Effects of Fathers' Early Risk and Resilience on Paternal Engagement With 5-Year-Olds

Publication Year
2012

Type

Journal Article
Abstract

The present study examined whether fathers' additive risk and resilience when the child is an infant and age 5 predicted paternal engagement with children at age 5. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study (N = 4,898), we found that the results confirmed the hypothesis that early risk has a negative effect and early resilience has a positive effect on engagement 4 years later. Later father risk had a stronger negative effect on nonresidential fathers than on residential fathers. The effect of early father risk on engagement at age 5 was moderated by father engagement during infancy. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Journal
Family Relations
Volume
61
Issue
5
Pages
878-892