In the United States, the state of fathering has been a concern across all racial groups. Approximately 73% of Black men father children prior to marriage in comparison to 56% of Hispanic men and 30% of White men. The proportion of children born outside of marriage rose from 40% to 47% between 2002 and 2006-2010 (Martinez, Daniels, & Chandra, 2012). Shifts in economic opportunities, cultural, social, and political factors have strong influences on the way in which fatherhood is defined, experienced, and judged. Although there is a plethora of research on fathering involvement in the area of non-resident fathering, this research is dominated by a sampling pool of middle-class European Americans. The purpose of this study was to examine parenting practices of non-residential African American fathers residing in the Midwest. I explored how these men defined what it meant to be a father and their perceptions of the influences on their fathering behaviors. Ten African American non-residential fathers from the Midwest were interviewed utilizing a phenomenological interview approach. Data were collected using one-hour semi-structured interviews that were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. The data were then critically and rigorously analyzed, utilizing a four part coding, data analytic method including (1) applying open coding to identify emerging concepts, (2) applying in vivo coding by grouping similar comments into categories based on their common properties, (3) applying axial coding to group codes and to create themes, and (4) organized themes into categories that was based on the theory of planned behavior constructs. Five thematic domains (i.e. external variables, attitudes towards behavior, subjective norms, perceived control, and intentions), along with seventeen themes emerged from the phenomenology data analysis procedure including: bonding, father vs. sperm donor, father warmth, identity, father roles, influences, number of children, parent’s individual differences, sex and age of the child, employment, financial support, emotions, inter-parental conflict, inter-parental relationships, relationship quality, distance, and limit setting. Findings from this study lead to several recommendations for ways to strengthen the role of fathers within the non-residential family dynamic, with the ultimate goal of improving the health and well-being of all the members of the family.

South Africa is the most popular international destination for Zimbabwean migrants escaping the economic crisis of their country. It has been estimated that by 2016, one and a half million Zimbabwean nationals were living in South Africa. However, little research explores the lived experience of Zimbabweans in South Africa in the context of family. This is despite scholars highlighting an increase in family migration from Zimbabwe to South Africa in recent years. This study explores the parenting experiences of immigrant Zimbabwean parents raising their children in South Africa. Specifically, it investigates the ways in which raising children in a different country and cultural context influences parents’ understanding of and approaches to parenting. Nine Zimbabwean mothers and fathers living with their spouses and children in Cape Town participated in a qualitative study, with semi-structured interviews. Data was collected and analysed using thematic analysis. The study found that the participants’ overarching experience of parenting was that they were ultimately raising ‘South Africans’. Participants framed their children’s ‘South African-ness’ positively, identifying the children as cosmopolitan and empowered, which they celebrated. However, they also lamented the children’s loss of identity as the most problematic aspect of ‘South African-ness’. To navigate the resultant tensions, participants relaxed some of their existing beliefs while simultaneously implementing measures to reinforce some non-negotiable values and beliefs in their children. This dissertation argues that while parents’ understanding of parenting is strongly rooted in their cultural background and values, they adapt their parenting styles and practices according to what they calculate will enable their families to thrive. The study adds to the body of knowledge on immigrant Zimbabwean families who have become part of South African society. This is especially relevant in light of the South African government’s laudable initiatives towards regularising the stay of Zimbabweans in South Africa, such as the Dispensation of Zimbabweans Project (DZP) of 2009 and its successive permits. This study can therefore contribute to the body of knowledge that informs the ways in which South Africa can continue to respond to the reality of migration from Zimbabwe.

Past researchers have reported that father absence and low engagement affects 24 million children in the United States. African American fathers make up the largest group with low involvement. Fatherhood programs support men in their roles, yet little is known about why this group still exhibits low engagement. Using the family systems theory as a foundation, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of African American fathers who participated in fatherhood programs and their engagement after these programs. This study used purposeful sampling and semi-structured interviews to collect information from 9 African American men aged 18-45 from Philadelphia, PA who participated in fatherhood programs and self-identified as uninvolved. The research question focused on how the lived experiences of noncustodial African American fathers who participated in fatherhood programs influenced their involvement and engagement in their children's lives. Nine audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and coded for themes using a classification system based on key terms and repetitive words. Fathers while part of the family system were found to exhibit low accountability and blaming behavior, resulting in continued low involvement. Future research should include a quantitative or mixed methods study to consider distinct variables such as stated intent, actual behavior, blame, and personal accountability, and influence on involvement. This study contributes to positive social change by informing program modules with interventions for fathers by proposing a shift from lecture models to peer support models considering accountability, support, and the coparenting relationship.

The purpose of this study was to explore current African American fathers' experiences with being fathered, and to understand how those definitions, perceptions, and experiences of fatherhood impacted their involvement in the lives of their own children. In-depth individual interviews were conducted in Detroit, Michigan with 10 African American fathers ranging in age from 22 to 25. Ecological systems theory and identity theory served as the theoretical framework for the study. Member checking, detailed descriptions, and audit trails were used to establish trustworthiness of the data. The findings of the study showed that father involvement was directly related to or affected by being fathered. The participants' desires or abilities to be active and involved fathers with their own children were not contingent on whether their own fathers were active in their lives. The participants expressed specific ideas about what being a father means to them, the importance of the role, how they enact the role, and the impact of their role on their children. Drawing on their own experiences, both positive and negative, participants expressed an unwavering level of commitment to their role and children. The themes that emerged from the interviews included: presence, responsibility, fatherhood as a priority, acceptance, and reciprocal relationships. The participants did not equate being a father with providing financial support, but placed significant emphasis on meeting the emotional and psychological needs of their children. The need for continued exploration of father involvement among young African American fathers is necessary in order for the development of comprehensive, research-based programs to provide support for and benefit to both fathers and their children.

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Research on developmental, family, and cross-cultural psychology has consistently found evidence that discrepancies exist between parents and their youth around individual preferences, social conventions, and personal values. In immigrant families, these issues may be compounded by cultural change. Indeed, some research has found that immigrant parent-youth dyads diverge in their heritage and settlement culture orientations and have different personal values priorities. These discrepancies, in turn, are related to poorer youth and family adjustment. In recent years, some studies have proposed that facets of the parent-youth relationship may buffer the experience of maladjustment as a function of cultural discrepancies. Therefore, this dissertation had two general aims: (1) to examine the extent to which immigrant Arab Canadian youth perceive cultural discrepancies between themselves and their parents, as well as how they relate to individual and familial adjustment; and (2) to identify specific facets of the parent-youth relationship that moderate the association between perceived cultural discrepancies and outcomes. Although research on different cultural groups as well as immigrant and ethnic minority families has increased in recent years, there is a paucity of empirical work examining Arab immigrants in Canada. This dissertation used a mixed-methods approach to comprehensively investigate youth’s perceptions of parent-youth cultural discrepancies and parent-youth relationships, and how they related to intergenerational conflict and ethnocultural identity conflict. Study 1 consisted of a series of semi-structured interviews. Using a narrative approach, 12 immigrant youth were asked to describe their individual and family experiences as Arabs living in Canada. Findings confirmed that youth perceived cultural discrepancies between themselves and their parents, which were associated with increased intergenerational conflict and ethnocultural identity conflict. However, specific aspects of the parent-youth relationship were identified as either a protective (i.e., when they were open, communicative, and supportive) or risk (i.e., when they were marked by emotional distance) factor. Study 2 was a quantitative approach to examine the prevalence of perceived cultural discrepancies, and their association with intergenerational conflict and ethnocultural identity conflict. Specifically, a series of hierarchical regressions were used to test the hypotheses that parent-youth relationships moderated the associations between perceived cultural discrepancies and conflict. Results confirmed that immigrant Arab youth in Canada perceived heritage and settlement culture orientation and values discrepancies between themselves and their parents, that perceived cultural discrepancies were associated with more conflict, and that parent-youth relationships moderated the relationship between perceived cultural discrepancies and conflict. These studies were among the first to examine these issues in immigrant Arab families in Canada. It is imperative to increase our knowledge of Arab families in Canada given their rapid population growth, cultural dissimilarity, the pervasiveness of group misunderstanding and misrepresentation that has been exacerbated post-9/11, and the likelihood that immigration from the Middle East and North Africa will surge following the Arab Spring.

Around 14,000 men in New Zealand are the primary caregiver for their children, yet little recent research has focused on this phenomenon. Seventy fathers were recruited from the community, consisting of 35 primary-caregiving fathers, and 35 secondary-caregiving fathers. Participants completed a variety of measures which gathered data about their developmental history, personal characteristics, marital relationship, work and economic factors, social network factors, and child characteristics. Results indicated that primary-caregiving fathers earned significantly less income than secondary-caregiving fathers; were significantly more likely to identify with non-Pakeha ethnicity, and were significantly more likely to have no educational qualifications than secondary-caregiving fathers. Primary-caregiving fathers also rated their relationship with their mother as having significantly more care. Primary-caregiving status was predicted by older age of fathers, and increased parenting self-efficacy. Implications of the results are discussed, as are strengths and limitations of the study, as well as future directions for research.

Tėvystės tyrimai, apimantys socialinės lyties aspekto nagrinėjimą, Lietuvoje vis dar fragmentiški. Vyriškumo aspektas tėvystės tyrimuose svarbus, nes dažnai paaiškina tėvystės praktikas, grįstas galios santykiais tarp vyrų ir moterų šeimoje bei vyrų santykio su vaikais pobūdį. Šeimos modelio pokyčiai nuo tradicinės link modernios šeimos Lietuvoje demografų pastebimi po 1990 m. Nepriklausomybės atkūrimo. Vienas iš modernios šeimos bruožų – įvairėjančios šeimos formos, sąlygojančios tėvystės praktikų įvairovę. Disertacijoje nagrinėjamos skirtingo socialinio statuso bei skirtingų šeimos formų vyrų tėvystės patirtys bei gilinamasi į jų tėvo vaidmens sampratą. Disertacijos tikslas - sukurti grindžiamąją teoriją, atskleidžiančią vyrų, turinčių mažų vaikų tėvystės patirtis ir praktikas. Tam pasitelkta A. Strausso ir J. Corbin (1996) grindžiamosios teorijos versija. Tyrimo rezultatai interpretuojami pasitelkiant teorines darbo prielaidas - R. Connell (1987) hegemoninio vyriškumo teoriją, T. Coleso (2008) mozaikinio vyriškumo interpretaciją, H. Novotny (1981) emocinio kapitalo sampratą, L. Adkins (2004) ir P. Bourdieu (1977) kritinio refleksyvumo koncepcijas. Sukurtoje grindžiamojoje teorijoje išryškėja, kad šiuolaikinis tėvas vis labiau verčiamas būti sąmoningu ryšyje su vaikais ir vaikų motina. Jo sąmoningumą skatina tiek išorinės struktūrinės aplinkybės: išsilavinimas ar darbas susijęs su ugdymo klausimais, prieinama ekspertinė literatūra vaikų ugdymo klausimais, šeimos santykių... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Researches of fatherhood involving gender dimension, are still fragmentary in Lithuania. The aspect of masculinity in fatherhood researches is important, because it often explains fathering practices based on power relations between men and women in the family and the relationship nature of men with their children. Demographers observe family model changes from traditional to modern family in Lithuania since the restoration of Independence in 1990. An increasingly diverse family forms is one of the modern family attributes allowing a variety of fathering practices. The dissertation examines fathering experiences of men with different social status and diverse types of family as well as looks into the men’s conception of the father role. Objective of the thesis - to create a Grounded theory, revealing men with young children fathering experiences and practices according to A. Strauss and J. Corbin (1996) Grounded theory version. The results are interpreted by means of theoretical assumptions - R. Connell (1987) theory of hegemonic masculinity, T. Coles (2008) interpretation of the mosaic masculinity, H. Novotny (1981) concept of emotional capital, L. Adkins (2004) and P. Bourdieu (1977) concepts of critical reflexivity. The results of Grounded theory reveal that the contemporary father is progressively enforced to be conscious in relations with the child and the mother. His awareness is stimulated both by external structural factors, such as education or work associated to the... [to full text]

The dissertation addresses men and change, intergenerational transmission, historical change and agency, employing as a case a longitudinal follow-up study over two generations of men, where the fathers participated in an experimental research project, the Work-Sharing Couples Project, which aimed to promote egalitarian work–family adaptations in Norway in the early 1970s. The original project was based on both spouses working part-time and shift parenting. The summary presents a multidimensional analysis of the work–family adaptations of the two generations of men: the untraditional adaptation of fathers in the 1970s; and the neo-traditional adaptations of sons in the 2000s. Their different work–family adaptations are discussed as situated agency, taking into account different aspects of time and space, personal biography, discursive and material structures of opportunity, and intergenerational dynamics at the family level as well as at social level. The five articles present the empirical material: Bjørnholt (2009a) presents the impact on the couple relation and the family of the the parents’ work–sharing arrangement, concluding that the work-sharing arrangement was perceived by the participants to have been beneficial for their couple relationship as well as for the family as a whole. Bjørnholt (2011) explores the motivations of the work-sharing men to act as agents of change towards gender equality, concluding that personal biography, an authoritative way of being and new masculinity ideals, notably a partner- oriented masculinity, were important. Bjørnholt (2010b) analyses the consequences of the work-sharing arrangement on the work-sharing men’s careers, concluding that there were few negative career effects. They were rather successful, and their house-father experiences tended to be valued by employers as management skills. Bjørnholt (2009b) concludes that a father–son design is insufficient in explaining intergenerational transmission and Bjørnholt (2010c) finds that the untraditional work–family arrangement had not been passed on to sons.

abstract: This study investigated father-child Activation Theory and the impact of activative fathering on children's dysregulation and social skills. The sample followed 145 families of typically developing children across ages 4 to 6. Fathering and mothering behaviors were coded via naturalistic observations at child age 4, children's dysregulation was coded during a laboratory puzzle task at age 5, and children's social skills were rated by parents and teachers at age 6. Results found support for a constellation of activative fathering behaviors unique to father-child interactions. Activative fathering, net of mothering behaviors, predicted decreased behavioral dysregulation one year later. Support was not found for moderation of the relation between activative fathering and children's dysregulation by paternal warmth, nor was support found for children's dysregulation as a mediator of the relation between activative fathering and children's social skills. These results suggest that parenting elements of father-child activation are unique to fathering and may be more broadly observable in naturalistic contexts not limited to play activities alone. Additionally, activative fathering appears to uniquely influence children's self-regulatory abilities above and beyond identical mothering behavior. In the present work, paternal warmth was not a necessary for activative fathering to positively contribute to children's regulatory abilities nor did children's dysregulation link activative fathering to social skills. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Psychology 2014