Factors affecting the quality of nonresidential fathers' parenting

Abstract

Rather than using only the reports of mothers about father, as many studies have done in the past, reports from nonresidential fathers, their former wives, and their children will be utilized in order to examine the determinants of nonresidential fathers' quality of parenting. This use of multiple reporters about fathers' characteristics and behavior will yield less method variance than single-reporter analysis. Father self-report is used for father characteristics. Mother report is used for child anti-social behavior and father parenting. Children also report on fathers' parenting practices. This study is one of the first to use data gathered from fathers. Thus, this study is a departure from previous research. Belsky' s model of the determinants of parenting is here applied to the parenting of nonresidential fathers rather than two-parent families. This study also allows for a more honest and accurate picture of what is happening the lives of nonresidential fathers and their children by allowing fathers to speak about their own behaviors, and by reducing method variance through the use of multiple report of data.