Men and Parenting

MEN AND PARENTING

Gender roles changing

Following the broadening of women’s roles in society, cultural understandings of fatherhood are beginning to change. Almost all fathers, including the most disadvantaged, say they want to be closer to their children than they feel their fathers were to them (Lupton & Barclay, 1997). And, in all developed countries, fathers’ actual involvement is increasing (e.g. (Bianchi et al, 2006; O’Brien & Shemilt, 2003; Russell et al, 1999).

Low income fathers may find particular challenges in combining earning and caring roles. The children of the working poor have less time with their fathers than other children, partly due to their fathers’ difficulties managing insecure and inflexible low paid jobs with irregular hours (Yeung & Glauber, 2007); and there is a correlation between hours spent by fathers’ ‘hustling’ for work and low involvement (Cina, 2005). Kalil & DeLeire (2002) found the negative effects of fathers’ job loss more severe in disadvantaged families. And Bolzan et al (2004) found fathers with the lowest workplace flexibility and autonomy reporting the greatest unhappiness, anxiety and general levels of stress.

High levels of involvement benefit fathers – and children and mothers

We now know, from sophisticated research that controls for maternal and other influences, that high father-involvement is associated with a range of desirable outcomes in children and young people. These include better peer relationships; fewer behaviour problems; lower criminality and substance abuse; higher educational / occupational mobility relative to parents’; capacity for empathy; non-traditional attitudes to earning and childcare; more satisfying adult sexual partnerships; and higher self-esteem and life-satisfaction (Flouri, 2005; Pleck & Masciadrelli, 2004). Involved fathering can also ‘buffer’ children against negative circumstances. For example, a secure attachment with the father is an important protective factor against disturbance in children whose mother suffers from a mental illness including Post Natal Depression (Hall, 2004); and children at risk of psychosocial failure to thrive, maternal drug abuse, and poverty, talk and learn better when their fathers or father-figures are satisfied with parenting, provide financial support and engage in nurturant play (Black et al, 1995)

By contrast, low levels of father-involvement are associated with a range of negative outcomes. For example, low interest by fathers in children’s education has a stronger negative impact on their achievement than does contact with the police, poverty, family type, social class, housing tenure and child’s personality. This is particularly marked for sons (Blanden, 2006).

When fathers’ behaviour is actively negative (either towards children or towards their mothers) or fathers are depressed, exhibit severe anti-social behaviour or abuse substances, then the negative impact on children can be profound. For example, conflict with father, father’s negativity and father’s harsh or neglectful parenting are strongly associated with behaviour problems in children; and fathers’ harsh parenting has a stronger negative effect than mothers’ on children’s aggression (studies cited by Flouri, 2005: Phares 1999) .A young person getting on badly with EVEN ONE PARENT more than doubles their likelihood of engaging in anti-social behaviour (Wood, 2005).

Fathers also affect mothers – including their health choices and their relationships with their children. For example, the father’s smoking is by far the biggest predictor of the mother’s smoking (Bottorff et al, 2006); and fathers’ beliefs about breastfeeding impact enormously on mothers’ breastfeeding intentions and maintenance (Freed et al, 1993). Child-mother attachment is more secure when child-father attachment is secure (for review see Guterman & Lee, 2005); and heavy drinking by fathers is associated with double the risk of insecure attachments between mothers and infants (Eiden & Leonard, 1996).

Vulnerable children seem to be in the greatest need of ongoing positive relationships with their fathers and father-figures. They tend to do worse than better supported children when father-child relationships are poor or non-existent; and seem to experience greater benefits when such relationships are positive (Dunn et al 2004).

Parenting interventions with fathers

Fathers’ participation in parenting and other interventions has been found to lead to improved behaviour and parenting style; faster bonding with infants; increased knowledge and understanding of child development; increased confidence in parenting skills; more sensitive and positive parenting; greater involvement in infant and child care and in interaction with children; improved paternal sensitivity and responsiveness; greater enjoyment of parenting; greater responsiveness in infants; and greater involvement by fathers in household tasks[1](O’Brien, 2004; Goldman, 2004, pp.118-119; Barclay & Lupton, 1999; Nickel & Kocker, 1987; Donate-Bartfield & Passman, 1985; McHale & Huston, 1984; Zelazo et al, 1977). Delivering a parent education programme to both parents has been found to be significantly more effective than delivering it to just one (Bakermans-Kraneburg et al, 2003; Metzl, 1980)

Vulnerable fathers

Fathers who have been involved in public service programmes talk about their learning as parents and how they have transferred this learning from the programme to the home environment. They comment on the value of being able to spend ‘quality time’ with their child, and see benefits to their children via benefits to themselves (‘If I am a better father, he will be a better kid’ - Fagan & Palm, 2004). In a study of, and intervention with, 24 highly vulnerable families, only one father was unable to reflect usefully on his identity as a man, a father and a partner once services had engaged with him (Ferguson & Hogan, 2004).

Case study evidence suggests that engaging with problematic men’s fatherhood (for example, helping fathers towards a realization of the negative impact their behaviour is having on their children; or initially limiting contact with a child while providing support for the father to help him tackle seriously negative behaviour) can stimulate positive change (Sheehan, 2006; Hall, 2004; McLean et al, 2004). And paternal care of infants and young children by unemployed or low income males from unpromising backgrounds can facilitate productive engagement with family and society (e.g. Brannen & Nilson, 2006; Warin et al, 1999; Speak, 1997).

Developments in neuroscience (experiments with rats) suggest that high levels of paternal care may precipitate brain changes that lead to more positive behaviours generally: the prefrontal cortex seems to be involved, and this plays a major role in planning, judgment and the anticipation of the consequences of behaviour (Kozorovitskiy et al, 2006).

Strategies for engaging with fathers on parenting

Earlier attempts to engage with fathers took the view that men were unwilling to engage; that if they did, it would need to be through the offices of a dedicated ‘fatherworker’ who had unique skills; and that men-only groups would be fathers’ preferred form of engagement (Burgess & Bartlett, 2003).

We now know that while some fathers, like some mothers, are resistant to engaging with family services, many are not; that engagement is most successful when carried out by the whole team; that women can work very effectively with fathers; that most of the team already have skills they could use with great effect, but are reserving for their engagement with mothers; that men-only groups will only appeal to a small minority of fathers; and that for highly vulnerable fathers one-on-one support will be required (Sherrif, 2007;Ghate, 2000).

In Green’s (2003) survey of 213 US early childhood educators, multiple regression analysis found three factors significantly accounting for success in involving fathers: including the father's name on the enrolment form; sending written correspondence to fathers even if they live apart from their children; inviting fathers into the service to participate in educational activities with their children.

All this requires systemic change and whole-team-commitment (Ashley et al, 2006;Lloyd et al, 2003; Ryan, 2000; Edwards, 1998). Currently, service providers in both adult and children’s services rarely gather the most basic information about men’s parental status or the fathers in the families they serve (Tyrer et al, 2005; Sherlock, 2004), commonly failing to identify important males in children’s lives and their relationship to the child[2](Ashley et al, 2006; Ferguson & Hogan, 2004; Daniel & Taylor, 2001; Radhakrishna et al, 2001; Ryan, 2000) especially when the fathers are living in another household (Edwards, 1998).

We now know that successful engagement with fathers requires, among other things, agency-commitment, whole-team training and development; a good understanding of the fathers in the local community (so that appropriate services can be provided), ‘settings’ that are genuinely welcoming to fathers; referral and registration systems, developed through local partnerships, that routinely gather and store information all fathers; and so on (Fathers Direct, 2008). Systemic institutional change (for example, taking the stance that men have to be involved in assessments and family interventions, or refusing to accept a referral without reference to the father) can quite quickly achieve a higher level of father participation than is typical in mainstream child protection (Ferguson & Hogan, 2004; Pithouse et al, 2001).

Particularly important is the need for the whole team to examine openly, and keep examining, their notions, worries and biases regarding father-involvement (Ferguson & Hogan, 2004;McBride et al, 2001). The most effective practice not only involves professionals seeking to build on fathers’ strengths as a support to mothers and as a resource for children, but also seeing the man as valuable in himself. One practitioner said: ‘We need the father here because he’s important. His life is important’ (Ferguson & Hogan, 2004).

REFERENCES

Ashley, C., Featherstone, B., Roskill, C., Ryan, M., & White, S. (2006). Fathers Matter:

research findings on fathers and their involvement with social care services. London:

Family Rights Group.

Bakermans-Kraneburg, M.J., Van Ijzendoorn, M.H., & Juffer, F. (2003) Less is more: meta-analyses of sensitivity and attachment interventions in early childhood. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 195-215.

Barclay, L., & Lupton, D. (1999). The experiences of new fatherhood: a socio cultural analysis.Journal of Advanced Nursing, 29(4), 1013-20Bakermans-Kraneburg et al, 2003;

Bianchi, S.M., Robinson, J.P., & Milkie, M.A. (2006). Changing Rhythms of American Family Life. New York: Russell Sage.

Black, M.M., Dubowitz, H., Hutcheson, J., Berenson-Howard,J., & Starr,R.H. (1995). A randomized clinical trial of home intervention for children with failure to thrive. Pediatrics, 95(6), 807-814.

Blanden, J. (2006). ‘Bucking the trend’: What enables those who are disadvantaged in

childhood to succeed later in life? Working Paper No 31 Corporate Document Services. London: Department for Work and Pensions.

Bolzan, N., Gale, F., & Dudley, M. (2004). Time to father. Social Work in Health Care, 39(1-2), 67-88.

Bottorff, J.L., Oliffe, J., Kalaw, C., Carey, J., & Mroz, L. (2006). Men’s constructions of smoking in the context of women’s tobacco reduction during pregnancy and postpartum. Social Science and Medicine, 62, 3096-3108.

Brannen, J. & Nilsen, A. (2006). From fatherhood to fathering: transmission and change among British fathers in four-generation families. Sociology, 40(2), 335-352.

Burgess, A. & Bartlett, D. (2003). Working with Fathers: a guide for everyone working with families. London: Fathers Direct

Cina, M.G. (2005). The effects of postindustrial employment configurations on father-child involvement in urban fragile families. Dissertation Abstracts International, 34(06), 2006.

Daniel, B., & Taylor. J. (2001). Engaging with Fathers: practice issues for health and social care. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Donate-Bartfield, D., & Passman, R.H. (1985). Attentiveness of mothers and fathers to their babies’ cries. Infant Behaviour and Development, 8, 385-393.

Dunn, J., Cheng, H., O’Connor, T. G., & Bridges, L. (2004). Children’s perspectives on their relationships with their non-resident fathers: influences, outcomes and implications. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 553-566.

Edwards, J. (1998). ‘Screening out men: or “has mum changed her washing powder recently?”’ In J. Popjay, J. Hearn & J. Edwards (eds) Men, Gender Divisions and Welfare London: Routledge

Eiden, R.D., & Leonard, K.E. (1996). Paternal alcohol use and the mother-infant relationship. Development and Psychopathology, 8, 307-323.

Fagan, J., & Palm, G. (2004). Fathers and Early Childhood Programmes. Clifton Park NY: Thomson (Delmar Learning).

Fathers Direct (2008). Toolkit for Father-Inclusive Practice. London.

Ferguson, H., & Hogan, F (2004). Strengthening Families through Fathers: developing policy and practice in relation to vulnerable fathers and their families. Dublin: Family Affairs Unit, Dept. of Social and Family Affairs. Tel: 01-703 4956.

Fisher, J.R.W., Cabral de Mello, M., Patel, V., & Rahman, A. (2006). Maternal depression and newborn health. Newsletter for the Partnership of Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, 2. Geneva. Document available at (last accessed 23 April 2007).

Flouri, E. (2005a). Fathering & Child Outcomes. Chichester, West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons.

Freed, G.L., Fraley, J.K., & Schanler, R.J. (1993). Accuracy of expectant mothers’ predictions of fathers’ attitudes regarding breast-feeding. Journal of Family Practice, 37(2), 148-152.

Ghate, D., Shaw, C., & Hazel, N. (2000). Engaging fathers in preventive services: fathers and family centres. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation and York YPS.

Goldman, R. (2005). Fathers’ Involvement in their Children’s Education. London: National Family and Parenting Institute

Green, S. (2003). Reaching out to fathers: an examination of staff efforts that lead to greater father involvement in Early Childhood Programs. Early Childhood Research and Practice, 5(2). Paper available at: (Last accessed 8 February 2007).

Guterman, N.B., & Lee, Y. (2005). The role of fathers in risk for physical child abuse and neglect: possible pathways and unanswered questions. Child Maltreatment, 10(2), 136-149.

Hall, A. (2004). Parental psychiatric disorder and the developing child. In M. Gopfert, J. Webster & M.V. Seeman (eds.), Parental Psychiatric Disorder: distressed parents and their families (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Kalil, A., & DeLeire, T. (2002). Parental Job Loss and Early Adolescent Adjustment in Black and White Families. Working Paper 282 Northwestern University/University of Chicago: Joint Center for Policy Research

Kozorovitskiy, Y., Hughes, M., Lee, K., Gould, E. (2006). Fatherhood affects dendritic spines and vasopressin V1a receptors in the primate prefrontal cortex. Nature Neuroscience, 9(8).

Lloyd, N., O’Brien, M., & Lewis, C. (2003). Fathers in Sure Start Local Programmes. Report 04 National Evaluation of Sure Start. London: Birkbeck, University of London.

Lupton, D., & Barclay, L. (1997). Constructing Fatherhood: discourses and experiences. London: Sage Publications

McBride, B.A., Rane, T.R., & Bae, Ji-Hi. (2001). Intervening with teachers to encourage father male involvement in early childhood programs. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 16(1), 77-93.

McHale, S.M., & Huston, T.l. (1984). Men and women as parents: sex role orientations, employment, and parental roles with infants. Child Development, 55, 1349-1361

McLean, D., Hearle, J., & McGrath, J. (2004). Are services for families with a mentally ill parent adequate? In M. Gopfert, J. Webster & M.V. Seeman (eds.), Parental Psychiatric Disorder: distressed parents and their families (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Metzl, M.N. (1980). Teaching parents a strategy for enhancing infant development. Child Development, 51, 583-586.

Nickel, H., & Kocher, N. (1987). West Germany and the German speaking countries. In M.E.Lamb (ed.), The Father’s Role: Cross-Cultural Comparisons. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

O’Brien, M. (2004b). Fathers and Family Support: promoting involvement and evaluating impact. London: National Family and Parenting Institute.

O’Brien, M., & Shemilt, I. (2003). Working Fathers: earning and caring. London: Equal Opportunities Commission. Available at: (Last accessed 17 October 2006)

Phares, V. (1999). “Poppa” Psychology: the role of fathers in children’s mental well-being. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger.

Pithouse, A., Holland, S., & Davey, D. (2001). Assessment in a specialist referred family centre: outcomes for children. Children and Society, 15(5), 302-314.

Pleck, J.H., & Masciadrelli, B.P. (2004). Paternal Involvement by U.S. residential fathers: levels, sources and consequences. In M.E. Lamb (ed.), The Role of the Father in Child Development (4th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Radhakrishna, A., Bou-Saada, I.E., Hunter, W., Catellier, D.J., & Kotch, J.B. (2001). Are father surrogates a risk factor for child maltreatment? Child Maltreatment, 6(4), 281-289.

Russell, G., Barclay, L., Edgecombe, G., Donovan, J., Habib, G., Callaghan, H., & Pawson, Q. (1999). Fitting Fathers into Families. Canberra: Australian Federal Department of Family & Community Services.

Ryan, M. (2000). Working with Fathers. Abingdon: Radcliffe Medical Press (for the Department of Health).

Sheehan, M. (2006) ‘Working with dads in supervised access’. Paper presented bfor Relationships Australia, WA, at the Dad in the Early Years Conference, Perth, Western Australia, 23 May.

Sherriff, N. (2007). Supporting Young Fathers: examples of promising practice. Brighton: Trust for the Study of AdolescenceSherlock, 2004),

Speak, S. (1997). Young, single, non-residential fathers: their involvement in fatherhood. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Tyrer, P., Chase, E., Warwick, I., & Aggleton, P. (2005). ‘Dealing with it’: experiences of young fathers in and leaving care. British Journal of Social Work, 35, 1107-1121.

Warin, J.,,Solomon, Y., Lewis, C., & Langford, W. (1999). Fathers, Work, and Family Life. (1999) London: Family Policy Studies Centre.

Wood, M. (2005). Perceptions and experience of antisocial behaviour: findings from the 2003/2004 British Crime Survey. London: Home Office Online report 49/04. Available at: (Last accessed 9 November 2007).

Yeung, W.J., & Glauber, R.K. (2007). Time use for children in low-income families. In R. Crane & E. Marshall (eds.), Handbook of Families and Poverty: Interdisciplinary Perspectives. London: Sage Publications

Zelazo, P.R., Kotelchuck, M., Barber, L., & David, J. (1977, March). Fathers as men: an experimental facilitation of attachment behaviours. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, New Orleans

[1]Greater father involvement in infant care and other household tasks is also correlated with lower parenting stress and depression in mothers (for review, see Fisher et al, 2006).

[2] Given the substantial, increased risk posed to children by father-figures, this seems a startling oversight.