The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #60434

David A. Jones, CSW¹, Laura Ensler, MSEd¹, Maryam Navaie-Waliser, DrPH², Aubrey Spriggs, MA², and Priscilla Lincoln, RN, PhD³. (1) Early Steps Family Center, Visiting Nurse Service of New York, 86-01 Rockaway Beach Blvd, Far Rockaway, NY 11693, (2) Center for Home Care Policy and Research, Visiting Nurse Service of New York, 5 Penn Plaza, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10001, 212-290-3540, maryam.navaie@vnsny.org, (3) Children and Family Services, Visiting Nurse Service of New York, 5 Penn Plaza, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10001

Introduction: This presentation will outline successful home and community-based interventions for engaging and sustaining father involvement in child rearing. Methods: Fifty-eight fathers whose children were enrolled in an Early Head Start Program in New York were recruited prospectively over three years. Data were gathered on their sociodemographic, social, health, and environmental characteristics; needs; and interactions with their children and children’s mothers. Results: The majority of fathers were adolescent/young, African-American or Hispanic, unmarried, had <high school education, and employed. Most fathers had psychosocial risk factors including alcohol/substance use, domestic violence, depression, and anxiety. Nearly all fathers had little/no parenting skills, negative parenting styles, and fair/poor child development knowledge. However, only 14% of fathers had negative attitudes about parenting. The fathers’ relational history with their own fathers was poor, the majority having had little or no contact with their fathers during childhood, and only 10% having sustained relationships with their fathers. Three interventions were found to be successful for engaging fathers: (1) including fathers in home visits focused on child development and parenting (2) individual and group counseling focused on the father-child relationship, and (3) linkages to employment and education. Sustainability of fathers’ involvement with their children required periodic crisis intervention, counseling and mediation. Critical pathways through which interventions operated were relationship building and enhancing fathers’ skills around communication, anger management/conflict resolution, and life management. Conclusions: Programs aiming to engage and sustain father involvement in child rearing are more likely to succeed if intervention efforts focus on relationship and skills building.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Recognize strategies essential to successful father engagement and participation
• Learn to identify and develop services that meets the needs of the fathers
• Learn to evaluate, analyze and sustain father involvement
• Learn to create services that support fathers’ ability to participate more effectively in many aspects of their children’s lives.

Keywords: Head Start, Home Visiting

Related Web page: www.vnsny.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Visiting Nurse Service of New York
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employer