British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 45(4), 2017, pp.266-273.
Publisher:
Wiley
Accessible summary: 1) This study asked fathers of adults who have a learning disability about their experiences, what helps them and any worries they may have; 2) Fathers reported different experiences of being a father to an adult with a learning disability and talked about things that were helpful, such as their wives, grandparents, having information and hobbies; 3) Fathers were worried about the person who has a learning disability in the future; 4) Fathers can be important in supporting people who have a learning disability throughout their lives.
Background: There is little research that specifically relates to fathers of adults with a learning disability despite the social expectation that fathers will provide a supportive role over the lifespan.
Methods: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with seven fathers of adults with a learning disability to explore their roles, needs and concerns. Data were analysed using a framework associated with interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).
Results: Themes arising demonstrate that fathers were shocked at the diagnosis of learning disability but usually reported adaptation over time. The impact of learning disability upon men's lives, their perception of their adult child and the roles they assumed were varied. Fathers valued support from wives and grandparents, having knowledge and interests and work-type roles. All fathers were concerned about the future yet comprehensive futures planning was lacking. Some fathers reported difficulties in being emotionally open, and referred to societal stereotypes. Fathers valued positive support from service providers; however, this relationship was often in conflict.
Conclusion: Although mothers are often the main carers for adults with a learning disability, fathers can make a significant contribution. The findings presented here support the results of previous studies regarding paternal response to learning disability and varied impact upon men's lives. Identified support strategies include leisure interests, volunteer/work roles, having information and support from wives and grandparents. Ongoing concerns incorporate the future and ambivalent relationships with service providers, which could have a negative impact upon the individual who has a learning disability.
(Publisher abstract)
Accessible summary: 1) This study asked fathers of adults who have a learning disability about their experiences, what helps them and any worries they may have; 2) Fathers reported different experiences of being a father to an adult with a learning disability and talked about things that were helpful, such as their wives, grandparents, having information and hobbies; 3) Fathers were worried about the person who has a learning disability in the future; 4) Fathers can be important in supporting people who have a learning disability throughout their lives.
Background: There is little research that specifically relates to fathers of adults with a learning disability despite the social expectation that fathers will provide a supportive role over the lifespan.
Methods: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with seven fathers of adults with a learning disability to explore their roles, needs and concerns. Data were analysed using a framework associated with interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).
Results: Themes arising demonstrate that fathers were shocked at the diagnosis of learning disability but usually reported adaptation over time. The impact of learning disability upon men's lives, their perception of their adult child and the roles they assumed were varied. Fathers valued support from wives and grandparents, having knowledge and interests and work-type roles. All fathers were concerned about the future yet comprehensive futures planning was lacking. Some fathers reported difficulties in being emotionally open, and referred to societal stereotypes. Fathers valued positive support from service providers; however, this relationship was often in conflict.
Conclusion: Although mothers are often the main carers for adults with a learning disability, fathers can make a significant contribution. The findings presented here support the results of previous studies regarding paternal response to learning disability and varied impact upon men's lives. Identified support strategies include leisure interests, volunteer/work roles, having information and support from wives and grandparents. Ongoing concerns incorporate the future and ambivalent relationships with service providers, which could have a negative impact upon the individual who has a learning disability.
(Publisher abstract)
Research into the positive roles that fathers of children with learning disabilities can provided is explored. The article highlights the findings from a 2006 study from the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities and a 2009 survey of 250 fathers of children with learning disabilities.
Research into the positive roles that fathers of children with learning disabilities can provided is explored. The article highlights the findings from a 2006 study from the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities and a 2009 survey of 250 fathers of children with learning disabilities.
Social Science and Medicine, 66(2), January 2008, pp.302-314.
Publisher:
Elsevier
Current international policy trends in the field of medically assisted conception are moving towards increased openness of information regarding the nature of conception where donated gametes are involved. In the case of donor insemination this means that the donor is no longer anonymous, offspring have the right to access information about the donor's identity, and parents are encouraged to tell
Current international policy trends in the field of medically assisted conception are moving towards increased openness of information regarding the nature of conception where donated gametes are involved. In the case of donor insemination this means that the donor is no longer anonymous, offspring have the right to access information about the donor's identity, and parents are encouraged to tell children the nature of their donor-assisted conception. Until recently, however, the practice of donor insemination has tended to create the conditions for ignoring, or erasing, the existence of the donor as the provider of the gametes. Changing policy creates numerous challenges to this erasure, and to traditional conceptualisations of the father. This research is based on analysis of the narratives of a group of 41 New Zealand couples who conceived children with the assistance of donor insemination 15–18 years prior. This article focuses on their talk about the donor. The parents’ negation of the donor supports the normative formation of ‘family’, and is in turn supported by an instrumental and de-personalising discourse in relation to the donor. A tension is created within the parents’ talk whereby donors are negated and yet simultaneously appear as persons. This discursive construction is explored, suggesting that a new framework for thinking about donated gametes and the role of the donor is influencing parents’ narrations and understandings of family. These influences and their implications are examined, particularly with respect to a separation of the bio-genetic from the social-environmental.
Practice: Social Work in Action, 16(1), March 2004, pp.55-64.
Publisher:
Taylor and Francis
Fathers have attracted increased government attention in recent years and a number of research studies and reports have focused on their role and the significance of the father figure. This article draws on a small study at an early years centre in northern England aiming to identify fathers' needs, and barriers preventing men accessing services such as those offered at the centre. Two findings were: the traditional and stereotypical image of 'masculinity' is important in the area and may contribute to men not wanting to use service; and the centre's current users were not demographically typical of the area. Most were employed and married: this was not typical of the community. Suggests that staff's attitudes and service priorities may have an impact on users and these should be further explored.
Fathers have attracted increased government attention in recent years and a number of research studies and reports have focused on their role and the significance of the father figure. This article draws on a small study at an early years centre in northern England aiming to identify fathers' needs, and barriers preventing men accessing services such as those offered at the centre. Two findings were: the traditional and stereotypical image of 'masculinity' is important in the area and may contribute to men not wanting to use service; and the centre's current users were not demographically typical of the area. Most were employed and married: this was not typical of the community. Suggests that staff's attitudes and service priorities may have an impact on users and these should be further explored.
Subject terms:
parents, access to services, family centres, fathers;
While the importance of fathers in unmarried coparent families is a strong area of social and political interest, a dearth of community-based interventions exists for supporting the role of fathers in at-risk families. The Co-Parent Court (CPC) was a 3-year demonstration project evaluating the effectiveness of a collaborative intervention to support unmarried coparents establishing paternity and improving their coparenting relationships and paternal involvement in their child's life. A randomised-control experimental design was employed. The paper will explore father involvement and coparent relationship outcomes.
(Publisher abstract)
While the importance of fathers in unmarried coparent families is a strong area of social and political interest, a dearth of community-based interventions exists for supporting the role of fathers in at-risk families. The Co-Parent Court (CPC) was a 3-year demonstration project evaluating the effectiveness of a collaborative intervention to support unmarried coparents establishing paternity and improving their coparenting relationships and paternal involvement in their child's life. A randomised-control experimental design was employed. The paper will explore father involvement and coparent relationship outcomes.
(Publisher abstract)
This article highlights three dimensions to understanding children's well-being during and after parental imprisonment which have not been fully explored in current research. A consideration of ‘time’ reveals the importance of children's past experiences and their anticipated futures. A focus on ‘space’ highlights the impact of new or altered environmental dynamics. A study of ‘agency’ illuminates how children cope within structural, material and social confines which intensify vulnerability and dependency. This integrated perspective reveals important differences in individual children's experiences and commonalities in broader systemic and social constraints on prisoners’ children. The paper analyses data from a prospective longitudinal study of 35 prisoners’ children during and after their (step) father's imprisonment to illustrate the arguments.
(Publisher abstract)
This article highlights three dimensions to understanding children's well-being during and after parental imprisonment which have not been fully explored in current research. A consideration of ‘time’ reveals the importance of children's past experiences and their anticipated futures. A focus on ‘space’ highlights the impact of new or altered environmental dynamics. A study of ‘agency’ illuminates how children cope within structural, material and social confines which intensify vulnerability and dependency. This integrated perspective reveals important differences in individual children's experiences and commonalities in broader systemic and social constraints on prisoners’ children. The paper analyses data from a prospective longitudinal study of 35 prisoners’ children during and after their (step) father's imprisonment to illustrate the arguments.
(Publisher abstract)
Children and Youth Services Review, 34(12), December 2012, pp.2409-2415.
Publisher:
Elsevier
The number of children of incarcerated parents in the U.S. has grown dramatically in recent years. Inmates held in state or federal prison in 2007 had an estimated 1.7 million minor children. Research has found that a significant number of children of incarcerated parents are at risk for various problems. The aim of this study was to examine differences between incarcerated mothers and incarcerated fathers on factors that might be important to consider when creating the content and process of preventive intervention programmes. The focus was on parents who have parented their children in the past and who expect to play some role in parenting their children in the future. Data was drawn from the baseline assessment of the Parent Child Study, a randomised controlled trial of a prison-based version of an evidence-informed parent management training programme. The participants were 161 incarcerated men and 198 incarcerated women who were parents of children between the ages of 3 and 11 years. The findings revealed that mothers and fathers were similar on a number of dimensions including age, education-level, number and age of children, and family criminal history. However, differences were
The number of children of incarcerated parents in the U.S. has grown dramatically in recent years. Inmates held in state or federal prison in 2007 had an estimated 1.7 million minor children. Research has found that a significant number of children of incarcerated parents are at risk for various problems. The aim of this study was to examine differences between incarcerated mothers and incarcerated fathers on factors that might be important to consider when creating the content and process of preventive intervention programmes. The focus was on parents who have parented their children in the past and who expect to play some role in parenting their children in the future. Data was drawn from the baseline assessment of the Parent Child Study, a randomised controlled trial of a prison-based version of an evidence-informed parent management training programme. The participants were 161 incarcerated men and 198 incarcerated women who were parents of children between the ages of 3 and 11 years. The findings revealed that mothers and fathers were similar on a number of dimensions including age, education-level, number and age of children, and family criminal history. However, differences were observed on key variables relevant to outcomes for children and families, including employment history and income, substance use, mental health, trauma experiences and criminal history. Implications for prevention programmes are discussed.
British Journal of Social Work, 42(3), 2012, pp.500-518.
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
This study investigated fathers’ involvement in children’s services in Moorlandstown, Staffordshire, which is a mixed urban and rural authority with about 20% of its population from black and minority ethnic communities. Key themes explored included ambivalence about the role and contribution of fathers and the extent to which perceptions of their role were influenced by female partners. Findings revealed that staff involved were aware of the extent to which cultural diversity impacted on perceptions of fathers' roles. While male workers facilitated fathers making initial contact with services, fathers remained minority users of services and, in higher-need families, fathers' involvement could be seen as adding complexity to service delivery. However, there were case studies which highlighted how to promote the role of fathers and improving their access to services. The authors concluded that enhancing the quality of engagement with fathers was not an option, but a crucial investment in the lives of children and young people. Implications for practice are discussed.
This study investigated fathers’ involvement in children’s services in Moorlandstown, Staffordshire, which is a mixed urban and rural authority with about 20% of its population from black and minority ethnic communities. Key themes explored included ambivalence about the role and contribution of fathers and the extent to which perceptions of their role were influenced by female partners. Findings revealed that staff involved were aware of the extent to which cultural diversity impacted on perceptions of fathers' roles. While male workers facilitated fathers making initial contact with services, fathers remained minority users of services and, in higher-need families, fathers' involvement could be seen as adding complexity to service delivery. However, there were case studies which highlighted how to promote the role of fathers and improving their access to services. The authors concluded that enhancing the quality of engagement with fathers was not an option, but a crucial investment in the lives of children and young people. Implications for practice are discussed.
Subject terms:
parents, staff-user relationships, user participation, childrens social care, fathers;
International Journal of Social Welfare, 19(4), October 2010, pp.424-432.
Publisher:
Wiley
Women’s large scale entrance into the labour market in Europe acts as a backdrop to an ongoing debate on how to combine work and family life, a challenge many women face today. It is well understood that women are more affected by having children when compared to women from earlier generations. This paper illustrates a cohort study on how Swedish both men and women’s reported feelings of tiredness is affected by having children. Longitudinal results representing three cohorts, each with over 2,400 samples, show that both men and women in general report more feelings of tiredness in the early 2000s compared with the 1980s, where it was seen that being a first-time mother or father is connected with more feelings of tiredness among the latest cohort studied. However, when control variables are included, the effect of becoming a first-time parent weakens, especially for men. Findings also revealed that the effect of becoming a first-time mother is no longer significant when controlling for age.
Women’s large scale entrance into the labour market in Europe acts as a backdrop to an ongoing debate on how to combine work and family life, a challenge many women face today. It is well understood that women are more affected by having children when compared to women from earlier generations. This paper illustrates a cohort study on how Swedish both men and women’s reported feelings of tiredness is affected by having children. Longitudinal results representing three cohorts, each with over 2,400 samples, show that both men and women in general report more feelings of tiredness in the early 2000s compared with the 1980s, where it was seen that being a first-time mother or father is connected with more feelings of tiredness among the latest cohort studied. However, when control variables are included, the effect of becoming a first-time parent weakens, especially for men. Findings also revealed that the effect of becoming a first-time mother is no longer significant when controlling for age.
Subject terms:
longitudinal studies, mothers, parents, quality of life, fathers;