How Growing-up in a Fatherless Home Effects Males

Introduction

Parents can make an essential difference in a child’s life, even as they become adults; but what happens when one parent is absent from the home? For years, society has placed roles on the ‘mother’ and’ father’. In many cases the dad would often spend time away from the home working while mom nurtured their children; such traditions, marked motherhood as the most substantial role in a child’s life. This research explains how motherhood is not just a significant role in a male’s life but, the only influence they have due to the father’s absence. More than ever, children are growing up in single-parent households, and in the majority of cases, the single parent is the mother. The United States is the world’s leader of fatherless homes (Gottfried, 2007).

As former President George W. Bush stated,

Over the pastfour decades, fatherlessness has emerged as one of our greatest social problems. We know that children who grow up with absent-fathers can suffer lasting damage. They are more likely to end up in poverty or drop out of school, becomeaddicted to drugs, have a child out of wedlock, or end up in prison. Fatherlessness is not the only cause of these things, but our nation must recognize it is an important factor (Horn, 2002, p. 17).

As this research focuses on males each aspect listed above seems to be an issue males face whose father was absent as they aged.

The Main Section

Age / Issues/ Impact/Effects / Causes
Adolescent Males
(10-19) / -Pre-marital sex/ Teen pregnancy11
-Child maltreatment/neglected2
-Obesity7
-Difficulties with socio-emotional functioning7
-Trouble problem solving7
-Negative world view11
-Low grades/ grade point average7
-Lower college aspirations1
-Poor attendance record2 / Two major demographic trends have contributed to the rise in fatherabsence includingthe increase in divorce rates and the increase in Unwed childbearing. The divorce rates in the United States remain the highest in the world with an estimated 40 to 50% of all marriages ending in separation or divorce (Horn, 2002).
Men
(20&up) / -Interpersonal Difficulties1
-Living in poverty12
-Difficult bonding with their children2
-Trouble forming relationships with women1
-High divorce/ break-up rate8
All ages / -Low- Self esteem1
-Anti- Social Behavior10
-Higher odds of incarceration4
-Marry someone with less than a high school degree11
-Aggressive behavior8
-Extreme drug use5
-Behavioral issues8
-Psychiatric problems1

Summary

Fathers have and teach distinctive traits that are different from a mother. Their contributions, if any, weigh heavy on a child development emotionally, socially, behaviorally, and intellectually; heavier impact on males.Popenoe (1996) also believes that a father brings something unique to the family. Horn (2002) states that fathers make unique and irreplaceable contributions to the lives of their children. Horn (2002) adds that “Unique means that they provide something different from mothers; they are not just mommy substitutes. Irreplaceable means that when they are absent, people suffer” (p. 11). The contributions of fathers to children’s well-being cannot be fully replaced by better programming, ensuring child support programs, or even by well-intentioned mentoring programs. According to Horn (2002), the fact is “children need their fathers” (p. 11).

References

[1]Beaty, L. A. (1995). Effects of paternal absence on male adolescent’s peer relations. Adolescence, 30, 873-881.

[2]“CPS Involvement in Families with Social Fathers.” Fragile Families Research Brief No.46. Princeton, NJ and New York, NY: Bendheim-Thomas Center for Research on Child Wellbeing and Social Indicators Survey Center, 2010.

[3]Gottfried, M. (2007).Coach’s challenge. New York, NY: Howard Books.

[4]Harper, Cynthia C. and Sara S. McLanahan.“Father Absence and Youth Incarceration.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 14 (September 2004): 369-397.

[5]Hoffmann, John P. “The Community Context of Family Structure and Adolescent Drug Use.” Journal of Marriage and Family 64 (May 2002): 314-330.

[6]Horn, W.F. (2002).Father facts. Washington, DC: National Fatherhood Initiative.

[7]Howard, K. S., Burke Lefever, J. E., Borkowski, J.G., & Whitman , T. L. (2006). Fathers’ influence in the lives of children with adolescent mothers.Journal of Family Psychology, 20, 468- 476.

[8]Osborne, C., & McLanahan, S. (2007). Partnership instability and child well-being. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 1065-1083.

[9]Popenoe, D. (1996a). A world without fathers: Consequences of children living with fathers. The Wilson Quarterly, 20,12-30

[10]Sampson, R. J., & Laub, J. H. (1990). Crime and deviance over the lifespan: The salience of adult social bonds. American Sociological Review, 55, 609-627.

[11]Teachman, J. (1998). Sibling resemblance in behavioral and cognitive outcomes: The role of father presence. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60(4), 835-848. doi:10.1353/sof.2007.0056

[12]U.S. Census Bureau, Children’s Living Arrangements and Characteristics: March 2011, Table C8. Washington D.C.: 2011