile families are defined as those that include unmarried or romantically unstable parents who have children and are socioeconomically disadvantaged. Mothers in fragile families may experience risk factors that lead to increased depressive symptoms that inhibit their ability to bounce back after stressful events. Risk factors for poorer maternal mental health may include declines in father involvement and a lack of coparenting support. This study examined the connected nature of coparenting and father involvement over time among continuously unmarried mothers from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. A bidirectional latent growth curve analysis demonstrated that early father involvement was associated with a more gradual decline in coparenting support over the child's first 5years, while early coparenting support also predicted a slower decline in father involvement over time. Steeper declines in coparenting support and father involvement over time were linked with more maternal depression and lower maternal life satisfaction when their child was nine. Results demonstrate a clear need for targeted intervention with both parents in fragile families to promote involved fathering behavior and enhance coparental relationships.