On February 8, 2006, President Bush signed the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 into law. Due to the time delay 

between the writing of and the printing of this publication, this legislation was listed as pending on page 70. The 

new law provides $150 million for each of Federal fiscal years 2006 through 2010 to promote and support healthy 

marriages and responsible fatherhood. The funds will be awarded as competitive grants to government entities, 

faith-based organizations or community organizations. 

Up to $50 million per year may be awarded to government entities, faith-based organizations or community 

organizations to fund activities promoting responsible fatherhood. Such activities may include parent education, 

counseling, education and career services to foster fathers’ economic stability, or a national media campaign to 

encourage appropriate parent involvement in a child’s life. Up to $2 million per year may be awarded as 

competitive grants to Indian tribes to demonstrate the effectiveness of coordinating the provision of child welfare 

and TANF services to tribal families at risk of child abuse or neglect. The remaining funds are designated for 

healthy marriage activities, which may include programs of premarital education, conflict resolution, marriage 

enhancement for married couples and programs designed to reduce disincentives to marriage in means-tested aid 

programs.
Th e Importance of Fathers 

in the Healthy Development of Children

Jeff rey Rosenberg and W. Bradford Wilcox

2006

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Administration for Children and Families

Administration on Children, Youth and Families

Children’s Bureau

Offi ce on Child Abuse and Neglect

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children i

Table of Contents

PREFACE ................................................................................................................................................ 1

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ....................................................................................................................... 3

1. PURPOSE AND OVERVIEW ...................................................................................................... 5

Purpose of the Manual ..................................................................................................................6

Overview of the Scope of Child Maltreatment and Child Protection .............................................6

Research on the Role of Fathers .....................................................................................................7

SECTION I

2. FATHERS AND THEIR IMPACT ON CHILDREN’S WELLBEING ..................................... 11

Th e Impact of the Mother-Father Relationship on Child Outcomes .............................................11

Th e Impact of Fathers on Cognitive Ability and Educational Achievement ..................................12

Th e Impact of Fathers on Psychological Well-being and Social Behavior ......................................12

3. FATHERS AND THEIR IMPACT ON CHILD MALTREATMENT ........................................ 15

Child Maltreatment and Its Impact on Children ......................................................................... 15

Perpetrators of Child Maltreatment ..............................................................................................16

Th e Presence of Fathers as a Protective Factor ..............................................................................16

Th e Role of Fathers in Child Maltreatment .................................................................................17

4. EFFECTIVE FATHERING ......................................................................................................... 19

Fostering a Positive Relationship with the Children’s Mother ....................................................19

Spending Time with Children ......................................................................................................20

Nurturing Children ......................................................................................................................21

Disciplining Children Appropriately .............................................................................................21

Serving as a Guide to the Outside World ......................................................................................22

Protecting and Providing ..............................................................................................................22

Being a Role Model ......................................................................................................................23
 ii Table of Contents

5. FATHERS AND INITIAL ASSESSMENT AND INVESTIGATION ........................................ 25

Understanding One’s Own Biases ................................................................................................25

Fathers and the Assessment Process ..............................................................................................25

Interviewing Fathers .....................................................................................................................27

Determining Whether to Involve Other Professionals ..................................................................28

6. FATHERS AND CASE PLANNING ........................................................................................... 29

Demonstrating Empathy, Respect, and Genuineness ...................................................................29

Discussing Child Support .............................................................................................................31

Discussing Discipline ...................................................................................................................31

Bringing in Fathers Who Do Not Live with the Child ................................................................33

Working with Diff erent Fathers in Diff erent Situations ................................................................34

Addressing Fathers’ Abuse of Th eir Children ................................................................................36

Addressing the Abuse of Th eir Children by Others .......................................................................37

Learning from the Child and Family Services Reviews ................................................................37

7. SERVICES FOR FATHERS ......................................................................................................... 39

Helping Fathers Be Better Fathers ................................................................................................40

Resources and Referrals ................................................................................................................41

Case Closure .................................................................................................................................42

Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................43

SECTION II

8. FATHERHOOD PROGRAMS ................................................................................................... 47

Starting a Fatherhood Group ........................................................................................................47

Promoting Responsible Fatherhood ..............................................................................................48

Developing Father-friendly Agencies and Programs ......................................................................50

Working with Mothers .................................................................................................................50

Examples of Fatherhood Programs ................................................................................................52

9. FEDERAL FATHERHOOD INITIATIVES .............................................................................. 69

Federal Initiatives .........................................................................................................................69

Federal Legislation ........................................................................................................................69

ENDNOTES ......................................................................................................................................... 71

APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY OF TERMS ............................................................................................. 75

APPENDIX B: RESOURCE LISTINGS OF SELECTED NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS 

CONCERNED WITH FATHERHOOD AND CHILD MALTREATMENT ............................ 79

APPENDIX C: STATE TELEPHONE NUMBERS FOR REPORTING CHILD ABUSE .................. 85
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children iii

APPENDIX D: CULTURAL COMPETENCE SELFASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE, SERVICE 

PROVIDER VERSION ............................................................................................................... 87

APPENDIX E: TIPS FOR DADS....................................................................................................... 101

APPENDIX F: HEALTHY MARRIAGES ..........................................................................................117

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 1

Preface

Each day, the safety and well-being of some 

children across the Nation are threatened by 

child abuse and neglect. Intervening eff ectively in 

the lives of these children and their families is not the 

sole responsibility of any single agency or professional 

group, but rather is a shared community concern. 

Since the late 1970s, the Child Abuse and Neglect 

User Manual Series has provided guidance on 

child protection to hundreds of thousands of 

multidisciplinary professionals and concerned 

community members. Th e User Manual Series 

provides a foundation for understanding child 

maltreatment and the roles and responsibilities of 

various practitioners in its prevention, identifi cation, 

investigation, assessment, and treatment. Th rough 

the years, the manuals have served as valuable 

resources for building knowledge, promoting eff ective 

practices, and enhancing community collaboration.

Since the last update of the User Manual Series in the 

early 1990s, a number of changes have occurred that 

dramatically aff ect each community’s response to 

child maltreatment. Th e changing landscape refl ects 

increased recognition of the complexity of issues 

facing parents and their children, new legislation, 

practice innovations, and system reform eff orts. 

Signifi cant advances in research have helped shape 

new directions for interventions, while ongoing 

evaluations help us to know “what works.”

Th e Offi ce on Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) 

within the Children’s Bureau of the Administration 

for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. Department of 

Health and Human Services (DHHS), has developed 

this third edition of the User Manual Series to refl ect 

the increased knowledge base and the evolving 

state of practice. Th e updated and new manuals 

are comprehensive in scope while also succinct in 

presentation and easy to follow, and they address 

trends and concerns relevant to today’s professional.

Th is new manual, Th e Importance of Fathers in 

the Healthy Development of Children, is a result of 

increased recognition of the vital role that fathers 

play in all aspects of their children’s lives. While 

the User Manual Series addresses the issues of child 

abuse and neglect, this manual extends that context 

by examining how to strengthen the roles of fathers 

within their children’s lives and their own. 

Readers of Th e Importance of Fathers in the Healthy 

Development of Children may also be interested in A 

Coordinated Response to Child Abuse and Neglect: Th e 

Foundation for Practice and Child Protective Services: 

A Guide for Caseworkers. Th e Foundation for Practice, 

which is the keystone for the series, addresses the 

defi nition, scope, causes, and consequences of child 

abuse and neglect. It also presents an overview of 

prevention eff orts and the child protection process. 

Because child protection is a multidisciplinary eff ort, 

Th e Foundation for Practice describes the roles and 

responsibilities of diff erent professional groups and 

off ers guidance on how the groups can work together 

eff ectively to protect the safety, permanency, and 

well-being of children. A Guide for Caseworkers 
 2 Preface

provides the fundamental information that child 

protective services (CPS) professionals must know 

to perform essential casework functions. Th is new 

manual builds on the information presented in those 

earlier manuals as it relates specifi cally to fathers. It 

is primarily intended to help CPS caseworkers work 

eff ectively with fathers and thereby support families 

as fully as possible. 

User Manual Series

Th is manual—along with the entire Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series—is available from the 

National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information. Contact the Clearinghouse for a full 

list of available manuals and ordering information:

National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information

Children’s Bureau/ACYF

1250 Maryland Avenue, SW

Eighth Floor

Washington, DC 20024

Phone: (800) 394-3366 or (703) 385-7565

Fax: (703) 385-3206

E-mail: nccanch@caliber.com

Th e manuals also are available online at http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/profess/tools/usermanual.cfm.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 3

Acknowledgments

AUTHORS

Jeff rey Rosenberg is the founder of Rosenberg 

Communications, a full-service public relations fi rm. 

For the National Fatherhood Initiative, Rosenberg 

Communications designed and implemented a media 

relations strategy to educate the public about the issue 

of absentee fathers, created a media kit, and planned 

a nationwide event on the issue of fatherhood. Mr. 

Rosenberg was previously the Communications 

Director at the U.S. Department of Health and 

Human Services. 

W. Bradford Wilcox, Ph.D., is assistant professor of 

sociology at the University of Virginia and a member 

of the James Madison Society at Princeton University. 

His research focuses on religion, fatherhood, 

marriage, and parenting. Dr. Wilcox is the author of 

Soft Patriarchs, New Men: How Christianity Shapes 

Fathers and Husbands. His research has been featured 

in the Boston Globe, Th e Washington Post, USA Today, 

and other media outlets.

REVIEWERS

Byron Egeland, Institute of Child Development, 

University of Minnesota 

Joe Jones, Center for Fathers, Families, and Workforce 

Development

James May, Th e Fathers Network

David Popenoe, National Marriage Project 

Bob Scholle, Independent Consultant

Neil Tift, National Practitioners Network for Fathers 

and Families

TECHNICAL ADVISORY PANEL

Th e following were members of the January 2001 

Technical Advisory Panel for the User Manual Series 

contract. Th e organizations identifi ed refl ect each 

member’s affi liation at that time. 

Carolyn Abdullah 

FRIENDS National Resource Center 

Washington, DC 

Lien Bragg 

American Public Human Services Association 

Washington, DC 
 4 Acknowledgments

Sgt. Richard Cage 

Montgomery County Police Department

Wheaton, MD 

Diane DePanfi lis, Ph.D. 

University of Maryland at 

Baltimore School of Social Work

Baltimore, MD 

Pauline Grant 

Florida Department of Children and Families 

Jacksonville, FL 

Jodi Hill 

Connecticut Department of Children and Families 

Hartford, CT 

Robert Ortega, Ph.D. 

University of Michigan School of Social Work 

Ann Arbor, MI 

Nancy Rawlings 

Kentucky Cabinet for Families and Children 

Frankfort, KY 

Barry Salovitz 

Child Welfare Institute/National Resource Center 

on Child Maltreatment 

Glenmont, NY 

Sarah Webster 

Texas Department of Protective and 

Regulatory Services 

Austin, TX 

Ron Zuskin 

University of Maryland at 

Baltimore School of Social Work

Baltimore, MD 

Th e following members subsequently were added to 

the Technical Advisory Panel: 

William R. (Reyn) Archer III, M.D.

Hill and Knowlton, Inc.

Washington, DC 

David Popenoe, Ph.D. 

National Marriage Project 

Princeton, NJ 

Bob Scholle

Independent Consultant

Pittsburgh, PA 

Brad Wilcox, Ph.D. 

University of Virginia, Department of Sociology 

Charlottesville, VA

ADDITIONAL ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Th is manual in the User Manual Series was developed 

under the valuable guidance and direction of Dr. 

Susan Orr, Associate Commissioner, Children’s 

Bureau, the U.S. Department of Health and Human 

Services.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 5

CHAPTER 1

Purpose and Overview

father. Working with fathers who are the perpetrators 

of child maltreatment is diff erent than working with 

mothers or other perpetrators. In addition, fathers 

whose children were victimized by someone else, 

even fathers not living with their children, can prove 

to be a valuable ally as the CPS caseworker pursues 

his or her case planning objectives. 

Eff ectively involving fathers in case planning and 

service provision presents unique challenges for 

caseworkers. Th is may explain in part why they 

often may not include fathers. Th is manual hopes 

to provide guidance to rectify this problem. While 

many of the issues facing fathers as they try to be good 

parents are the same as those facing mothers—stress, 

fi nances, limited time, to name a few—how fathers 

perceive and react to these is usually diff erent and 

is often grounded in cultural views of manhood and 

fatherhood. Plus, the abuse of a child raises unique 

feelings and reactions in a father. Whether the father 

is the perpetrator or not, the abuse of a child can be a 

direct aff ront to how a father views himself as a man 

and a father. How well a caseworker understands 

these reactions and feelings and how eff ectively the 

caseworker can address them will make a major 

diff erence when trying to either help an abusing father 

become a protecting father or engaging a father as an 

ally in addressing the family dynamics that made the 

situation unsafe for the child. 

Child protective services (CPS) caseworkers 

are charged with a task that is both crucial to 

society and, at times, overwhelming to the individual 

caseworker: determining when this nation’s most 

vulnerable citizens—children—are in danger and 

what actions must be taken to ensure their safety. 

Th en, they must make sure that these actions take 

place in both a timely and sensitive manner. 

To carry out their responsibilities of protecting 

children at risk of maltreatment, CPS caseworkers 

must eff ectively engage families that often both 

present and face great challenges. Th ese can include 

substance abuse, mental health problems, economic 

stress, unemployment, separation and divorce, 

inadequate housing, crime, and incarceration. 

Figuring out how best to work with and engage these 

families, always with the safety of and permanency 

for the child as the goal, is not easy. Other manuals 

in this series, particularly Child Protective Services: 

A Guide for Caseworkers, provide insight into what 

years of experience and research tell us about eff ective 

casework in the fi eld of child welfare. Th is manual, 

Th e Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development 

of Children, complements and builds on the strategies 

for CPS articulated in the other manuals. 

Th is manual also speaks to both the opportunities and 

challenges presented by one participant in the family 

sagas that CPS caseworkers deal with everyday: the 
 6 Purpose and Overview

PURPOSE OF THE MANUAL

Today, there is an increased emphasis on familycentered practice. Family-centered practice does not 

mean only mother-and-child-centered practice.1

 Rather, 

all family members and individuals who play a role 

in the family should be engaged, when appropriate, 

in order to support meaningful outcomes for the 

entire family. Th is manual is designed to help 

caseworkers:

Recognize the value of fathers to children; 

Appreciate the importance of fathers to the case 

planning and service provision process;

Understand the issues unique to working with 

fathers;

Eff ectively involve fathers in all aspects of case 

management, from assessment through case 

closure;

Work successfully with fathers in a wide range of 

family situations and structures.

Section I of this manual discusses what is known 

about a father’s connection to his child’s well-being, 

including his role in the occurrence and prevention of 

maltreatment. Th e section also relates the literature on 

fatherhood to the diff erent stages of the child protection 

process. Section II provides practical guidance for 

starting and running a fatherhood program, presents 

various examples of existing programs, and describes 

Federal fatherhood initiatives. CPS agencies can also 

use this information to ensure that they are providing 

a father-friendly environment. Th e appendices off er 

additional resources, including a glossary of terms, 

resource listings, and tips that CPS workers can share 

with fathers to help them be better parents.

•

•

•

•

•

OVERVIEW OF THE SCOPE OF CHILD

MALTREATMENT AND CHILD PROTECTION

Prior to delving into the discussion of fathers and 

their role in both preventing and perpetrating child 

maltreatment, it is useful to understand the scope 

of the problem. Th e following fi ndings from the 

National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System 

(NCANDS) for 2003 provide a snapshot of reported 

child victimization:

During 2003, an estimated 906,000 children 

were victims of abuse or neglect.

An estimated 2.9 million referrals of abuse or 

neglect concerning approximately 5.5 million 

children were received by CPS agencies. More 

than two-thirds of those referrals were accepted 

for investigation or assessment.

Nationally, 60.9 percent of child victims 

experienced neglect (including medical neglect), 

18.9 percent were physically abused, 9.9 percent 

were sexually abused, and 4.9 percent were 

emotionally or psychologically maltreated.

Approximately two-fi fths (40.8 percent) of child 

victims were maltreated by their mothers acting 

alone; another 18.8 percent were maltreated by 

their fathers acting alone; and 16.9 percent were 

abused by both parents.2

In most jurisdictions, CPS is the agency mandated 

to conduct an investigation into reports of child 

abuse or neglect and to off er services to families 

and children where maltreatment has occurred or 

is likely to occur. Of course, any intervention into 

family life on behalf of children must be guided by 

State laws, sound professional standards for practice, 

and strong philosophical underpinnings. Th e key 

principles guiding State laws on child protection are 

based largely on Federal statutes, primarily the Child 

Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) as 

amended by the Keeping Children and Families 

Safe Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-36) and the Adoption 

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 7

and Safe Families Act (ASFA) of 1997 (P.L. 105-89). 

While CAPTA provides defi nitions and guidelines 

regarding child maltreatment issues, ASFA promotes 

three national goals for child protection:

Safety. All children have the right to live in an 

environment free from abuse and neglect. Th e 

safety of children is the paramount concern that 

must guide child protection eff orts. 

Permanency. Children need a family and 

a permanent place to call home. A sense of 

continuity and connectedness is central to a 

child’s healthy development.

Child and family well-being. Children deserve 

nurturing families and environments in which 

their physical, emotional, educational, and social 

needs are met. Child protection practices must 

take into account each child’s needs and should 

promote the healthy development of family 

relationships.

Eff ectively engaging fathers in the child protection 

process is one aspect of the CPS caseworker’s 

responsibilities that helps further progress toward 

these goals.

RESEARCH ON THE ROLE OF FATHERS

In the last decade, the social sciences have begun 

recognizing and examining the crucial role that fathers 

play in child development and family dynamics. 

Nevertheless, relatively little attention has been paid 

to the role fathers play in the dynamics of child 

maltreatment. A 1997 review of research on child 

abuse and neglect concluded that this research was 

characterized by a “conspicuous absence of information 

from and about fathers in violent families.”3

Th e research that does exist on the link between 

fathers and maltreatment suggests that:

Fathers are directly involved in 36.8 percent 

(acting alone in 18.8 percent and with others in 

18.0 percent of the cases) of maltreatment cases; 

•

•

•

•

Th e presence of fathers in the home is tied to 

lower rates of maltreatment; 

Unrelated male fi gures and stepfathers in 

households tend to be more abusive than 

biological, married fathers; 

Th e quality of the relationship between the 

mother and father has an important indirect 

eff ect on the odds of maltreatment.4

Not much is known, however, about the specifi c 

role that fathers play in preventing, causing, or 

contributing to child maltreatment. In addition, 

relatively little energy has been invested in training 

CPS caseworkers to work with fathers in cases of 

maltreatment. A number of studies indicate that 

caseworkers may overlook fathers in connection with 

their investigations and interventions regarding child 

maltreatment.5

 Th is is not surprising since working 

with fathers in social services is relatively new—the 

fi rst national meeting dedicated solely to issues 

concerning fathers did not occur until 1994. In 

addition, American families today represent a range 

of fatherhood models, some of which lend themselves 

to productive involvement with the caseworker and 

others which may not. 

While research and training directly related to fathers 

and child maltreatment have been limited, there have 

been signifi cant eff orts over recent years devoted to 

research on the role of fathers in child development 

and the creation of programs to strengthen the 

capacity of fathers. Th is manual highlights both the 

fi ndings from the available research and examples of 

fatherhood programs. By equipping CPS caseworkers 

with a solid introduction to the fatherhood research, 

the manual should foster a sense of empathy and 

knowledge that will enable them to work eff ectively 

with fathers. Further, the exploration of each stage of 

the child protection process—from investigation to 

case closure—will help caseworkers work with fathers 

in a way that increases the likelihood of achieving the 

ultimate goal: safety and permanency for the child.

•

•

•

Section I

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 11

CHAPTER 2

Fathers and Their Impact

on Children’s Well-being

Anoted sociologist, Dr. David Popenoe, is one of the 

pioneers of the relatively young fi eld of research 

into fathers and fatherhood. “Fathers are far more than 

just ‘second adults’ in the home,” he says. “Involved 

fathers bring positive benefi ts to their children that 

no other person is as likely to bring.”6

 Fathers have a 

direct impact on the well-being of their children. It 

is important for professionals working with fathers—

especially in the diffi cult, emotionally charged arena 

in which child protective services (CPS) caseworkers 

operate—to have a working understanding of the 

literature that addresses this impact. Such knowledge 

will help make the case for why the most eff ective CPS 

case plans will involve fathers.

Th is chapter lays out the connection between fathers 

and child outcomes, including cognitive ability, 

educational achievement, psychological well-being, 

and social behavior. Th e chapter also underscores 

the impact of the father and mother’s relationship on 

the well-being of their children. While serving as an 

introduction to the issues, this chapter is not intended 

as an exhaustive review of the literature. For the 

reader wishing to learn more, the U.S. Department of 

Health and Human Services (http://fatherhood.hhs.

gov/index.shtml), the National Fatherhood Initiative 

(www.fatherhood.org), and the National Center for 

Fathering (www.fathers.com) are valuable resources.

THE IMPACT OF THE MOTHER-FATHER

RELATIONSHIP ON CHILD OUTCOMES

One of the most important infl uences a father can 

have on his child is indirect—fathers infl uence their 

children in large part through the quality of their 

relationship with the mother of their children. A father 

who has a good relationship with the mother of their 

children is more likely to be involved and to spend 

time with their children and to have children who are 

psychologically and emotionally healthier. Similarly, 

a mother who feels affi rmed by her children’s father 

and who enjoys the benefi ts of a happy relationship is 

more likely to be a better mother. Indeed, the quality 

of the relationship aff ects the parenting behavior of 

both parents. Th ey are more responsive, aff ectionate, 

and confi dent with their infants; more self-controlled 

in dealing with defi ant toddlers; and better confi dants 

for teenagers seeking advice and emotional support.7

One of the most important benefi ts of a positive 

relationship between mother and father, and a benefi t 

directly related to the objectives of the CPS caseworker, 

is the behavior it models for children. Fathers who 

treat the mothers of their children with respect and 

deal with confl ict within the relationship in an adult 

and appropriate manner are more likely to have boys 

who understand how they are to treat women and who 
 12 Fathers and Their Impact on Children’s Well-being

are less likely to act in an aggressive fashion toward 

females. Girls with involved, respectful fathers see 

how they should expect men to treat them and are 

less likely to become involved in violent or unhealthy 

relationships. In contrast, research has shown that 

husbands who display anger, show contempt for, or 

who stonewall their wives (i.e., “the silent treatment”) 

are more likely to have children who are anxious, 

withdrawn, or antisocial.8

THE IMPACT OF FATHERS ON COGNITIVE

ABILITY AND EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT

Children with involved, caring fathers have better 

educational outcomes. A number of studies suggest 

that fathers who are involved, nurturing, and playful 

with their infants have children with higher IQs, as well 

as better linguistic and cognitive capacities.9

 Toddlers 

with involved fathers go on to start school with 

higher levels of academic readiness. Th ey are more 

patient and can handle the stresses and frustrations 

associated with schooling more readily than children 

with less involved fathers.10 

Th e infl uence of a father’s involvement on academic 

achievement extends into adolescence and young 

adulthood. Numerous studies fi nd that an active and 

nurturing style of fathering is associated with better 

verbal skills, intellectual functioning, and academic 

achievement among adolescents.11 For instance, a 

2001 U.S. Department of Education study found 

that highly involved biological fathers had children 

who were 43 percent more likely than other children 

to earn mostly As and 33 percent less likely than 

other children to repeat a grade.12

THE IMPACT OF FATHERS ON PSYCHOLOGICAL

WELL-BEING AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

Even from birth, children who have an involved father 

are more likely to be emotionally secure, be confi dent 

to explore their surroundings, and, as they grow older, 

have better social connections with peers. Th ese 

children also are less likely to get in trouble at home, 

school, or in the neighborhood.13 Infants who receive 

high levels of aff ection from their fathers (e.g., babies 

whose fathers respond quickly to their cries and who 

Th e Link Between Marriage and Fatherhood

Caring, involved fathers exist outside of marriage. Th ey are more likely, however, to be found in the 

context of marriage. Th ere are numerous reasons for this, not the least of which being the legal and social 

norms associated with marriage that connect a father to the family unit. Th at may also explain, in part, 

why research consistently shows that the married mother-and-father family is a better environment for 

raising children than the cohabitating (living together) mother-and-father family.14

It is interesting to note that, contrary to stereotypes about low-income, unmarried parents, a signifi cant 

majority—more than 8 in 10—of urban, low-income fathers and mothers are in a romantic relationship when 

their children are born.15 Most of these couples expect that they will get married. One study found that more 

than 80 percent expected they would get married or live together. However, only 11 percent of these couples 

had actually married a year later.16 Why they do not marry is an interesting question open to conjecture. 

However, as Dr. Wade Horn, Assistant Secretary for Children and Families at the U.S. Department of Health 

and Human Services has pointed out, it may be because these couples receive very little encouragement to 

marry from the health and social services professionals with whom they come in contact.17 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 13

play together) are more securely attached; that is, they 

can explore their environment comfortably when a 

parent is nearby and can readily accept comfort from 

their parent after a brief separation. A number of 

studies suggest they also are more sociable and popular 

with other children throughout early childhood.18

Th e way fathers play with their children also has an 

important impact on a child’s emotional and social 

development. Fathers spend a much higher percentage 

of their one-on-one interaction with infants and 

preschoolers in stimulating, playful activity than 

do mothers. From these interactions, children learn 

how to regulate their feelings and behavior. Roughhousing with dad, for example, can teach children 

how to deal with aggressive impulses and physical 

contact without losing control of their emotions.19

Generally speaking, fathers also tend to promote 

independence and an orientation to the outside world. 

Fathers often push achievement while mothers stress 

nurturing, both of which are important to healthy 

development. As a result, children who grow up with 

involved fathers are more comfortable exploring the 

world around them and more likely to exhibit selfcontrol and pro-social behavior.20

One study of school-aged children found that 

children with good relationships with their fathers 

were less likely to experience depression, to exhibit 

disruptive behavior, or to lie and were more likely to 

exhibit pro-social behavior.21 Th is same study found 

that boys with involved fathers had fewer school 

behavior problems and that girls had stronger selfesteem.22 In addition, numerous studies have found 

that children who live with their fathers are more 

likely to have good physical and emotional health, 

to achieve academically, and to avoid drugs, violence, 

and delinquent behavior.23

In short, fathers have a powerful and positive impact upon 

the development and health of children. A caseworker 

who understands the important contributions fathers 

make to their children’s development and how to 

eff ectively involve fathers in the case planning process 

will fi nd additional and valuable allies in the mission to 

create a permanent and safe environment for children.

Dispelling the Stereotype of Low-income Fathers

It is very important for anybody working with fathers, especially CPS caseworkers, to dispel one common 

stereotype: the image of low-income urban fathers as disengaged and uninvolved with their children. As Dr. 

Michael Lamb has stated, “Our research really bashes the stereotype of the low-income father. Th ese fathers 

care about their kids, but may not show their love in conventional ways and sometimes a lack of a job, poor 

communication with the mom, or even their own childhood experiences can prevent them from getting 

involved.”24 Too often, professionals may assume that a low-income, urban dad who does not live with his 

children is uninvolved with, even unconcerned about, his children. Th is can push a father away from his 

family, the exact opposite of what a CPS caseworker wants to see happen.

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 15

A father in the home can be a strong protective factor 

for children. A father also may play a role in child 

maltreatment. Th is chapter fi rst looks at the defi nition 

and impact of child maltreatment and presents data on 

the perpetrators of child abuse and neglect. Th e chapter 

then discusses fathers in light of their varying roles. 

CHILD MALTREATMENT AND

 ITS IMPACT ON CHILDREN

Th e Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 

(CAPTA) (P.L. 93-247) defi nes child abuse and neglect 

as any “recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent 

or caretaker that results in death, serious physical or 

emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation” of a 

child under the age of 18 or, “an act or failure to act that 

presents an imminent risk of serious harm” to a child. 

Maltreatment is commonly classifi ed into four 

categories: 

Physical abuse includes punching, beating, 

kicking, biting or shaking a child. 

Sexual abuse refers to any sexual contact with 

a child, the simulation of such conduct with a 

•

•

child, or exposing a child to sexually explicit 

material or conduct. 

Child neglect is a failure to provide for a child’s 

basic needs for health care, food, clothing, adult 

supervision, education, and nurturing. 

Psychological maltreatment refers to behavior, 

such as ridiculing, terrorizing, corrupting, or 

denying aff ection to a child.

Th e abuse and neglect of children can have profoundly 

negative consequences for the social, psychological, and 

physical health of children. Th e physical abuse (e.g., 

shaking a crying baby) and neglect of infants is linked 

to a range of physical and emotional maladies (e.g., 

seizures, irritability, developmental delays, and learning 

disabilities).25 Th e physical and psychological abuse of 

preschoolers and school-aged children is associated with 

depression, low self-esteem, antisocial behavior, juvenile 

delinquency, and adult criminal behavior.26 Sexual 

abuse is associated with depression, substance abuse, 

eating disorders, suicidal behavior, and promiscuity.27 

Neglect is associated with “non-organic failure to thrive,” 

which is characterized by below-average weight, height, 

and intellectual development; neglect is also linked to 

attachment disorders, aggression, and diffi culty dealing 

with others.28

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CHAPTER 3

Fathers and Their

Impact on

Child Maltreatment

For more information on the defi nition and consequences of child abuse and neglect, see A Coordinated 

Response to Child Abuse and Neglect: Th e Foundation for Practice at

http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/profess/tools/usermanual.cfm.
 16 Fathers and Their Impact on Child Maltreatment

PERPETRATORS OF CHILD MALTREATMENT

In 2003, an estimated 906,000 children were victims 

of abuse and neglect. Neglect was the most common 

form of maltreatment, with 60.9 percent of child 

victims suff ering from neglect in 2003. Neglect was 

followed by physical abuse (18.9 percent of child 

victims), sexual abuse (9.9 percent of child victims), 

and psychological maltreatment (4.9 percent of child 

victims). In 2003, approximately 1,500 children died 

because of abuse or neglect.29

Th e largest percentage of perpetrators (83.9 percent) 

was parents, including birth parents, adoptive 

parents, and stepparents.30 How do fathers compare 

to mothers in the perpetration of child maltreatment? 

As discussed earlier, Federal data derived from CPS 

reports in 2003 indicate that in 18.8 percent of the 

substantiated cases, fathers were the sole perpetrators 

of maltreatment; in 16.9 percent of the cases, the 

fathers and the mothers were perpetrators; and in 1.1 

percent of the cases, the father acted with someone 

else to abuse or neglect his child. Mothers were the 

sole perpetrators in 40.8 percent of the cases and acted 

with someone besides the father in 6.3 percent of the 

cases.31 Th is means that fathers were involved in 36.8 

percent of child maltreatment cases and that mothers 

were involved in 64 percent of child maltreatment 

cases. Additionally, more than one-half of the male 

perpetrators were biological fathers, and, although 

recidivism rates were low, biological fathers were 

more likely to be perpetrators of maltreatment again 

than were most other male perpetrators. Th is may 

be due in part to the lack of permanence between a 

mother and her boyfriend or that the perpetrator may 

be excluded from the household before recidivism 

can occur.32 

Mothers are almost twice as likely to be directly 

involved in child maltreatment as fathers. Mothers 

are more likely to abuse or neglect their children 

than fathers because they bear a larger share of 

parenting responsibilities in two-parent families 

and because a large percentage of families today are 

headed by mothers. In some communities, they are 

the majority.33 Perpetrator patterns diff er, however, 

by type of maltreatment. Mothers are not more 

likely to be the perpetrator when it comes to sexual 

abuse; fathers are more likely to be reported for this 

crime.34 

THE PRESENCE OF FATHERS

AS A PROTECTIVE FACTOR

Relatively little research has focused squarely on the 

question of how fathers either directly contribute to 

the risk of child abuse in a family or off er a protective 

factor. Nevertheless, several studies on fathers and 

parents in general off er insights into the role of fathers 

in the child maltreatment equation:

Generally speaking, the same characteristics 

that make a man a good father make him less 

likely to abuse or neglect his children. Fathers 

who nurture and take signifi cant responsibility 

for basic childcare for their children (e.g., 

feeding, changing diapers) from an early age are 

signifi cantly less likely to sexually abuse their 

children.35 Th ese fathers typically develop such 

a strong connection with their children that it 

decreases the likelihood of any maltreatment.

Th e involvement of a father in the life of a 

family is also associated with lower levels of 

child neglect, even in families that may be 

facing other factors, such as unemployment and 

poverty, which could place the family at risk 

for maltreatment.36 Such involvement reduces 

the parenting and housework load a mother 

has to bear and increases the overall parental 

investments in family life, thereby minimizing 

the chances that either parent will neglect to care 

for or to supervise their children.

On average, fathers who live in a married 

household with their children are better able 

to create a family environment that is more 

conducive to the safety and necessary care of their 

children. Consequently, children who live with 

their biological father in a married household are 

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 17

signifi cantly less likely to be physically abused, 

sexually abused, or neglected than children who 

do not live with their married biological parents. 

One cannot equate a household headed by a married 

mother and father with a household headed by 

parents who are cohabitating. Th ere is something 

about the legal and social commitments of marriage 

that strengthens the positive impacts of fathering—it 

may simply be that being married strengthens the 

commitment of a father to his family. However, 

when working with families headed by a cohabitating 

couple, the caseworker should not dismiss the 

potential contributions to be made by the father. 

While research shows the benefi ts of marriage over 

cohabitation when it comes to raising children, 

fathers who live with the mother of their children 

are still in a position to contribute greatly to their 

children’s development and must be considered a 

potential asset by the caseworker.37 Th e caseworker 

may also want to see if the cohabitating parents are 

interested in being referred to a marriage preparation 

course. For more information on such programs, see 

the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ 

Healthy Marriage Initiative website at http://www.

acf.hhs.gov/healthymarriage/index.html.

By contrast, children who live in father-absent homes 

often face higher risks of physical abuse, sexual abuse, 

and neglect than children who live with their fathers. 

A 1997 Federal study indicated that the overall rate 

of child maltreatment among single-parent families 

was almost double that of the rate among two-parent 

families: 27.4 children per 1,000 were maltreated in 

single-parent families, compared to 15.5 per 1,000 in 

two-parent families.38 One national study found that 

7 percent of children who had lived with one parent 

had ever been sexually abused, compared to 4 percent 

of children who lived with both biological parents.39

THE ROLE OF FATHERS

IN CHILD MALTREATMENT

While a father in the home reduces the likelihood of 

a child being abused, there are still, of course, fathers 

who are perpetrators of child abuse. Research shows 

that there are certain characteristics of fathers that 

make them more likely to mistreat a child. Poverty, 

underemployment, or unemployment can increase a 

father’s stress level, which may make him more likely 

to abuse his children physically.40 Underemployment 

and unemployment also undermine a father’s feelings 

of self-worth, which may make him more likely to 

lash out at his children.41

Substance abuse also is strongly associated with higher 

rates of abuse and neglect among fathers and mothers. 

One study found that 66 percent of children raised in 

alcoholic homes were physically maltreated or witnessed 

domestic violence and that more than 25 percent of these 

children were sexually abused.42 Additionally, fathers 

who were abused or who witnessed domestic violence 

between their parents are more likely to abuse their 

own children.43 Among other things, substance abuse 

lowers the inhibitions that fathers might otherwise 

have in connection with abusing their children by 

diminishing self-control.

Fathers with a low sense of self-worth are also more 

likely to abuse their children.44 Th ose experiencing 

psychological distress or low self-esteem may seek 

diversion from their problems or may abuse their 

children as a way to dominate and thus to derive a 

perverse sense of personal power.45 Fathers also may 

abuse their children as a way of exacting revenge on a 

spouse or partner by whom they feel humiliated.46

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 19

Of course, fathers are not all the same, and being 

an eff ective father takes many diff erent forms. 

It is important for any caseworker who is going to 

be working with fathers—in other words, every 

caseworker—to understand what eff ective fathering 

is. Understanding what makes for an eff ective father 

can help the caseworker work with a father around 

setting goals and objectives and assist both the 

caseworker and the father in understanding when 

progress has been made. 

Helping men understand what an invaluable and 

irreplaceable role they play in the development and 

lives of their children can lead them to make a greater 

commitment and investment in their family. Indeed, 

Dr. Wade F. Horn, co-founder and former president of 

the National Fatherhood Initiative, coined the phrase 

“the myth of the superfl uous father.”47 By this, he was 

referring to the fact that too many fathers become 

convinced that they are simply an extra set of hands 

to help around the house, rather than irreplaceable to 

their children. Men who see themselves as simply an 

“extra set of hands” are not in a position to help the 

family prevent future child maltreatment. 

Th e following discussion explores what makes a father 

eff ective and off ers the caseworker further insight into 

the importance of fathers. Despite a diversity of views 

on fathering, research suggests seven dimensions of 

eff ective fathering:

Fostering a positive relationship with the 

children’s mother

Spending time with children

Nurturing children

Disciplining children appropriately

Serving as a guide to the outside world

Protecting and providing

Serving as a positive role model.

Fathers may not excel in all seven of these dimensions, 

but fathers who do well in most of them will serve their 

children and families well. Some of the dimensions 

are generic indicators of good parenting; others apply 

specifi cally to men in their role as fathers.

FOSTERING A POSITIVE RELATIONSHIP

WITH THE CHILDREN’S MOTHER 

As discussed in Chapter 2, Fathers and Th eir Impact 

on Children’s Well-being, one of the most important 

ways that men can be good fathers is by treating the 

mother of their children with aff ection, respect, and 

consideration. Th e virtues that a father displays in 

his relationship with the mother of his children set 

an important example for the children. Children 

who witness aff ectionate, respectful, and sacrifi cial 

•

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CHAPTER 4

Effective Fathering
 20 Effective Fathering

behavior on the part of their father are more likely to 

treat their own, future spouses in a similar fashion. 

Just as child maltreatment and domestic abuse can 

be passed on from one generation to the next, so can 

respect, caring, and kindness. Th ese children are 

also more likely to be happy and well-adjusted. By 

contrast, children who witness their father’s anger 

toward or contempt for their mother are more at risk 

for depression, aggression, and poor health. Th e stress 

of parental confl ict can have a negative eff ect even 

on the immune system, which can result in health 

problems for children.48 See Appendix F for more on 

healthy marriages.

Th e research on fatherhood suggests two implications 

for fathers. First, fathers need to accentuate the 

positive when interacting with their wives and to 

show aff ection for their wives on a daily basis. While 

for many men this comes naturally, for others it 

does not. Many men, especially those who grew up 

without a father, simply did not have role models 

for how men can and ought to relate to their spouse 

or partner in a positive fashion. Further, the way a 

man treats and interacts with the women in his life 

is frequently connected to how he views himself as a 

man. Th e second implication is that husbands need 

to be able to deal with confl ict with their wives in a 

constructive manner. Confl ict, in and of itself, is not 

a bad thing in a relationship. Indeed, confl ict is often 

necessary to resolve issues, grievances, or injustices in 

a relationship. Couples who can raise issues with one 

another constructively, compromise, and forgive one 

another for the wrongs done generally have happier 

marriages and happier children than those who do 

not handle confl ict well or who avoid addressing 

issues in their relationship.49

Men should try to avoid two pitfalls of relationships: 

criticism and stonewalling. Criticism entails 

attacking a partner’s personality or character as 

opposed to addressing a specifi c concern about her 

behavior. Stonewalling means that one partner 

disengages from the relationship when confl ict arises, 

either by failing to speak, being emotionally distant, 

or by physically leaving the scene. In confl ict, women 

tend to resort more to criticizing and men are more 

prone to stonewalling. Both of these behaviors can 

be enormously destructive to a relationship.50 By 

contrast, fathers who can keep calm in the midst 

of confl ict, who can speak non-defensively, validate 

their partner’s concerns, and attempt to respond to 

legitimate issues raised by their partner are much 

more likely to have a strong and happy relationship 

with their wife and children.

SPENDING TIME WITH CHILDREN

“Kids spell love T-I-M-E.”—Dr. Ken Canfi eld, Founder 

and President, National Center for Fathering51 

Th e time a father spends with his children is important 

for at least three reasons. First, spending time together 

enables a father to get to know and to be known by 

his child. A father can best discover his child’s virtues 

and vices, hopes and fears, and aspirations and ideals 

by spending lots of time with his child. Second, a 

father who spends lots of time with his child tends to 

be better at caring. Time spent together makes a father 

more sensitive to his child’s needs for love, attention, 

direction, and discipline.52 And third, as the quotation 

above illustrates, children often do see time as an 

indicator of a parent’s love for them. 

Th e research literature suggests a few important points 

about how fathers spend time with their children:

Fathers should spend considerable time with their 

children playing and having fun. As discussed 

earlier, fathers’ play has a unique role in the 

child’s development, teaching, for example, how 

to explore the world and how to keep aggressive 

impulses in check.

Fathers should maintain the active, physical, and 

playful style of fathering as their children age. In 

other words, when it comes to father-child fun, 

active pursuits like tossing the football, playing 

basketball, hiking, or going to the library are 

more valuable than spending time in passive 

activities such as watching television—for their 

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 21

relationship and for their child’s emotional wellbeing, social development, and physical fi tness.

Fathers should engage in productive activities 

with their children such as household chores, 

washing dishes after dinner, or cleaning up the 

backyard. Research consistently shows that such 

shared activities promote a sense of responsibility 

and signifi cance in children that is, in turn, linked 

to greater self-esteem, academic and occupational 

achievement, psychological well-being, and civic 

engagement later in life.

Fathers should spend time fostering their 

children’s intellectual growth. Some studies 

suggest that fathers’ involvement in educational 

activities—from reading to their children to 

meeting with their child’s teacher—is more 

important for their children’s academic success 

than their mother’s involvement.53

NURTURING CHILDREN

Nurturing by a father serves several important 

purposes:

Helps fathers build close relationships with their 

children.

Fosters psychological well-being and self-worth 

in their children.

Provides children with a healthy model of 

masculinity.

Helps protect girls from prematurely seeking the 

romantic and sexual attention of men.

With infants, fathers should be responsive to 

their babies’ cries, hold and hug them often, and 

participate in their basic care (e.g., feeding, changing 

diapers). Th roughout the rest of early childhood, 

fathers should praise their children when they 

behave well or accomplish something, hug and kiss 

their children often, and comfort them when they 

are sad or scared. Fathers should continue to praise 

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•

•

•

•

adolescents, especially when they achieve signifi cant 

accomplishments. 

Fathers’ nurturing may be less openly expressive than 

mothers’. In fact, one unique way that fathers nurture 

their children—especially toddlers and teenagers—is 

by remaining calm when the child is upset or acting 

out. Studies suggest that fathers who respond calmly 

when their children misbehave, get upset, or otherwise 

lose control have children who are more popular, boys 

who are less aggressive, and girls who are less negative 

with their friends.54 Fathers exercise a critical role in 

providing their children with a mental map of how to 

respond to diffi cult situations. Th is is why they have 

to learn the art of self-control as they interact with 

their children.

DISCIPLINING CHILDREN APPROPRIATELY

Th e role that fathers play as disciplinarians cannot be 

underestimated. Th e way this role is understood and 

implemented within the individual family can have 

an enormous impact on how the family responds to 

eff orts to prevent further child maltreatment.

One advantage of having two parents rather than one 

is that two parents can share the load of parenting. 

Discipline often is diffi cult and frustrating; hence, 

fathers can make raising children easier for all in 

the family by taking up a substantial share of child 

discipline. Fathers seem to be uniquely successful in 

disciplining boys, perhaps in part because boys are 

often more likely to respond to discipline by a man.55

How should fathers discipline their children? First of 

all, a father must maintain control of his emotions, 

his body language, and his hands when he disciplines 

his children. Fathers who scream at their children, 

who pound tables, or who strike their children are 

destined to fail as disciplinarians, both because they 

are modeling bad behavior and because they lose 

their children’s respect when they let their emotions 

take hold of them.56 Unfortunately, many fathers 

resort to these tactics out of frustration when they 

feel they cannot control their children, because they 
 22 Effective Fathering

cannot control their anger, or because they simply do 

not know another way.

Since the way a father disciplines can be so important 

to preventing further child maltreatment in a family, 

Chapter 6, Fathers and Case Planning, presents a 

more detailed discussion on how to work with fathers 

on proper discipline.

SERVING AS A GUIDE

TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD

Another important function that fathers serve in 

the lives of their children is as guides to the world 

outside the home. When children are in preschool, 

fathers can best prepare their children for the outside 

world by engaging in vigorous, physical play and 

encouraging small steps in the direction of autonomy. 

For instance, fathers can push preschoolers to learn to 

dress themselves, to shake hands with house guests, 

and, more generally, to deal with the frustrations of 

daily life. As children begin school, fathers can tell 

their children of their own experiences in school and 

encourage them to study hard, teach them about 

money management, or teach them a sport that will 

help their children learn about teamwork.

Fathers of adolescents should incorporate discussions 

of their core beliefs and life experiences into ordinary 

conversations with their teens and have meals with 

their children on a regular basis. Fathers should 

also include their children in some of their work or 

community activities so as to give their teenaged 

children a taste of their lives outside the home.57 Th ey 

also should talk to their children about peer pressure 

and the dangers of alcohol, drugs, early sexual activity, 

and violence. And fathers should take the lead in 

giving their adolescents a little more freedom as they 

grow older, so long as this freedom is coupled with 

the occasional word of encouragement and advice, 

along with consequences for abuses of that freedom. 

In sum, fathers need to be preparing their children 

for the challenges and opportunities of adulthood 

by gradually giving them more opportunities to 

act independently and to make good use of their 

independence.

PROTECTING AND PROVIDING

Certainly the role of father as protector and provider 

has changed over the years. Historically, fathers were 

viewed as chief fi nancial provider for and protector of 

their children. As the traditional roles of mother and 

father, and likewise man and wife, have changed over 

the years, the distinctions have blurred, especially 

when it comes to who is the breadwinner. One 

study, however, found that men view marriage “as a 

partnership of equals, albeit one in which the man is 

the partner ultimately responsible for the provision 

of income and the family’s protection.”58 Th e ability 

to provide and protect is still, today, very much tied 

up with the average man’s sense of self and sense of 

manhood. Research consistently shows that fathers 

who are employed full-time express more happiness 

with family life and have better relationships 

with their children, compared to fathers who are 

underemployed or unemployed.59

For many men, feelings of inadequacy in the role of 

protector and provider can translate into frustration 

and anger, which may not be managed appropriately. 

Men who are under- or unemployed may feel powerless 

within the family. Child maltreatment can at times 

be a way of “getting even” with a partner whom the 

man sees as more powerful within the relationship. 

Furthermore, fathers who feel inadequate in their 

role as provider and protector may feel inadequate to 

step in and to help to prevent further maltreatment. 

Th is is why it is particularly important to explore this 

role in the case planning process.

Fathers also are still expected to provide protection 

in addition to providing for their family fi nancially. 

From child-proofi ng a home when the child is 

very young to making sure their children are not 

threatened by other children or adults, fathers play an 

important role in making sure their children are safe. 

Th is is particularly important in communities that 

experience high rates of violence and crime. In fact, 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 23

research clearly suggests that fathers in disadvantaged 

communities play a critical role in monitoring and 

controlling their own children, and even others’ 

children, and that such communities suff er when there 

are few fathers able to play this protective role.60

Fathers also can protect their children by monitoring 

their social environment. Research indicates that 

children benefi t when their parents know their friends 

and the parents of their friends.61 Fathers can use 

this “intergenerational closure,” as social scientists 

call it, to keep track of their children’s whereabouts 

and activities and to collaborate with other parents in 

making sure that their children are behaving in ways 

they approve. Fathers also should pay close attention 

to the type of peers with whom their children 

are spending time. If they determine that their 

children’s peers are engaged in unethical, dangerous, 

or unlawful activities, they need to minimize their 

children’s contact with these other children.

BEING A ROLE MODEL

While the direct relationship a father has with his 

child is of paramount value, fathers also exercise a 

strong infl uence on their children through the type 

of life they live in and outside the home. In the 

wake of child maltreatment, it is very important 

that the father examine what sort of role model he 

is presenting to his children. Of course, if he is the 

perpetrator of the maltreatment, the answer is that 

he is providing a very poor role model. Yet it is not 

solely the question of the maltreatment—how else is 

the father communicating to the child what kind of 

life he leads? 

If the father is not the perpetrator, it is still very 

important for him to look at what kind of role model 

he is portraying. Th e victim of the maltreatment and 

all other children in the home will be confused and 

fearful about his own place in the family following 

one or more instances of maltreatment. Children 

will look to the adults in the household for emotional 

sustenance, including how to respond and behave 

moving forward. It is at such times of familial stress 

that the role model provided by the father is of the 

utmost importance.

Being a role model is not a simple or easy task. In the 

way that fathers treat other people, spend their time 

and money, and handle the joys and stresses of life, 

they provide a template of living for their children 

that often proves critical in guiding the behavior 

of their children, for better or worse. As discussed 

earlier, a father’s treatment of the opposite sex, his 

ability to control his own emotions, and his approach 

to work all play a formative role in shaping his sons’ 

and daughters’ approach to romantic relationships 

and marriage, interpersonal relationships, and school 

and work.62

Th ere are three points that can guide a father as he 

explores what kind of role model he is and wants to be:

Fathers should promote the mission of their 

families. It may sound odd to talk about a mission 

statement for a family but all healthy families 

have them, whether they are articulated or not. 

For instance, families that believe their children 

should be brought up with a sound spiritual 

foundation have, as part of their mission, raising 

children of faith. And families that believe that 

children must learn the benefi ts of hard work 

raise children who recognize and can embrace 

the virtues of working hard and applying one’s 

self to a goal. 

Fathers should abide by the spirit and (where 

appropriate) the letter of the rules that govern 

family life. For example, a father who asks his 

teenager to obey his curfew should also make an 

eff ort to be home at a decent hour.

Fathers should acknowledge their mistakes to 

their children. When appropriate, they should 

be willing to seek forgiveness from their children. 

A father who loses his temper while disciplining 

a child should apologize to the child. Many 

men view apologizing to their child as a sign of 

weakness that will cause the child to lose respect 

for the father. Th e opposite is true. Apologizing 

shows a man is capable of acknowledging and 

•

•

•
 24 Effective Fathering

facing up to a mistake, fi xing the mistake to 

the extent possible, and committing to moving 

forward—hardly a sign of weakness, much more 

so a sign of strength.63 

A father’s infl uence as a role model for his children is 

aff ected by the amount of time they spend together. 

Whether they live in the same home on a full-time 

basis or not, fathers should make a concerted eff ort to 

model behaviors and attitudes that they want to see 

their children display when they grow up. 

Th e above discussion of the seven dimensions of 

eff ective fathering off ers some insight for CPS 

caseworkers into how to strengthen a father’s role in 

the lives of his children. Th e next three chapters are 

designed to help caseworkers put this information 

into the context of the child protection process 

from investigation to case planning through service 

provision and case closure. 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 25

Fathers have, traditionally, not been as involved in 

child welfare case planning as mothers. Worker 

bias regarding father involvement appears to be the 

most widely researched barrier to fathers’ participation 

in child welfare case planning. One study found that 

caseworkers did not pay attention to birth fathers to 

the degree that they did to birth mothers.64 At the 

same time, the fathers did not respond to outreach 

eff orts as well as mothers, which testifi es to the 

need to approach fathers with an understanding of 

their unique needs and feelings. At least in this one 

study, caseworkers were found to require that fathers 

demonstrate their connection to the child whereas 

the mothers’ connection was taken for granted. 65 Of 

course, characteristics of fathers who do not live with 

their children also can contribute to the diffi culties 

in successfully engaging fathers—incarceration, 

homelessness, substance abuse, to name a few. 

Certainly the safety of the child and family is the 

most important goal of child protection. Not all 

fathers should be included in the child protective 

services (CPS) case plan. When a father has been the 

perpetrator of abuse, and the conclusion is reached that 

working with the father can promote neither safety 

nor permanence for the child, then the caseworker’s 

focus must remain with other members of the family. 

Th is conclusion, however, must be reached only after 

the family assessment is complete—it cannot be 

assumed. How to involve fathers eff ectively in the 

initial assessment process is the focus of this chapter.

UNDERSTANDING ONE’S OWN BIASES

Everyone’s views regarding fatherhood are likely to be 

colored by their own experience with their fathers, and, 

with caseworkers, perhaps by their clinical experience. 

Simply put, it is impossible to be without biases and 

preconceptions about fathers. For any professional 

working with men, especially caseworkers in the 

very diffi cult and emotionally charged realm of child 

protective services, it is important to recognize and 

understand one’s own biases and preconceptions.

To work successfully with fathers, caseworkers must 

know what their own biases and preconceptions are 

about fatherhood and fathers. Once caseworkers 

understand these, they can more readily do a selfcheck throughout the case to ensure that these biases 

are not aff ecting their view of the families with whom 

they work.

FATHERS AND THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS

Fathers, whether or not they are the perpetrator of the 

child maltreatment, must play an important part in 

the initial assessment or investigation process. Th is 

includes fathers who do not live with their children. 

CHAPTER 5

Fathers and

Initial Assessment

and Investigation
 26 Fathers and Initial Assessment and Investigation

If the father of the child does not live in the home, 

the caseworker should fi nd out where the father is. 

Whether in the home or not, the caseworker should 

also:

Understand what type of relationship the father 

has with his child and the family. 

Learn about how the father of the child fi ts into 

the current family dynamics. 

Understand what role the father plays either in 

contributing to the circumstances that led to 

maltreatment or in helping to protect the child 

from further maltreatment. 

An assessment or investigation cannot be considered 

complete until these issues are addressed and 

understood to the fullest extent possible.

Th e fi rst decision point in the assessment process is 

substantiating that maltreatment actually occurred. 

Th e second decision point is assessing risk. Risk 

assessment involves evaluating the child and family’s 

situation to identify and weigh the risk factors, family 

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strengths, and resources, and agency and community 

services.67 Assessing risk involves gathering 

information in four key domains: the maltreatment 

itself, the child, caregivers, and family functioning. 

Fathers clearly need to be interviewed as part of the 

assessment or investigation. Th is is recommended 

whether the father is living with the child or not. Th e 

reasons why it is important to interview fathers who 

live outside the home include the following:

Th e father is signifi cant to the child, whether 

the father is actively involved in the child’s life 

or not.

Th e nonresidential father has an important 

impact on the dynamics of the family.

If placement outside of the home should be 

necessary, the biological father may prove to be 

a suitable placement.

Th e nonresidential father may play a role in 

ameliorating the circumstances that led to the 

abuse.

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Initial CPS Assessment or Investigation

As described in Child Protective Services: A Guide for Caseworkers, the purpose of the initial assessment or 

investigation is:

...to gather and analyze information in response to CPS reports, to interpret the agency’s role to the 

children and families, and to determine which families will benefi t from further agency intervention. 

After interviewing all parties and gathering all relevant information, CPS caseworkers must determine 

whether maltreatment has occurred and can be substantiated. In most States, CPS staff are mandated 

by law to determine whether the report is substantiated or founded (meaning that credible evidence 

indicates that abuse or neglect has occurred) or whether the report is unsubstantiated or unfounded 

(meaning that there is a lack of credible evidence to substantiate child maltreatment—but does not 

mean it did not necessarily occur). Depending on State law, CPS agencies usually have up to 30, 60, 

or 90 days after receiving the report to complete the initial assessment or investigation. A major part 

of the initial assessment or investigation includes determining whether there is a risk or likelihood of 

maltreatment occurring in the future and whether the child is safe (not at risk of imminent, serious 

harm). In addition, CPS caseworkers must decide whether ongoing services to reduce risk and assure 

safety should be provided by the CPS agency or other community partners.66
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 27

INTERVIEWING FATHERS

During the initial assessment or investigation, 

caseworkers must gather and analyze a great deal of 

information from the child victim, family members, 

and other sources who may be knowledgeable about 

the alleged maltreatment or the risk to and safety of 

the children. Child Protective Services: A Guide for 

Caseworkers provides a detailed exhibit of the types 

of information that caseworkers should gather from 

each source (see http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/pubs/

usermanuals/cps/exhibit6_2.cfm). 

While conducting interviews with fathers, the 

caseworker should be aware of some unique 

issues relevant to fathers that may prove useful in 

understanding the father’s role in the family. For 

fathers who live in the home, caseworkers should 

address the following topics:

What role does the father view himself playing 

in the family?

How does the father view the maltreatment that 

occurred? Does he see it as a failure on his part? 

Does he experience the fact that his child was 

maltreated as an aff ront to how he views himself 

as a man and a father? 

Is there anything he personally believes he could 

have done diff erently to prevent the maltreatment?

What role models as a father has he himself had? 

How does the father believe these role models 

would or should have handled the situation that 

led to the maltreatment?

If the father was the perpetrator, it will be 

important to explore his views of discipline 

and how he came to learn what is appropriate 

discipline. It will also be important to explore 

the role of aggression and anger in the father’s 

life to help determine the risk the father may 

present in the future. Is he, for example, open to 

learning new ways of discipline?

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What is the relationship between the father and 

the mother of the child(ren), and how does he 

interact with her?

Are there other men involved with the family, 

how does the father view these men, and what is 

the type and quality of their relationship?

For fathers who live outside the child’s home, 

topics to explore include:

What is the current living arrangement of the 

father vis-à-vis the home in which his child 

lives?

Is there another man living in the home with 

the child? How does the child’s father view this 

man and his relationship with his child and the 

mother of his child?

How often does the father see his child? If and 

when he does see the child, what is the nature of 

the interaction?

Th e CPS caseworker must keep in mind that 

traditional roles of fathers—provider, protector, and 

teacher—still have great meaning for men today. 

Whether or not the father is the perpetrator, a man 

very often views the maltreatment of his child as a 

failure on his part—a failure to protect his child, 

for example. It is equally important to recognize 

that the entire self-perception of “manliness” 

and “fatherhood” are deeply intertwined. In 

every culture, “being a man” is loaded with deep 

meaning and these meanings vary across cultures. 

Caseworkers who try to understand the dynamics 

of the family need to recognize what “manliness” 

and “fatherhood” mean to the men in that family. 

Appendix D, Cultural Competence Self-assessment 

Questionnaire, can also help an agency and its 

caseworkers address their cultural competency 

training needs as they relate to the father and 

families they serve.

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 28 Fathers and Initial Assessment and Investigation

DETERMINING WHETHER TO

INVOLVE OTHER PROFESSIONALS

If, as the assessment progresses, signifi cant questions 

still exist about the risks and strengths in the family, 

the caseworker may fi nd it valuable to utilize outside 

referrals. Given the importance that the father can 

play in the assessment process, the caseworker may 

need to turn to an outside professional if unable to 

gather suffi cient information about the father and his 

role in the dynamics that caused the maltreatment. 

For example, for some men and in some cultures, 

it is extremely diffi cult to speak to a woman about 

issues relating to family and to fatherhood. In such a 

case, the caseworker may fi nd it valuable to have the 

father meet with a professional who is experienced 

working with fathers. Such a professional may be 

found within the same social services agency or 

at another organization within the community. 

Th e challenge here is that, while today, in nearly 

every community there is a program dedicated to 

supporting and helping fathers, many of the staff may 

not be sensitive to and knowledgeable about issues 

related to child maltreatment. Prior to involving 

staff from such an organization in the assessment 

process, it is important to inquire whether they have 

had experience with fathers who have been involved, 

either as a perpetrator or a non-off ending adult in the 

family, in a child maltreatment case. If they have 

not, then ask if there is a psychologist, psychiatrist, 

or clinical social worker with whom the organization 

works who is good at working with fathers. Such 

a professional may bring an understanding of child 

maltreatment, combined with experience working 

with fathers, to the CPS assessment process. Also 

keep in mind that for many fathers, the outside 

professional may be a religious leader at the religious 

institution the father attends.

CPS workers, however, may or may not be able 

to locate such programs easily, depending on the 

resources in the community, but generally fi nding 

a fatherhood program in a local community should 

not be too diffi cult. Today, there are numerous 

such programs, examples of which are presented in 

Section II of the manual. In addition to colleagues 

and to local social service experts, two good resources 

mentioned previously are the National Center for 

Fathering (1-800-593-DADS; www.fathers.com) 

and the National Fatherhood Initiative (301-948-

0599; www.fatherhood.org). 

Th e local child support enforcement offi ces also may 

prove to be a good resource. Obviously, they have a 

great deal of experience working with fathers. Many 

low-income fathers may still perceive child support 

as an enforcement agency rather than a helping tool. 

Over the past several years, child support offi ces have 

strived to become a supportive service to fathers by 

helping them with challenges ranging from defeating 

substance abuse, successfully returning to family 

life after incarceration, and developing job skills. 

However, since misperceptions about local child 

support offi ces remain common among low-income 

fathers, the caseworker needs to be sensitive to these 

misperceptions.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 29

CHAPTER 6

Fathers and Case Planning

DEMONSTRATING EMPATHY, 

RESPECT, AND GENUINENESS

Researchers have defi ned three core conditions that 

are essential to the helping relationship:

Empathy

Respect

Genuineness

“A caseworker’s ability to communicate these three 

core conditions will strongly infl uence whether 

they will build a relationship with the children and 

family that is characterized by cooperation or a 

relationship that is hostile and distrustful.”71 Each of 

these conditions is discussed below in the context of 

working with fathers.

Empathy is the ability to perceive and communicate 

with sensitivity the feelings and experiences of another 

person.72 Developing empathy is not easy. It can be 

especially diffi cult with men and fathers. Whether 

or not the father is the perpetrator, the entire intake, 

assessment, and case planning process is experienced 

by the father, to some degree, as a threat. Th e very 

fact that his family is involved with CPS is testimony, 

at least in his mind, that he has failed in his role 

as protector. Some fathers will be able to accept 

and verbalize these feelings; others will defensively 

shunt them aside. Regardless, the caseworker must 

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Historically, child protective services (CPS) 

casework and policies, as well as academic 

research, typically overlooked the role that fathers 

played in the dynamics of child abuse and neglect, 

other than as the alleged off enders.68 Barriers to 

involving fathers in case planning included custody 

issues, unemployment, child support payment and 

collection, domestic violence, and incarceration.69 

Heavy caseloads also made it harder to track down 

a nonresidential father; it is often seen as easier to 

manage the ongoing interactions over the course 

of the case by working with just one parent, usually 

the mother, and the children. Fathers often had to 

demonstrate their connection to the child, whereas the 

mothers’ connection was taken for granted.70 While it 

may take extra eff ort to involve a nonresidential father, 

it is usually in the child’s best interest to do so.

Th is chapter focuses on working directly with fathers 

in the case planning process. Th e chapter fi rst 

highlights the importance of demonstrating empathy, 

respect, and genuineness in interactions with a father. 

It continues with a discussion of two specifi c issues 

of particular concern in working with fathers: child 

support and discipline. Th e chapter then looks at the 

challenges of bringing in fathers who do not live with 

the child. Recognizing that not all relationships are 

the same, the chapter also explores issues relevant to 

fathers in diff erent situations.
 30 Fathers and Case Planning

understand the feelings the father is experiencing to 

eff ectively engage him in the process.

Respect has special meaning to men and fathers. 

An entire popular language has developed around 

respect and disrespect in the male-dominated worlds 

of sports and hip-hop, for example. Communicating 

respect throughout the case planning process is an 

important way to get and to keep the father engaged. 

Th is is not to suggest that despite the caseworker’s 

best eff orts, the father will never feel disrespected 

during the case planning process. Likely, things will 

be said and feelings will be exposed that may make 

him feel disrespected. It is important that the father 

not be given reason to accurately conclude he is being 

disrespected by the caseworker. Transient feelings can 

be dealt with and overcome. A genuine belief that the 

caseworker disrespects the father, however, can poison 

the relationship, making it much harder to reach the 

ultimate goal of safety and permanency for the child. 

Genuineness refers to “caseworkers being themselves. 

Th is means simply that caseworkers are consistent in 

what they say and do, non-defensive, and authentic.”74 

Genuineness is important in working with fathers, as 

it is with all members of the family. 

Case Planning

Child Protective Services: A Guide for Caseworkers describes case planning in this way:

Th e case plan that a child protective services (CPS) caseworker develops with a family is their road map to 

successful intervention. Th e outcomes identify the destination, the goals provide the direction, and the tasks 

outline the specifi c steps necessary to reach the fi nal destination. Th e purposes of case planning are to:

Identify strategies with the family that address the eff ects of maltreatment and change the behaviors or 

conditions contributing to its risk;

Provide a clear and specifi c guide for the caseworker and the family for changing the behaviors and 

conditions that infl uence risk;

Establish a benchmark to measure client progress for achieving outcomes;

Develop an essential framework for case decision-making.

Th e primary decisions during this stage are guided by the following questions:

What are the outcomes that, when achieved, will indicate that risk is reduced and that the eff ects of 

maltreatment have been successfully addressed?

What goals and tasks must be accomplished to achieve these outcomes?

What are the priorities among the outcomes, goals, and tasks?

What interventions or services will best facilitate successful outcomes? Are the appropriate services 

available?

How and when will progress be evaluated?73

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 31

DISCUSSING CHILD SUPPORT

As discussed earlier, child support can mean “walking 

a tightrope” in the CPS context. When working with 

a father who does not live with his child, child support 

may be an issue of contention between the mother 

and father, an issue that could indeed stand in the 

way of a mother and father working together in any 

meaningful fashion. For example, among families 

where the father is not living in the home, the rate of 

current child support collection rose from 54 percent 

in 2000 to 59 percent in 2004. Th e percentage of 

arrears cases, however, has remained around 60 

percent.75 Not surprisingly, children in homes where 

they receive no fi nancial support from their fathers 

are much more likely to be poor.

Underemployment and unemployment can be 

experienced by the father as a direct insult to his selfperception as a man and father. Th e same can be true 

when a man is unable to pay child support. Many men 

who owe child support are hesitant about approaching 

any government offi ce, particularly CPS. It would 

be a mistake for the caseworker to be perceived by a 

father as an agent for child support enforcement. At 

the same time, the caseworker would be remiss by not 

addressing questions of child support when dealing 

with a nonresidential father and trying to bring this 

father into the equation to ensure the child is living 

in a safe environment. 

It may be advisable to speak with the local child 

support enforcement agency about the services 

available in the community prior to broaching the 

subject with the family. Over the past several years, 

the child support movement has come to not only 

recognize but also actively support the notion that 

fathers provide much more to the child than fi nancial 

support. It is now understood that a nonresidential 

father, even if he is only able to provide minimal 

child support, is much more likely to help support 

the child fi nancially over the years if he is involved in 

his child’s life than if he is not emotionally connected 

to his child. 

DISCUSSING DISCIPLINE

Th e topic of discipline may be the most important 

discussion a caseworker will have with a father, 

whether or not the father is the perpetrator of the 

maltreatment. Every father needs to understand 

how to discipline a child properly, not only because 

it can help ensure that a child is not maltreated but 

also because it is one of the most important tools for 

teaching children. Discipline is not simply about 

punishment or correction of misbehavior. More 

broadly, discipline is also about teaching a child to 

exercise self-control and to obey legitimate authority.

Fathers can learn strategies for controlling their 

anger, such as recognizing their own physical and 

emotional cues that suggest they are too angry to 

deal with a situation at that moment and learning to 

walk away from a situation until they have reached a 

calmer emotional state. Sometimes a father’s anger 

may be grounded in very personal issues, such as his 

own experiences with his father when he was a boy. 

In such cases the caseworker may fi nd it valuable to 

connect the father with a psychologist or clinical 

social worker.

A father’s anger may grow out of the dynamics in 

the family or from his relationship with the child’s 

mother, issues that may reveal themselves to the 

caseworker in individual interviews and family 

meetings. In such cases, the caseworker may wish to 

bring a family therapist into the process.

Th ere are a variety of ways to help fathers better 

manage their anger. Some can be addressed directly 

by the caseworker, while others may require additional 

professional intervention. One role the caseworker 

can assume is that of teacher, educating the father 

on how to discipline appropriately. Again, this may 

need to begin by changing the father’s view of what 

is appropriate discipline. Th e caseworker should fi nd 

out how he currently disciplines his children and how 

he was disciplined as a child. 
 32 Fathers and Case Planning

For starters, fathers (and mothers) must set clear and 

consistent limits. Rules serve two purposes. First, they 

help maintain household order, generally creating a 

home environment that allows each member to feel 

comfortable, respected, and safe. A chaotic family 

situation not only hinders healthy child development, 

it also makes for a stressful place to live. Second, 

rules help set the boundaries for children’s behavior 

so that they remain safe. Children do not have the 

judgment of adults—rules take the place of more 

mature judgment by clearly telling children this is 

what they can do and this is what they cannot do.

Good discipline also requires that fathers respond 

with consistent and reasonable consequences to the 

misbehavior or carelessness of their children. Fathers 

should not punish rude behavior by a 6-year-old on 

one occasion with a time-out and ignore or laugh it off 

on another. Th ey also should tailor the punishment 

to fi t the crime. When a 3-year-old carelessly spills 

milk it should not be dealt with the same way as 

when that child slaps his 1-year-old sister. Fathers 

must recognize they have a number of negative 

consequences at their disposal: a verbal warning, a 

time-out, or taking away a privilege. Fathers can use 

natural consequences. For example, if a child throws 

a stuff ed animal at a sibling, the stuff ed animal 

gets taken away. Or, another example, if horseplay 

by the child results in spilling a drink all over the 

kitchen fl oor, the child is not allowed to play or to do 

anything else until he cleans up the mess.

Th e keys to good discipline are:

Set clear rules and enforce them.

Be consistent.

Never give in to a tantrum. Th is will only teach 

children that tantrums work, and will encourage 

more and louder tantrums in the future.

Keep anger out of discipline. Th is also helps 

the parent refrain from either inappropriate or 

excessive discipline.

Do not confuse bad behavior with a bad child. 

Parents need to verbalize to children that it’s the 

bad behavior they don’t like, not the child.

Use time-outs and other appropriate 

consequences.

Praise good behavior.

Combine rules and limit setting with explanations. 

Telling children why rules are what they are, and 

why they are being punished helps them learn 

what is and is not acceptable behavior.76

During the case planning process, caseworkers should 

work with fathers to set appropriate goals relevant to 

identifi ed discipline issues. In addition, caseworkers 

should help identify the specifi c tasks and services 

needed to achieve these goals.

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Discipline Self-assessment

Caseworkers can help a father learn a simple evaluation method, so that the father can look back at his own 

disciplinary measures and determine if they were appropriate. Here are four simple questions a father can 

ask himself as he reviews his own response:

Did I teach or did I express anger?

Was my response consistent with our family rules?

Did the consequence suit the misbehavior?

Was there any possibility my response could have hurt my child?

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 33

BRINGING IN FATHERS

WHO DO NOT LIVE WITH THE CHILD

Th is manual has discussed the importance of 

involving nonresidential fathers. Th ey can be a 

source of support to the mother of their child, both 

fi nancially and emotionally; are an irreplaceable 

fi gure in the lives of their children; and can be a 

supportive presence as the family deals with the 

problems that contributed to the maltreatment. If 

it is determined that the family is not a safe place 

for the child, the nonresidential father is a placement 

option that should be considered.

Of course, there may be times when involving the 

nonresidential father in the case planning process is 

impossible or ill-advised. Examples include when 

the father is involved in illegal activities, such as 

substance abuse or criminal behavior. More often 

than not, however, the nonresidential father can play 

a useful role. Bringing him into the process, though, 

may require some skilled negotiating on the part of 

the caseworker. 

Depending on the living situation of the nonresidential 

father, the caseworker will often determine that it is 

advisable to include him in family meetings. He is 

potentially an additional resource as the family plans 

how to ensure the child’s safety. Of course, he has 

a stake in the child’s safety and future. Involving 

the nonresidential father and his family in family 

meetings may require skilled social work on the part 

of the caseworkers, requiring that they understand:

Th e dynamics of the relationship between the 

father and the mother;

How other adult members of the family and adults 

living in the household view the nonresidential 

father;

Th e dynamics of the relationship, if any, between the 

nonresidential father and these other adult family 

members and adults living in the household; 

How the nonresidential father and his child 

interact; 

How involved the father has been in his child’s 

life. 

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Optimizing Family Strengths

Since the early 1990s, CPS agencies have primarily been using two models—the Family Unity Model and 

the Family Group Conferencing Model (also known as the Family Group Decision-making Model)—to 

optimize family strengths in the planning process. Th ese models bring the family, extended family, and 

others in the family’s social support network together to make decisions regarding how to ensure safety 

and well-being. Th e demonstrated benefi ts of these models include:

An increased willingness of family members to accept the services suggested in the plan because they 

were integrally involved in the planning process;

Maintained family continuity and connection through kinship rather than foster care placements;

Enhanced relationships between professionals and families resulting in increased job satisfaction of 

professionals.

Family meetings can be powerful events since families often experience caring and concern from family 

members, relatives, and professionals. Meetings based on the families’ strengths can help them develop a 

sense of hope and vision for the future. Th e meetings themselves may also improve family functioning by 

modeling openness in communication and appropriate problem-solving skills.77

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 34 Fathers and Case Planning

Th ere is no straightforward rule or guide for when to 

bring the nonresidential father into family meetings. 

Each situation will diff er. In some cases, involving 

the nonresidential father will seem natural and 

obvious to family members. In other cases, it will be 

less clear. As with any step that can prove diffi cult to 

navigate, the caseworker is advised to consult with a 

supervisor to determine how and when to proceed.

WORKING WITH DIFFERENT FATHERS

IN DIFFERENT SITUATIONS

Caseworkers need to adapt their approaches to fi t 

fathers in varying circumstances. Th ere is no single 

model for fatherhood and no single model for being 

an involved father. While it is clear that a married 

father is more likely to be involved in his child’s life, 

fathers in other situations can be and are good fathers 

as well. Th e following discussion highlights diff erent 

father situations and explores relevant caseworker 

issues for each while working with families in the 

child welfare system.

Married fathers. Th is is the model most often 

associated with positive outcomes for children. Child 

maltreatment may be a sign of a problem in the 

marriage. At the very least, it signals signifi cant stress 

upon the marital unit. When working with a family 

headed by a married mother and father, the caseworker 

must come to understand the status of the marriage. Is 

it strong and healthy? Is it troubled and, if so, why and 

how? Th e condition of the marriage directly impacts 

the children. Furthermore, the child maltreatment 

may have occurred as a result of marital problems that 

caused misdirected anger, stress, and exhaustion. 

Cohabitating parents. A man and a woman living 

together who have one or more children together 

present many of the same issues as a married couple. 

However, the research shows that cohabitation—even 

and especially when children are involved—is not the 

same as marriage. For example, one study reveals 

that when couples marry after cohabiting, they are 

nearly 50 percent more likely to divorce eventually 

as compared to couples that did not live together.78

Other research has shown that teenagers being raised 

by cohabitating parents have more emotional and 

behavioral problems than peers who are living with 

married parents.79 Why there is such a diff erence 

in outcomes for couples and children alike in a 

cohabitating arrangement can only be answered by 

theory and speculation. It may have to do with the 

view the couple has toward marriage, commitment, 

and their own relationship. It is theorized that 

perhaps cohabitating parents, especially men, view 

the union as more tenuous and perhaps temporary, 

which suggests that the caseworker determine how 

the cohabitating mother and father view their own 

relationship, its strength, and its longevity.80

Incarcerated fathers. More and more programs 

are working with men in prison not only to prepare 

them for returning to a productive role in society, 

but just as importantly to prepare them for being a 

good father upon their return. Many men who are in 

prison have never had an opportunity or know how 

to be good fathers. Th ese programs work with men 

around issues related to fatherhood not only out of a 

commitment to connecting men with their children, 

but also because ensuring that men who leave prison 

are prepared to take an active role in their family may 

be one of the best ways to motivate men to avoid the 

behaviors that got them into prison in the fi rst place. 

A caseworker working with a family who has a father 

currently in prison may fi nd it valuable to determine 

where the father is incarcerated and if one of these 

programs is currently operating at this facility. 

Several programs that work with incarcerated fathers 

are included in Section II. 

Multiple fathers. A situation that can be extremely 

challenging occurs when there are multiple fathers 

involved in the family. In some families, children 

are living in the same household, yet have diff erent 

fathers. Th ere may be diff erent arrangements: the 

mother is living with children by herself, while the 

fathers of the children may or may not be involved; 

the mother may be living with the father of one or 

more of her children, while the father(s) of her other 

children may or may not be involved; and the mother 

may be living with a man who is not the father of 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 35

any of her children, and the father(s) of her children 

may or may not be involved. Obviously, any one 

of these scenarios presents the potential for tension 

and confusion over roles. Concerns over who is 

responsible for the safety of the children, who plays 

the role of the psychological father—the man who 

acts, in the eyes of the child, as “dad”—and how 

other adults are portraying the father to his children 

will come into play. Financial issues are often a source 

of tension. Issues of trust between and among the 

adults are almost sure to arise. As one would expect, 

it is common for one father to be angry at another 

over who is responsible for a child being maltreated. 

When working with a family with multiple fathers 

involved, it is important for the caseworker to 

understand the role each man plays in the family 

dynamic. It is also important to learn how each 

father views the maltreatment, what led up to it, and 

who, in his mind, is responsible for the maltreatment 

occurring. All men living in the household should 

be part of the process, including family meetings. 

Whether and when to involve other fathers of children 

in the household needs to be determined on a caseby-case basis and, like any challenging issue facing a 

caseworker, the input of a supervisor can be a valuable 

tool. Th e goal of the entire process, of course, is to 

achieve safety and permanency for the child. One 

or all of the fathers who are connected to the family 

can prove to be a valuable ally in accomplishing this 

goal—determining which of the fathers and how 

he or they will be helpful, and how the caseworker 

can support them in being helpful, is the task the 

caseworker faces.

Boyfriends. While he is not the father, a boyfriend 

may fi ll the role of father to the child. He may 

contribute fi nancially to rearing the child. He may 

be the father of other children in the house, but not 

of the child who was maltreated. If the father of the 

child who was maltreated is involved in any way, the 

father assuredly will have strong feelings about the 

boyfriend. Much has been written about boyfriends 

in the house and their role in child maltreatment. 

Because these men typically do not have the same 

history of care and nurturing with the child, the 

same emotional and normative commitment to the 

child’s welfare, and the same institutionalized role 

as a father fi gure as do biological fathers in intact 

families, boyfriends pose a higher risk to children if 

they spend time alone with them. 

Th ese factors help to explain why mothers’ boyfriends 

are much more likely to be involved in physical or 

sexual abuse of children than a biological father.81 In 

one study of physical abuse, boyfriends accounted 

for 64 percent of non-parental abuse, even though 

boyfriends performed only 2 percent of non-parental 

care.82 Another study found that the odds of child 

maltreatment were 2.5 times higher in households 

with a boyfriend living in the home, compared to 

households with a biological father.83 Th e authors 

of this study concluded that CPS caseworkers 

should “focus more of their attention on the highrisk relationship between a surrogate father and the 

children.”84

Stepfathers. While research varies, some studies 

show that stepfathers are more likely to abuse their 

children physically and sexually.85 A 1997 study of 

more than 600 families in upstate New York found 

that children living with stepfathers were more than 

three times more likely to be sexually abused than 

children living in intact families.86 Another study 

found that the presence of a stepfather doubles the risk 

of sexual abuse for girls—either from the stepfather 

or another male fi gure.87 Analyzing reports of fatal 

child abuse in the United States, one study found 

that stepfathers were approximately 60 times more 

likely than biological fathers to kill their preschool 

children.88 While these studies fi nd that stepfathers 

often invest less in caring for their stepchildren, 

others cite many examples of caring behaviors by and 

close relationships with stepparents, suggesting that 

paternal investment is not restricted only to biological 

off spring.89

Th is is not to suggest that the caseworker should 

assume the boyfriend or stepfather is a dangerous 

member of the family. Th ere are, of course, countless 

stepfathers who step into the role of dad with both 

competence and caring. And many live-in boyfriends 
 36 Fathers and Case Planning

provide both love and structure for the children in 

the household. It does mean that the caseworker 

needs to recognize that there are unique issues at play 

when working with a live-in boyfriend or stepfather. 

It also may mean that, if the perpetrator is the livein boyfriend or stepfather, there are additional 

challenges and issues to consider when assessing the 

safety of the child.

ADDRESSING FATHERS’ ABUSE

OF THEIR CHILDREN

Th ere is little literature on the rehabilitation of fathers 

who have maltreated their children, as well as the 

role that fathers can play in helping children who 

have been abused. Th e following sections should be 

viewed as preliminary eff orts to understand and to 

help fathers who have abused their children or fathers 

who are helping their children recover from abuse 

and neglect.

Fathers who have abused or neglected their children 

need to: 

Address any factors that may have led up to their 

perpetration of maltreatment. 

Be honest about the fact that they have a problem 

and need to take active steps to prevent future 

acts of maltreatment. Th erapists and scholars 

agree that the crucial fi rst step that abusive 

parents must take is to acknowledge what they 

have done. 

Acknowledge that their abuse was wrong and 

harmful. Th ey should refl ect specifi cally on 

the harm they have done to their child, which 

is a crucial step in helping them to desist from 

further abuse.

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Apologize to their children, either in-person 

or in writing, both to acknowledge their own 

culpability and to help their children recover 

from the abuse. Research suggests that children 

can benefi t when they do not have to hide the 

fact of their abuse—especially sexual abuse—

from people they care about.

Identify the psychological and situational 

stressors and stimuli—e.g., loneliness, drug or 

alcohol use, being alone with their child in the 

evening—that led to physical or sexual abuse 

and avoid them at all costs.90

Individual or group treatment is generally 

incorporated into interventions to help confront 

patterns of abusive behavior and the psychological 

issues underlying that behavior. Either through 

counseling or parenting classes, these fathers need 

to be taught appropriate disciplinary principles 

and techniques. Physical abuse is often linked to 

unrealistic expectations on the part of a parent. 

By learning about the developmental stages of 

children, they can develop appropriate rules and 

expectations. 

Reconciliation between a father and his child—

especially in cases of sexual abuse or multiple 

incidents of physical abuse—will necessarily 

be diffi cult. Indeed, involved family members, 

CPS caseworkers, and judicial offi cials will often 

legitimately decide that a father can no longer live 

with his children as a consequence of his physical or 

sexual abuse. Nevertheless, research on restorative 

justice suggests that some contact, even if it is brief, 

between the father and his child may be helpful to 

all concerned parties if the father takes responsibility 

for his actions, expresses.91 Th us, professionals and 

family members seeking to address a father’s abuse 

of his child may wish to consider some eff ort at 

reconciliation, provided that both the father and the 

child (along with the mother or guardian) consent to 

such an eff ort.

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 37

ADDRESSING THE ABUSE OF

THEIR CHILDREN BY OTHERS

Children who have been maltreated are more likely 

than children who have not to suff er from a range of 

psychological problems, to have diffi culty relating to 

others, and to suff er from physical or developmental 

impairments.92 Research on children who have been 

abused or neglected indicates that their behavior is quite 

variable (e.g., one moment they are warm, the next 

aloof), that they often can be irrationally angry with their 

caretakers, and that they can be unusually manipulative 

in their treatment of caretakers. Fathers who are dealing 

with a child who has been maltreated need to be 

prepared to be unusually fl exible, patient, consistent, and 

nurturing. Th is necessitates preparing themselves ahead 

of time for such diffi culties and communicating in both 

word and deed to their children that their aff ection and 

commitment to them is unconditional. Th e knowledge 

that most maltreated children will respond quite well 

to a consistent, aff ectionate, and disciplined approach 

to parenting over the long haul should also help fathers 

prepare to handle erratic or diffi cult behavior for a year 

or two.93

Fathers will also have to tailor their parenting style to 

the specifi c type of maltreatment that their children 

have experienced. Children who have been physically 

abused will need consistent, calm, and nonphysical 

discipline from their fathers. Children who have 

been sexually abused will need fathers to respect their 

privacy—especially in connection with bathing, 

changing, and toileting—and to display modesty 

around them. Children who have been neglected 

will need their fathers to pay particular attention to 

cultivating a routine that provides them with a sense 

of security, direction, and regular adult attention.94

Finally, fathers often will have to address feelings of 

betrayal on the part of a son or daughter who has been 

maltreated, especially if the mother is the perpetrator. 

Children often think of fathers as protectors and, 

consequently, can feel let down by their fathers 

if abused or neglected. Th erapeutic research on 

children who feel betrayed by their mothers suggest 

that a father and his child should openly express 

their concerns or feelings about what transpired, 

preferably in the presence of a counselor or a member 

of the clergy. Th e father should acknowledge, where 

legitimate, any responsibility for the abuse and any 

of his child’s disappointment, anger, or frustration. 

However, the overall goal of any encounter over a 

father’s perceived failure to protect his child must 

be reconciliation between the father and the child, 

especially since such reconciliation can help the child 

recover from his or her abuse or neglect.95

LEARNING FROM THE CHILD AND

FAMILY SERVICES REVIEWS

Th e 1994 amendments to the Social Security Act 

mandated the development of regulations to review 

States’ child and family services. In response, the 

Children’s Bureau developed and implemented 

the Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs), a 

results-oriented, comprehensive monitoring system 

designed to assist States in improving outcomes for 

the children and families they serve. Th e CFSR 

process assesses States in two areas:

Outcomes for children and families in the areas 

of safety, permanency, and child and family wellbeing. Th ere are seven outcomes; each is measured 

using a number of indicators. Six national standards 

have been developed related to these outcomes that 

set benchmarks for States to achieve. 

Systemic factors that directly impact the States’ 

abilities to deliver services that can achieve the 

designated outcomes.

Th ere are three phases of the CFSR that each State 

must undergo. Th e fi rst is a comprehensive selfassessment using the CFSR tool to assess the safety, 

permanency, and well-being outcomes for children 

in the child welfare systems. Following this phase, 

the Administration for Children and Families, 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 

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 38 Fathers and Case Planning

conducts on-site reviews in each State and produces 

a Final Report identifying the State’s performance 

on each outcome and factor under review. Th e last 

phase involves each State developing a Program 

Improvement Plan (PIP) to address outcomes and 

factors with which the State was not in conformance. 

Th e CFSR fi ndings are important to CPS caseworkers 

for two key reasons: they are a tool to improve service 

delivery to families and children and, if these changes 

are not incorporated, the State and agencies face 

funding penalties.96

Th e CFSR fi ndings regarding fathers showed several 

areas for needed improvement. A common challenge 

with respect to child well-being was a lack of father 

involvement in case planning. Findings also show that 

child welfare systems are often not making adequate 

eff orts to establish contact with fathers, even when 

fathers are involved with the family. Additionally, 

agencies were less likely to assess the needs of fathers, 

to search for paternal relatives as possible placements 

or for other involvement, or to provide fathers with 

services than they were with mothers.97 Also, if the 

mother was not contacted, then the father was also not 

likely to be contacted. In general, child welfare agencies 

recognize this lack of involvement and are working to 

address the issue primarily through initiating changes 

in policies, protocols, and practice guidelines.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 39

CHAPTER 7

Services for Fathers

As with the entire family, the services that 

the caseworker identifi es for the father must 

correspond to the level of risk the child is currently 

facing as determined by the caseworker. Th e National 

Association of Public Child Welfare Administrators 

(NAPCWA) has developed a conceptual framework 

that is very helpful in thinking about levels of risk 

and the corresponding strategy for service provision. 

See below Exhibit 7-1, Child Protection Service 

Pyramid.

Exhibit 7-1

Child Protection Service Pyramid98

Services to 

Families at 

High Risk for 

Child Maltreatment

Target: serious injury, severe neglect, 

sexual abuse 

Primary Agencies: CPS, law enforcement 

Primary Concern: child safety

Service Strategy: intensive family preservation 

services, adoption, child removal, court-ordered 

services, foster care, criminal prosecution

Services to Families at 

Moderate Risk for Child Maltreatment

Target: neglect, excessive or inappropriate discipline,inadequate medical care

Primary Agencies: CPS, community partners

Primary Concern: family functioning related to child safety

Service Strategy: appropriate formal services coordinated

through family support, safety plans, and community support agencies

Services to Families at Low Risk for Child Maltreatment

Target: high family stress, emotional and economic stress, pre-incidence families

Primary Agencies: community partners

Primary Concern: child and family well-being

Service Strategy: early intervention, family support center, formal and informal services, parent education, 

housing assistance, community or neighborhood advocacy
 40 Services for Fathers

Th e services discussed here primarily relate to the 

bottom two sections of this pyramid. Th ough it 

should be noted again that, if child removal is the 

selected course of action and there is a nonresidential 

father, he or his family should be considered as 

placement options where appropriate.

Whether provided directly by the caseworker, other 

professionals at the child protective services (CPS) 

agency, or an outside service provider, all of the 

service choices should be selected because they relate 

to the ultimate goal of safety and permanency. A 

father can contribute to this goal by understanding 

how he can help improve the family dynamics and 

his relationship with his child. Th e following sections 

discuss ways that CPS caseworkers can help fathers 

be better fathers and also connect men to needed 

services. 

HELPING FATHERS BE BETTER FATHERS

Th ere are fi ve steps that fathers, especially those 

who feel tempted to lash out at their children, can 

take to minimize their propensity to maltreat. Th e 

caseworker can explain these fi ve steps to a father 

and, if deemed appropriate, refer him to an outside 

professional who can delve further into these issues.

First, fathers need to take an active role in 

nurturing their children. Many fathers mistakenly 

see this as mother’s work. It is a valuable way men 

teach their children that they are loved and respected, 

and it helps ensure that children, especially boys, do 

not feel the necessity to act out to get their father’s 

attention. Helping a toddler brush her teeth, reading a 

son a nightly story (even a father with limited reading 

ability can still enjoy books with his child—together, 

they can look at the pictures and make up a story), 

and bottle-feeding a hungry infant all help foster a 

healthy, strong tie between father and child. 

Second, fathers need to take a careful look at 

how they discipline their children. As discussed 

earlier, the caseworker can help a father determine 

how his own discipline techniques and how he 

reacts to misbehavior of his children compare to a 

model of good discipline. Th e caseworker can help a 

father understand that discipline is one of, if not the, 

most diffi cult tasks of parenting and that no father 

is the perfect disciplinarian. With the assistance of 

the caseworker, the father can identify where he is 

lacking and how he can improve. If necessary, both 

the father and caseworker may fi nd it valuable to refer 

the father to an outside professional, either a therapist 

or a local community fatherhood program.

Th ird, the caseworker must be on the lookout 

for a father who fi nds himself chronically angry, 

depressed, insecure, powerless, or stressed. Such 

a father may be at an increased risk of maltreating 

his children.99 When a caseworker is working with a 

father who expresses feelings of low self-worth, anger, 

or depression, she should help the father seek out 

individual or group counseling that teaches men how 

to manage their emotions and address any underlying 

psychological or spiritual issues.100 Working with a 

therapist, individually, or in a group may help the 

father acquire the sense of self-worth and self-control 

needed to refrain from engaging in the abuse of his 

children.101 When exploring such issues with a father, 

it may be valuable to explore the father’s spirituality 

and religiosity as well. For some fathers, the best 

referral may be to a member of the clergy.

Fourth, fathers need to tend to their marital (or 

romantic) relationship. As discussed earlier, fathers 

who treat their wives with consideration, aff ection, 

and respect are much less likely to abuse or neglect 

their children, and their wives are less likely to 

abuse or neglect their children. Caseworkers need to 

understand the quality of the relationship between a 

married mother and father or between the cohabitating 

Appendix E, Tips for Dads, provides a series of concrete tips that CPS caseworkers can provide to fathers, 

whatever their circumstances.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 41

couple. If issues exist, and anger or resentment 

festers between the two, the caseworker needs to help 

connect them to services in the community that can 

help strengthen the marriage. Until recently, marital 

counseling and other related support services were 

primarily a middle- and upper-class phenomenon—it 

is more accepted in these communities, and services 

were more readily available. Th is still is true, but it 

is changing. More and more organizations, often 

but not always led by religious leaders, are off ering 

services to strengthen marriages in low-income 

communities. Th e U.S. Department of Health and 

Human Services also has created a website to provide 

information on healthy marriage at http://www.acf.

hhs.gov/healthymarriage.

If it becomes clear that the father is abusing the 

mother or is at risk of doing so, then the caseworker 

will need to reach out to a local domestic violence 

off ender program. Several emerging programs have 

been designed specifi cally for training adult assailants 

how to parent without resorting to violence. Th ese 

programs include information and activities on:

A father’s role in the family;

Defi ning violence in parenting;

Using discipline versus inappropriate punishment;

Nonviolent means for changing children’s 

behaviors;

Information on child development;

Th e eff ects of child exposure to domestic violence;

How to use logical and natural consequences;

Communication skills, assertiveness, and 

expressing feelings appropriately.102

Where domestic violence is present, the local domestic 

violence off ender program can be a valuable partner 

for the child protective services caseworker.

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Finally, fathers should teach their children to 

develop respect for their own bodies. Fathers 

should teach children to seek out privacy as they dress, 

bathe, and use the toilet. Fathers and mothers should 

show aff ection to each other in front of their children, 

though they should take reasonable measures to ensure 

that their sexual relationship is private. 

RESOURCES AND REFERRALS

Th e previous discussion cited numerous possible 

referral sources: marital counseling, family therapists, 

clergy, and domestic violence off ender programs, to 

name a few. Another source is parent education and 

parent support programs. Numerous organizations 

operate these types of groups that are designed to 

allow parents to learn eff ective parenting techniques 

and to provide mutual support to each other. Two 

national organizations that run such programs are 

Parents Anonymous (www.parentsanonymous.

org) and Prevent Child Abuse America (www.

preventchildabuse.org). Parent education and parent 

support groups can be valuable tools for fathers. 

Before referring a father to a local group it is 

important to ensure that it is not only open to, but 

clearly welcoming of fathers. Th e caseworker should 

fi nd out if the group has fathers currently involved. If 

not, fi nd out how the group would welcome fathers. 

Where, for example, does the group meet, and is 

the setting clearly welcoming to fathers? Even the 

physical setting can be welcoming or unwelcoming to 

fathers. If the meeting place has posters of mothers, 

but no fathers, or pictures and posters that are clearly 

feminine in nature, but nothing that resonates with 

men, or the waiting area has women’s magazines, but 

nothing of interest to men, then fathers will not feel 

welcome. If a father does not feel welcome or that 

the place is “for” him, then he will not be back. And 

referring a father to a group that immediately makes 

him feel uncomfortable will not only be a waste of his 

For more information, visit the National Healthy Marriage Resource Center at 

http://www.healthymarriageinfo.org.
 42 Services for Fathers

time, but leave him questioning the judgment of the 

caseworker. If the caseworker concludes that none 

of the local groups are a good fi t for fathers, the CPS 

agency may wish to start their own group for fathers 

or to work with an outside professional to start one.

It is extremely important that the caseworker 

maintains contact with any professional or 

organization to which the father is referred. At the 

time of referral, the caseworker needs to brief the 

service provider fully on the case, the reason for the 

referral, and the goals and objectives for the father. 

Th e caseworker must keep in regular contact with 

the professional to ensure that needed services are, in 

fact, being provided and that progress is being made. 

Th e caseworker is the manager of the case. Services 

provided by other professionals are supportive of the 

ultimate goal: safety and permanency for the child. 

Th e caseworker needs to know how all the services 

being provided to the family come together to help 

achieve that goal. In addition, when the court is 

involved, it is appropriate to obtain information 

from the parent’s attorney, the child’s attorney, and 

the court-appointed special advocate (CASA) or the 

Guardian ad Litem (GAL).

CASE CLOSURE

Th ere are four types of case closure:

Termination, if all of the outcomes have 

been achieved or if the family feels unready or 

unwilling to work toward those outcomes, and 

there is suffi cient reason to believe that the child 

is safe;

Referral, if the family is able or willing to 

continue working with other service providers 

toward objectives yet to be accomplished;

Transfer, if the caseworker’s role in the case is 

ending, but the family will work with another 

caseworker in the agency;

Discontinuation by the family, if the family 

is receiving services voluntarily and unilaterally 

decides to end services.104

In each of these types of closure, the caseworker meets 

with the family, if at all possible, to discuss next steps, 

progress made toward identifi ed outcomes, and any 

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Service Follow-up

Child Protective Services: A Guide for Caseworkers describes the relationship between the caseworker and 

other professionals, including necessary follow-up, in this way:

Intervention and service provision are typically a collaborative eff ort between CPS and other agencies 

or individual providers. Consequently, the evaluation of family progress must also be a collaborative 

venture. Referrals to service providers should clearly specify the number, frequency, and methods of 

reports expected. Th e caseworker must also clearly communicate expectations for reporting concerns, 

observable changes, and family progress. It is the caseworker’s responsibility to ensure the submission of 

these reports and to request meetings with service providers, if indicated.103

For more on what caseworkers should look for in referring fathers to father-friendly resources or on 

how to make the CPS agency itself more father-friendly, see Exhibit 8-2, Th e ABCs of a Father-friendly 

Environment.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 43

questions and concerns the family may have. Of 

course, the fathers who have been involved in the 

process are involved in case closure.

If the caseworker has been successful in engaging 

the father in the CPS process, it will be important to 

review the following with the father at this stage: 

His current view of the family and the factors 

that led to the maltreatment; 

Steps he has taken to strengthen his role as a 

father; 

Ways he can continually evaluate his role in the 

family and self-correct as necessary;

Resources available to him in the community; 

Referrals made or being made; 

Questions the father may have.

Every father will leave the process with a diff erent 

objective, and every type of father will lend 

himself to diff erent types of short- and long-term 

goals. Married fathers may need to work on their 

relationship with their wives. Cohabitating fathers 

may commit to exploring marriage. A nonresidential 

father will need to determine how to negotiate the 

proper role in his child’s life and the family now 

headed by the mother of his child. He has both to 

understand and to be respectful of the boundaries 

of the family unit formed by his children, the 

mother of his children, and any other adults in the 

household. Stepfathers may fi nd a parenting group 

specifi cally tailored to them as they wrestle with the 

challenge of fi lling the role of father. Case closure 

for incarcerated fathers could include a referral to a 

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program in the correctional institution dedicated to 

preparing men to return to their families. 

Regardless of the situation, fathers who have been 

involved in the process will have strong feelings 

about the closure of the case, ranging from relief to 

satisfaction to fear to anger to powerlessness. Th e 

feelings the father may experience may be intense, 

but they may not be expressed. Th e caseworker 

should keep an eye out for verbal and non-verbal cues 

as to the father’s reaction to case closure, seeking to 

help the father recognize the progress that has been 

made, the work still to be done, and how the father 

can take control and continue to make progress.

CONCLUSION

Fathers have a crucial role to play in the CPS process, 

whether the father is the perpetrator, a non-off ending 

adult in the household, or a nonresidential father. 

Traditionally, fathers have not been adequately 

brought into this process, unfortunately ensuring 

that the caseworker is missing both an important 

dynamic in the child’s life and a possible resource 

in creating safety and permanency for the child. 

A caseworker who has a good working knowledge 

of why fathers are important to their children’s 

development, what makes for good fathering, and 

how to work with fathers, is equipped to make 

important progress with the family. While the 

caseworker’s primary concern is, of course, the child 

victim of maltreatment, a caseworker can become an 

important support for the father, even an advocate 

for the father as he accesses outside services. For 

many men, this will be a new experience and an 

invaluable one.

Section II

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 47

CHAPTER 8

Fatherhood Programs

Nationally and locally, there are numerous 

fatherhood programs that strive to meet the 

various needs of the many diff erent fathers and 

families. Th ese programs fi ll the gaps left by social 

service agencies, which have limited funding, suff er 

from case overloads, and are unable to off er activities 

beyond the scope of their responsibilities. Th ere 

is no one fatherhood program model—some are 

informal support groups started locally and that 

meet sporadically, some address the special issues 

that aff ect fathers parenting special needs or adopted 

children, others are structured to work with fathers 

holistically to address stressors or behaviors that 

can aff ect their abilities to support their children 

emotionally and fi nancially (such as unemployment, 

noncustodial, or long-distance dads), and still others 

work with incarcerated fathers or those involved in 

family violence. Some are small, local activities while 

others collaborate with larger social service agencies. 

Th e goal of Section II is to provide examples and 

contact information for communities, faith-based 

organizations, agencies, or groups of individuals to 

utilize should they wish to start their own groups. 

Child welfare agencies can also discover ways to make 

their agencies more father-friendly. Additionally, 

to help guide referrals for fathers, these resources 

provide a means for caseworkers to determine how 

father-friendly other service providers are.

STARTING A FATHERHOOD GROUP

While there are many diff erent types of fatherhood 

groups serving many diff erent kinds of fathers, 

several core themes emerged from talking with the 

leaders. Th e following are lessons learned in starting a 

program or involving fathers in an existing program:

Involve fathers whenever a program or agency 

involves the mother (except in cases of safety 

issues). Th e exclusion of fathers, even when they 

wanted to be involved, was repeatedly mentioned 

throughout discussions with various program 

directors. One father working with a CPS worker 

doing an investigation said the worker addressed 

questions only to the mother and virtually 

ignored the father. 

Have men lead the fatherhood programs. 

Over and over again, men expressed that a fatherled, fathers-only group gives them the safety and 

ability to open up about their doubts, fears, and 

other emotions that would not be possible in a 

co-ed group.

Include the mothers in complementary 

group activities. While the groups expressed 

the previous point, the importance of a good 

relationship with the child’s mother was also 

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 48 Fatherhood Programs

emphasized. Interaction and involvement with 

the mother always were encouraged in other 

group activities.

Make the programs culturally relevant. As 

one program head described it, “mainstream” 

programs do not work for every cultural group, 

and, in order to be eff ective, it is important to 

recognize the diff erences that various cultures, 

ethnic, religious, and socioeconomic groups face. 

Appendix D, Cultural Competence Self-assessment 

Questionnaire, provides program staff with a tool 

to assess the cultural competency of both the 

program and staff . 

Let the fathers help determine the type of 

activities. While this does not work with all 

groups or group settings, many groups let their 

various branches determine what the needs of the 

fathers in their area are. Under the same group 

umbrella, some branches only sponsor fathers’ 

nights out while others have a year-long curriculum 

teaching fathering and parenting skills, but they 

let the fathers decide what they needed.

Exhibit 8-1 illustrates what various other groups have 

found helpful in starting a fatherhood program or group.

PROMOTING RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD

One recent study researched and analyzed 300 

community-based initiatives, and it off ers the 

following strategic objectives as a framework for 

programs promoting responsible fatherhood: 

Prevent. Prevent men from having children 

before they are ready for the fi nancial and 

emotional responsibilities of fatherhood. 

Prepare. Prepare men for the legal, fi nancial, 

and emotional responsibilities of fatherhood. 

Establish. Promote paternity establishment at 

childbirth so that every father and child has, at a 

minimum, a legal connection. 

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Involve. Reach out to men who are fathers, whether 

married or not, to foster their emotional connection 

to and fi nancial support of their children. 

Support. Actively support fathers in the variety 

of their roles and in their connection with their 

children, regardless of their legal and fi nancial 

status (married, unmarried, employed, and 

unemployed).105

Several agencies are working with community-based 

groups to address the issues confronting noncustodial 

fathers. Th ey recognize that many noncustodial fathers 

are responsible parents who want to be actively involved 

in the lives of their children. However, substantial 

barriers may exist that prevent or inhibit a father’s 

involvement with his children. Th e National Center 

on Fathers and Families identifi ed the following seven 

core fi ndings about fathers based on the experiences of 

the frontline people who work with them: 

Fathers care—even if caring is not always shown 

in conventional ways. 

Th e presence of fathers matters—in terms of 

economic well-being, social support, and child 

development. 

Joblessness is a major impediment to family 

formation and father involvement. 

Existing approaches to public benefi ts, 

child support enforcement, and paternity 

establishment operate to create obstacles and 

disincentives to father involvement. Th e 

disincentives are suffi ciently compelling to have 

prompted the emergence of a phenomenon 

dubbed “underground fathers”—men who are 

involved in the lives of their children, but refuse 

to participate as fathers in formal systems. 

A growing number of young, unwed fathers and 

mothers need additional support to develop the 

vital skills to share responsibility for parenting. 

Th e transition from biological father to 

committed parent has signifi cant developmental 

implications for young fathers. 

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 49

Th e behaviors of young parents, both fathers 

and mothers, are signifi cantly infl uenced by 

intergenerational beliefs and practices within 

families of origin.107

• Th ese fi ndings off er a context for understanding the 

challenges faced by many young and adult men who 

want to become responsible fathers as well as the 

programs designed to help them achieve that goal.108

Exhibit 8-1

Lessons Learned: Core Ideas for Building Successful Father-friendly Programs105

Have strong male leadership; use men to market, recruit for, and facilitate the program;

Build programs around the stated needs of the men in the program;

Provide the leadership and men with the essentials of group and 1:1 leadership skills, including 

building group norms, handling diff erences, listening, and confi dentiality;

Respect the “culture” of the men involved: geographic area, age, socio-economics, ethnicity, and race;

Provide resources, education, and information (the “tangibles”);

Laugh, have fun through social times and activities (both for men only and with their families), but 

with absolutely no alcohol involved;

If possible, have developmentally appropriate father-child activities;

Never let costs or money get in the way of father involvement (this includes transportation, child care);

Be fl exible in scheduling; fi nd places and times where men can attend (i.e., individual education 

programs);

Have family activities (family is everyone who is important in a child’s life, such as grandparents and 

neighbors);

Let men learn from other men (i.e., one-on-one and in groups);

Have meetings in places that are friendly, easygoing, nonclinical, and relaxed;

Know that numbers alone have little to do with program success. 

Always spend time “celebrating” successes (“bragging rights”); the men need unlimited opportunities 

to “brag” about their kids and the value they have in their children’s lives; 

Provide food or snacks. “Feed them and they will come.” (Yes, food does make a diff erence!)

For further suggestions, read Circles of Care and Understanding by James May or visit the Fathers 

Network Web page at http://www.fathersnetwork.org.

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 50 Fatherhood Programs

DEVELOPING FATHER-FRIENDLY

AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS

Establishing fatherhood initiatives in the communities 

is not enough. It also is important for agencies and 

programs to assess if they provide a father-friendly 

environment. Important components include: 

Th e attitudes of staff ;

Th e inclusiveness of language and environment;

Th e types of activities available for fathers;

Th e scheduling of activities for nonwork hours;

Media and communications;

Th e presence of male staff and volunteers.109

(See Exhibit 8-2, Th e ABCs of a Father-friendly 

Environment, for other ways to assess whether an 

agency or program is father-friendly.)

WORKING WITH MOTHERS

Many fatherhood program development experts agree 

that it is crucial that mothers’ perspectives be involved 

in the planning of programs for fathers and that 

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mothers be given consideration in the development 

of service delivery models. Additionally, fatherhood 

programs should not merely replicate the single 

gender focus of many of the current social service 

programs serving mothers and children. Programs 

that serve only fathers and their children could 

possibly distort the family perspective as much as 

programs that serve only mothers and their children. 

Research fi nds that the quality of the mother-father 

relationship is one factor that strongly aff ects a 

father’s willingness and ability to be involved with 

his children. Studies indicate that many parents have 

a positive relationship at the time of the baby’s birth, 

both mothers and fathers want to be actively involved 

in their child’s life, and disagreements among parents 

may become more intractable over time. Th is has led 

to an interest in working with the whole family from 

the earliest intervention date possible.110

Th e issue of family violence is another important 

reason for working with mothers as part of responsible 

fatherhood eff orts. Additionally, experts in the fi eld of 

domestic violence have identifi ed the lack of services 

for domestic violence perpetrators as one of the 

areas that need improvement in order to strengthen 

violence prevention eff orts. Responsible fatherhood 

program providers also are struggling with the issue 

and some are developing curriculum and programs to 

address this important issue.111
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 51

Exhibit 8-2

Th e ABCs of a Father-friendly Environment

If your organization aims to promote the importance of father and male involvement, this easy checklist 

will help to ensure that you have the building blocks of success.

Assets of fathers are emphasized, not their defi cits.

Budget indicates that fathers are a priority.

Curricula and educational materials respect the range of fathers being served.

Diverse staff refl ects the population using your services.

Environment clearly states that dads and men in families are welcome here.

Father-child bond is emphasized and encouraged.

Gender-neutral forms, policies, and procedures are employed.

Hands-on learning experiences are components of many activities.

Importance of fathers is promoted but not at the expense of mothers.

Journals, magazines, and reading materials refl ect the interests of dads, too.

Knowledgeable men are recruited to address sensitive concerns of fathers.

Language is respectful and affi rming of all parents and children.

Marketing plan invites many faces of fathers and promotes their full involvement.

Needs of fathers infl uence the program’s growth and development.

Outreach staff recruit in locations that all types of fathers frequent.

Paternal and maternal parenting styles are recognized and respected.

Quality evaluation tools and procedures that respect fathers are in place.

Recognize and reduce barriers that limit father involvement.

Staff receives periodic best practices training to better serve fathers.

Targeted services are off ered specifi cally for fathers.

Understand wide range of fathers’ physical and mental health concerns.

Values are emphasized that promote gender reconciliation.

Women’s and men’s rooms each have a diaper changing station.

eXcellent advisory council and active speakers bureau are in place.

Young fathers are off ered services.

Zealous attitude prevails that we are all in this together.

Adapted from: Tift, N. (n.d.). Th e ABCs of a father-friendly environment for maternal and child health agencies. Washington, DC: 

National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families.
 52 Fatherhood Programs

EXAMPLES OF FATHERHOOD PROGRAMS

As the manual has shown throughout, there are 

numerous needs and reasons to strengthen the roles 

of fathers. A wide range of programs exists to meet 

many of the needs of fathers and their children. Th e 

following were selected as examples of programs 

that span the fatherhood initiative spectrum. 

Exhibit 8-3

Identifying Potential Partners112

Whether starting a Federal, State, local, or community program, it may be helpful to collaborate with 

other groups and organizations. Th e following types of organizations could be potential partners: 

Faith-based organizations and other groups that are in the community and have a general purpose to serve 

or assist community residents often will make good partners, especially when there are common values;

Employment and training agencies, such as Workforce Investment Act and Welfare-to-Work 

agencies at the local level; 

Public social service agencies at the local level, such as the TANF (public welfare) agency, the local 

Offi ce of Child Support Enforcement, or the Employment Service; 

Private agencies such as the Boys and Girls Clubs and the YMCA; 

Service groups, such as the Junior League or the Kiwanis, which sometimes adopt special projects for 

funding and other support; 

Educational institutions, such as local community colleges or universities, which may sponsor special 

programs, local elementary and high schools, or early childhood education programs; 

State agencies, such as the TANF agency at the State level, the State Human Services agency, and 

Workforce Investment Act and Education agencies at the State level.

Each group and community should identify the needs of the fathers and families it wishes to serve. Th en 

it is important to discover if such a program already exists or if there is a need to start a new program or 

group. If the necessary services are already in place, then it may be much easier to collaborate with or 

coordinate with the existing program. While collaboration is not always easy, it can be less burdensome 

and faster than trying to create, fi nance, and operate a separate organization.

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Th ey illustrate some of the varied approaches and 

activities for working with fathers, and along with 

the Tips for Dads in Appendix E, address some of the 

issues aff ecting the bond between fathers and their 

children—deterrence of unprepared fatherhood, the 

joys and diffi culties of fathering, preventing child 

abuse and neglect, parenting children with special 

needs, adoption, and noncustodial fathering. Th e 

programs are presented in alphabetical order and 

While listed in a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publication, a program or organization’s 

inclusion does not in any way connote an endorsement of the programs nor were site visits conducted to gather 

program or evaluation information for this report. Additionally, many programs across all cultural, tribal, ethnic, 

religious, and socioeconomic lines were contacted; only those that provided substantive information were included.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 53

provide descriptions as well as contact information. 

In addition, Appendix B, Resource Listings, includes 

national organizations that off er resources, products, 

technical assistance, or other information that may 

be benefi cial.

BOOT CAMP FOR NEW DADS (BCND)

Helping New Fathers

Formed in 1990 to help new fathers “hit the ground 

crawling,” a few fathers, with their babies in their arms, 

held an orientation workshop for men about to become 

fathers. When the “rookies” expressed apprehension 

about caring for babies, they were handed a baby to hold 

for the fi rst time. Several months later, the “rookies” 

returned as veterans with their own babies to orient the 

next group of men, who in turn returned as veterans. 

BCND has improved over the years, but the basic 

premise—veteran dads showing “rookies” the ropes, 

with babies adding a serious dose of reality—has 

remained. It was started by a father who felt men would 

enjoy their babies more if they started off with a basic 

understanding of the challenges they would face, a few 

essential skills, and a sense of confi dence. Th e veterans 

exemplify its eff ectiveness. BCND is rapidly developing 

into a national support network for men confronting the 

realities of fatherhood. Th is innovative, communitybased program delivers support and education at the 

time when men are most receptive and in a manner that 

is very eff ective in preparing men to be dads.

With programs operating in over 200 communities 

across the country and a strong network of veterans, 

coaches, and supporters, BCND is positioned to 

help lead the development of a vibrant new culture 

of fatherhood throughout America. Its developing 

strength as an organization, coupled with the 

opportunities facing it, enable a hopeful vision for the 

future of fathers, children, and families.

For more information, contact:

Boot Camp for New Dads 

(Available in English or Spanish)

Susan Worsham, Program Coordinator

230 Commerce, Suite 210

Irvine, CA 92602

Phone: 714-838-9392

Fax: 714-838-9675

E-mail: Susan@newdads.com

Web site: http://www.newdads.com

THE CHILDREN’S TRUST FUND OF ALABAMA

Meeting the Needs of Noncustodial Fathers

Th e Children’s Trust Fund (CTF) of Alabama, the 

Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention Program 

lead agency for the State, works in partnership with 

the Alabama Department of Human Resources, to 

fund thirty-six programs designed to meet the needs 

of non-custodial fathers. Programs are designed to 

delay the onset of fatherhood with adolescent males 

before they are prepared for the emotional and 

fi nancial responsibilities of parenting. 

Th e CTF also worked with a State team to develop 

a set of booklets designed to address co-parenting 

issues for newly established paternity and child 

support cases. Other fatherhood programs include 

pregnancy prevention, character development and 

life skills classes with adolescent males, parenting 

classes with noncustodial males (including one prisonbased program); home visitation with non-custodial 

males; mediation with non- or never-married parents 

regarding visitation and custody issues; and community 

education sessions on the rights and responsibilities of 

fatherhood. Faith-based organizations have played a 

signifi cant role in Alabama’s Fatherhood Initiative.

Th e strong collaboration with the Department of 

Human Resources has helped to increase project 

grantee awareness and access to accurate information 

and assistance with child support issues and work 

readiness/employment projects. Additionally, more 

focus is being placed on evaluation of current models of 
 54 Fatherhood Programs

program delivery and program replication. CTF will 

provide feedback and support to the State Fatherhood 

Initiative with information on national trends in 

programming and “best practices” for the State. 

For more information, contact: 

Children’s Trust Fund of Alabama

Stan Landers, Program Director

PO Box 4251, Montgomery, AL 36103

Phone: (334) 242-5710

E-mail: stan.landers@ctf.alabama.gov

Web site: http://ctf.state.al.us/Fatherhood.htm

THE DADS 101 PROGRAM AND MALE

INVOLVEMENT CAMPAIGN

Working to Prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS) is the leading cause of 

death in abusive head trauma cases, and an estimated 

1,600 children are injured or killed by shaking 

every year in the United States. Actual numbers 

may be much higher because shaking injuries 

may be misdiagnosed or symptoms overlooked. 

Approximately 25 percent of all SBS victims die as 

a result of their injuries, and survivors may suff er 

permanent disability such as severe brain damage, 

cerebral palsy, mental retardation, behavioral 

disorders, and impaired motor and cognitive skills. 

Many survivors require constant medical or personal 

attention, which places tremendous emotional and 

fi nancial strain on families. 

Th e majority of perpetrators in shaken baby cases 

are male, usually the victim’s biological father or the 

mother’s boyfriend. With this in mind, the National 

Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome has developed an 

awareness campaign targeted at the male population 

comprising programs, products, and materials 

specifi cally designed for agencies or groups that work 

directly with fathers, provide services for women 

and children, or want to show their commitment to 

strengthening families. Teaching men the skills they 

need to be nurturing fathers is one of the cornerstones 

of child abuse prevention. 

Th e National Center is dedicated to preventing this 

form of abuse by providing any potential father with a 

comprehensive understanding of how shaking causes 

serious injury and preparing them for the stressors that 

may trigger this kind of abuse. Beyond telling fathers 

“don’t shake,” the National Center works toward 

primary prevention by helping potential fathers 

form reasonable expectations about caring for young 

children and teaching them about the importance of 

being involved in the lives of their children. 

Th e Dads 101 Program is a childbirth educationtraining program for new and expectant fathers. 

Presented by a male instructor, participants in this 

program discuss their concerns about becoming 

fathers, learn basic caregiving skills, and learn about 

shaking as a form of abuse and what their role is in 

preventing it. Th e program is designed to be a threesession course, each session is about 2 hours long.

Session 1·Gender Stereotypes and Pregnancy

During this fi rst session, the instructor sets the tone 

for the course by encouraging discussion among 

participants. Dads learn about how fatherhood 

has changed over time. Th ey discuss the social 

and cultural expectations of fathers and how those 

expectations have changed over generations. Dads 

also learn about current research on fathering, the 

benefi ts of father involvement, and the consequences 

of absent fathers. 

Session 2·Fatherhood: The Undiscovered 

Country & Labor and Delivery

Th is session discusses the expectations of becoming a 

father. Participants explore their excitement, anxiety, and 

concerns about this new role and how it will change their 

lifestyle and relationships. Th ey also talk about what 

their own fathers were like, and discuss any parenting 

methods they want to recreate or avoid. Th is session also 

covers what happens during labor and delivery. 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 55

Session 3·Coping with Crying and 

Shaken Baby Syndrome

Th e fi nal session is information intensive. While 

the fi rst two sessions are structured around group 

participation and discussion, the fi nal session teaches 

participants valuable information about shaken baby 

syndrome and early infant crying, and the pairing 

of these topics is intentional. Inconsolable crying 

is the number one trigger off ered by perpetrators 

who confess to shaking. Since this information is 

invaluable to both parents, the dads’ partners are 

invited to attend this session. Th e latest research on 

early infant crying is presented, and some common 

myths about crying are discussed. Th ey also learn 

that it is OK to get frustrated with crying and that 

it is OK to set their crying baby down in a safe place 

and take a moment to calm themselves down. Parents 

learn detailed information on shaken baby syndrome, 

including victim and perpetrator statistics and how 

shaking is diff erent from other forms of abuse. Th ey 

also watch a documentary about a case of shaken 

baby syndrome and the impact it has on a family. 

Th e Dads 101 Program is being used in hospitals, 

prisons, detention centers, religious organizations, 

high schools, community groups, and on military 

installations. It features testing and evaluation 

materials and comes with an instructor’s manual, 

participant guidebooks, a shaken baby syndrome 

documentary, and a CD-ROM with additional 

support materials. Onsite training for Dads 101 

instructors also is available. 

For more information, contact:

National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome

Adam Salazar, Program Specialist

2955 Harrison Blvd., Suite 102

Ogden, UT 84403

Phone: (801) 627-3399, ext. 110 or 

 (888) 273-0071

Fax: (801) 627-3321

E-mail: asalazar@dontshake.com

Web site: http://www.dontshake.com

DADS MAKE A DIFFERENCE PROGRAM

A School-based Program Led by Teens

Th e Dads Make a Diff erence (DMAD) mission is to 

promote the positive involvement of fathers and to 

educate youth about responsible parenting, including 

teaching the practice of abstinence as the only 100 

percent way to prevent either pregnancy or sexually 

transmitted diseases. In 1993, four organizations 

came together to assist teens with understanding 

the importance of acknowledging paternity and to 

make well-thought out decisions about becoming 

parents. Th ese organizations included the University 

of Minnesota Extension Service–Ramsey County, the 

Children’s Defense Fund of Minnesota, the Family Tree 

Clinic in St. Paul, and the Ramsey County Attorney’s 

Offi ce–Child Support and Collections Offi ce.

Th ese organizations sought information from teens 

during the initial needs assessment process. Focus 

groups of ninth and tenth graders revealed that some 

teens do not make the connection between sexual 

activity and potential parenting; that teens lack basic 

knowledge about the importance of paternity; and 

that teens want more opportunities to talk about 

paternity, fathering, and sexual responsibility. In 

reviewing other prevention curricula and programs 

about too-early parenting both a focus on males as 

nurturing, important parents, and an emphasis on 

the importance of planning to become prepared, 

capable parents were missing.

With this information, DMAD was developed in 

1994 as a four-lesson, activity-based, middle school 

curriculum. Th e curriculum includes an 18-minute 

video featuring local teens sharing their experiences, 

thoughts, and feelings about sexual responsibility; 

how hard it is to be a teen parent; wanting and 

needing a father; fi nancially supporting a child; and 

hopes and dreams for the future. Th e four lessons 

help youth: 
 56 Fatherhood Programs

Examine risky behavior and learn about risk and 

protective factors;

Explore legal issues of fatherhood, including 

child support and the benefi ts of paternity;

Discover how involved fathers make a diff erence 

in the well-being of children;

Learn the importance of making responsible 

decisions about when to have a child.

DMAD uses high school teens teaching as a male/

female pair to present the four-lesson curriculum and 

video to middle school-aged youth. Th e curriculum 

gives boys and girls a timely wake-up call by building 

their awareness of the vital role fathers play in families, 

of the tremendous challenges of parenting, and of the 

importance of considering the implications of choices 

that may result in their becoming parents themselves. 

DMAD trains high school teens who are diverse in 

many ways—race, ethnicity, gender, age, academic 

status, socioeconomic status, family type, geographic 

location (urban, suburban, rural), parenting status, 

and sexual orientation. Two important criteria for 

participation are that the teens have some general 

comfort leading a group and that the teens are 

interested in impacting their community in a positive 

way. Th ese teens, in groups representing schools 

and community agencies, attend a 2-day overnight 

training along with their adult advisor. 

At the training, the high school teens participate 

in team-building exercises and discuss fatherhood, 

parenting, and sexual responsibility. Learning 

from adult and teen trainers, the teens go through 

activities from the DMAD curriculum. Finally, they 

practice teaching the activities. Th e adult advisor 

then makes connections with teachers or other adults 

working with middle school-aged youth to arrange 

opportunities for the teens to teach. Th e curriculum 

presentations are designed to fi t into the health, 

family life, or social studies courses that are off ered in 

most schools, and it also provides continuing support 

for schools and community agencies to carry out and 

sustain teaching of the middle school curriculum.

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From October 1994 through May 2003, DMAD 

trained 2,080 teen teachers in Minnesota from 153 

schools and community agencies. Th ese teens in 

turn taught the curriculum to approximately 38,000 

middle school-aged youth in urban, suburban, and 

rural settings. In addition, about 1,000 youth in 

juvenile correctional settings participated in the 

DMAD program since May 2000. A total of 205 

teens from other States also have been trained, with 

some of them traveling to Minnesota to participate in 

training events. 

An evaluation completed in 2002 showed the DMAD 

program’s eff ectiveness with both middle school and 

high school youth. Middle school youth showed 

statistically signifi cant gains in every area related to 

youth risk behavior, and all gains had been retained 

or were increased 6 weeks later. Th e evaluation also 

shows considerable impact on teen teachers, who 

gained signifi cantly in all areas measured after the 

training and continued to gain in knowledge and 

desirable attitudes in the follow-up surveys 1 and 2 

years later.

For more information, contact:

Dads Make a Diff erence

Jan Hayne, Program Coordinator 

Concordia University, School of Human Services 

275 Syndicate Street North 

St. Paul, MN 55104-5494 

Phone: (651) 603-6312

Fax: (651) 603-6144 

E-mail: hayne@csp.edu

Web site: http://www.dadsmakeadiff erence.org

 FAMILY AND COMMUNITY VIOLENCE AND

PREVENTION PROJECT AND 50/50 PARENTING

Working to Prevent Family Violence and to 

Improve Couples’ Relationships

Th e Center for Fathers, Families, and Workforce 

Development (CFWD), developed to meet the needs 

of fathers, their families, and low-income individuals 

in the Baltimore, Maryland area, empowers low-
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 57

income families by enhancing the ability of men 

to fulfi ll their roles as fathers and helping men and 

women to contribute to their families as wage earners. 

Two beliefs are central to the CFWD approach: 

that men want to be emotionally and fi nancially 

responsible for their children and that poverty can 

hinder parental involvement and support.

CFWD collaborated with the House of Ruth (HR) 

to facilitate a cross-exchange of information (e.g., 

staff cross-training in respective areas, resources, and 

services in the prevention and intervention of family 

violence). Program participants engage in activities 

that promote prevention and are off ered batterer 

intervention services by the House of Ruth. CFWD 

and HR have increased the capacity of services to the 

participants by off ering:

Prevention (education and awareness) and 

intervention programs consisting of intensive case 

management (e.g., home visits; individualized 

counseling sessions; support that focuses on 

domestic violence issues; domestic violencefocused workshops; counseling based upon 

curriculum modules—the CFWD/HR training 

manual, the Healthy Start Fatherhood Journal, 

and the National Center for Program Leadership 

Fatherhood Development curriculum—that 

address confl ict resolution, anger management, 

and communication skills).

Voluntary referrals to the House of Ruth’s batterer 

intervention services (22-week curriculum).

CFWD also organized a team parenting program 

called 50/50 Parenting, which recognizes that nevermarried parents, whether or not they are still a couple, 

may need support in working together for the health 

and well-being of their children. Th eir support 

team might include the children’s grandparents, the 

parents’ new spouses or partners, and infl uential 

“others” in the family’s life. Th e overarching goal 

of the 50/50 Parenting program is to promote the 

well-being of low-income children by encouraging 

healthy relationships between their biological parents. 

Research indicates that children have the best 

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outcomes when they are raised in families headed by 

two biological, married parents who have a healthy, 

stable relationship. Th us, this program has two 

goals. First, it will help couples that want to marry 

to gain the knowledge, attitudes, and skills they need 

to develop and sustain a healthy marriage. Second, 

it also will help low-income mothers and fathers for 

whom marriage is not an option to form healthy coparenting relationships. Th e curriculum includes 

sessions for a variety of audiences. Th e program is 

guided by the following principles:

Participation is voluntary at all times. Th e curriculum 

will acknowledge that marriage is not appropriate 

for, legally accessible to, or desired by everyone.

Th e program will be off ered in a style that is open 

and respectful to participants from a wide variety 

of backgrounds, cultures, and religions.

Th e curriculum will promote a model of “healthy” 

and “safe” marriages based on respect between 

equals.

Eff orts to promote marriages or 50-50 parenting 

relationships should never supersede nor 

compromise the safety of the children or the 

mother.

Race, culture, and socioeconomic status have a 

profound impact on the gender roles and identities 

of individuals coming for services. Eff orts should 

be taken to address gender-role stereotypes that 

lessen the ability of mothers and fathers in fragile 

families to form healthy marriages or to work 

cooperatively in the best interest of their children 

(e.g., the belief in male privilege and a man’s 

right to dominate his female partner; the belief 

that mothers are innately superior to fathers in 

the parenting arena). 

Anger is a normal feeling, and confl ict is a natural 

and normal occurrence in relationships. Violence, 

however, is not the natural result of confl ict 

between intimate partners. Violence is a choice 

and is an unacceptable way to resolve confl icts in 

relationships or to discipline children. 

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 58 Fatherhood Programs

Th e curriculum addresses unemployment, 

incarceration, substance abuse, depression, or 

physical illness which can make it diffi cult to 

have a healthy relationship. 

For more information, contact:

Center for Fathers, Families, 

and Workforce Development

3002 Druid Park Drive

Baltimore, MD 21215-7800

Phone: (410) 367-5691

Fax: (410) 367-4246

FATHERS AND CHILDREN TOGETHER (FACT)

Working with Incarcerated Fathers

Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky (PCAK) is a State 

Chapter of Prevent Child Abuse America. Its 

mission is to prevent the abuse and neglect of 

Kentucky’s children. To achieve this goal, PCAK has 

established programs that are designed to promote 

public awareness and to educate parents, children, 

public offi cials, and other professionals who work 

directly with families about issues pertaining to child 

abuse and neglect. One such program, Fathers and 

Children Together (FACT), works with incarcerated 

fathers. Th e goal of the FACT program is to reduce 

the potential for child abuse and neglect and to 

promote father involvement in the lives of their 

children by creating positive father-child experiences 

and opportunities for these fathers to learn parenting 

skills during incarceration. Below is a description of 

activities at one of the prisons.

Blackburn Correctional Complex (BCC) is a 557-

bed, minimum-security State prison for adult male 

felony off enders. Th e FACT program began at BCC 

in 1992, and has experienced a continual growth in 

the number of participants served by the program 

and the development of related services that may be 

accessed by fathers choosing to participate. PCAK has 

co-sponsored FACT by providing parent education 

consultants, classroom instructors, social workers 

for children’s visits, and collaboration with the BCC 

• program coordinator to develop further and to expand 

the FACT program. BCC’s continued commitment to 

operating the fi rst parenting program for incarcerated 

fathers in Kentucky prisons is also a key factor leading 

to the success the program has experienced.

Inmate fathers, stepfathers, and grandfathers, on 

a voluntary basis, are off ered a series of 13 parent 

education classes that meet for 2 hours once a week. 

Th ree class cycles of the program are off ered during 

the year. After completing the series, fathers are 

considered graduates and may continue to participate 

in the FACT program as long as they remain at 

BCC. Graduates have the opportunity to attend any 

additional classes, participate in special visits, serve 

on the FACT Program Inmate Advisory Council, 

and participate in special projects.

Classes are conducted in an interactive, nonjudgmental manner, using a variety of teaching 

methods including experiential learning activities. 

Th e lesson plans derive from an original and fl exible 

curriculum based upon validated parent education 

material supplemented with information specifi c to 

incarcerated fathers. Staff members from PCAK and 

BCC, along with periodic guest speakers, conduct 

the presentation of the classes.

A new curriculum piece, entitled “Daddy’s Th oughts,” 

was developed and piloted during 2002. Th is new 

addition to the curriculum was developed to replace 

the “ice breakers” that had previously been utilized 

to start the beginning of the weekly sessions. Th e 

“Daddy’s Th oughts” component consists of 12 

questions that are relevant to the topic of the day 

and are used as a platform for focusing the group 

on the current topic being discussed, in addition to 

encouraging open discussion of the issue at hand. 

Participants receive a copy of the “Daddy’s Th oughts” 

for the next week’s topic at the conclusion of each 

session and are expected to come to the next class 

prepared to discuss the content of the question being 

posed to them. 

Special 2-hour, child-oriented visits are scheduled 

approximately every 6 weeks for fathers attending 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 59

classes and graduates of the program. Th e visits 

provide an opportunity for fathers to practice 

parenting skills learned in FACT classes. Th ey are 

conducted in the BCC gymnasium on Saturdays 

after regular visiting hours in order to allow fathers 

additional visit time to play and talk with their 

children and to be supervised by social workers rather 

than correctional offi cers. Fathers also may choose to 

participate in the Storybook Project at any time. Th is 

project allows fathers the opportunity to make a tape 

recording while reading a storybook to their child. 

Th e book and the tape are then mailed to the child 

free of charge. 

Since 1992, more than 480 classes in diff erent 

correctional facilities and 90 “special visits” have 

been off ered to participants serving over 1,300 

fathers, mothers, and their children. A preliminary 

evaluation of data collected from 2000–2003 

indicates graduates of the FACT program exceed 

averages of the national population of incarcerated 

fathers regarding the amount of contact with their 

children via mail, telephone, and visits. Additionally, 

program graduates have reported:

Feeling less isolated as fathers;

Increased knowledge and use of parenting skills;

Increased recognition of the importance of their 

role as fathers;

An increased understanding as to how life 

experiences aff ect their parenting skills.

Th rough a grant funded by the Children’s Bureau, 

the University of Kentucky’s Research Foundation 

is doing an evaluation of the program’s resources, 

services, and outcomes. Baseline data will be collected 

at the beginning of the program, and post-test data 

will be collected at completion of parent educational 

classes and at six-month intervals. Additionally, a 

record keeping system will be developed to track the 

status of fathers who have been released from prison.

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For more program information, contact:

Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky

Trey Berlin, Family-based Prevention Specialist

489 East Main Street, 3rd Floor 

Lexington, KY 40507 

Phone: (859) 225-8879 or (800) CHILDREN 

Fax: (859)225-8969 

E-mail: tberlin@pcaky.org 

Web site: http://www.pcaky.org

For evaluation information, contact:

Mary Secret, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

University of Kentucky, College of Social Work

Phone: (859) 257-3978

E-mail: mcsecr@pop.uky.edu

David Christiansen

University of Kentucky, College of Social Work

Phone: (859) 257-3983

E-mail: dcchri2@uky.edu

THE FATHERS NETWORK

Working with Fathers of Children 

with Special Needs

Th e Fathers Network promotes collaboration between 

family members and health professionals in health 

care systems at the Federal, State, and local levels in 

order to develop and enhance the male caregivers’ 

roles and responsibilities in parenting children with 

special needs. In Washington State, the program 

broadened the scope of outreach to fathers, especially 

those from minority backgrounds, so they could 

actively participate in health care decisions at the 

Federal, State, and community levels by partnering 

with Tribal services, pediatric AIDS programs, Head 

Start, and the Washington State Migrant Council. 

Additionally, the program created and expanded 

existing networks of support for men by developing 

statewide forums and replicating Th e Father’s Network 

model in two States. It also provided information, 

materials, expertise, and support for fathers and the 
 60 Fatherhood Programs

professionals who serve them through the program’s 

Web site.113

Th e Washington State Fathers Network (WSFN) 

has served over 1,000 families in the past 20 years. 

Founded on the belief that men are crucial in the 

lives of children, WSFN is a powerful voice for 

increasing the involvement of men in all aspects of 

family life, and pro vides support and resources for 

all men involved in the life of a child with spe cial 

health care needs or developmental disabilities. It 

recently received a 3-year grant from the Washington 

Council for the Protection of Children from Abuse 

and Neglect to serve men from inner city, rural, and 

culturally diverse settings in the following ways:

Clarifying the needs of fathers raising children 

with special needs and responding to those needs 

whenever possible;

Developing father support and mentoring 

programs;

Building upon a 2,000+ member statewide 

database of fathers and providers interested in 

promoting and participating in activities for 

men;

Developing and maintaining a statewide steering 

committee and regional coordinators committed 

to making the network a vital organization;

Sponsoring evening and weekend programs 

specifi cally designed for men involved in the lives 

of children with special needs; fathers serve as 

facilitators, organizers, speakers, and panelists;

Providing scholarships for men to attend 

conferences, workshops, and activities that speak 

to their unique concerns;

Developing and maintaining an award winning 

Web site (http://www.fathersnetwork.org) 

with extensive family resources, links, a photo 

album, current news, materials in Spanish, and 

articles for families and providers;

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Presenting at regional and statewide parent and 

professional conferences;

Assisting organizations in reviewing their current 

services and making their off erings increasingly 

“father-friendly;”

Networking through Connections, a tri-yearly 

newsletter;

Sponsoring programs that bring men and 

families together from existing fathers’ programs 

(i.e., social events, weekend campout);

Sponsoring statewide and regional conferences 

to provide places for men to meet and exchange 

ideas with other men facing similar challenges;

Making appropriate written materials available 

in English and Spanish.114

For more information and other materials, contact:

Washington State Fathers Network

James May, Program Director

16120 N.E. Eighth Street

Bellevue, WA 98008

Phone: (425) 747-4004, ext. #4286 & 

 (206) 284-2859

Fax: (425) 747-1069 & (206) 284-9664

E-mail: jmay@fathersnetwork.org 

Web site: http://www.fathersnetwork.org

FIRST THINGS FIRST

Strengthening Families through 

Public Education Campaigns

First Th ings First is a non-profi t, grassroots organization 

based in Hamilton County, Tennessee, which is 

dedicated to strengthening families through education, 

collaboration and mobilization. Th is program 

encourages fathers to build bonds with their children 

and encourages mothers to include fathers in raising 

newborns. Th e goals of this program are threefold: 

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 61

Reduce the number of divorces fi led in Hamilton 

County;

Reduce the number of out-of-wedlock pregnancies 

in Hamilton County; 

Increase the involvement of fathers in raising 

children in Hamilton County. 

In order to accomplish its goals, First Th ings First 

collaborated with a variety of community agencies 

and organizations such as churches, synagogues, civic 

organizations, businesses, and the local government 

to conduct public education campaigns promoting 

issues like character education, teen pregnancy 

prevention, marriage education, divorce mediation, 

and fathering classes.

Th anks in part to First Th ings First, the divorce 

rates and out-of-wedlock teen pregnancy rates 

have declined in Hamilton County over a period 

of six years. Additionally, many churches are now 

requiring premarital counseling sessions prior to 

conducting weddings. 

For more information, contact:

First Th ings First

701 Cherokee Blvd.

Suite 230

Chattanooga, TN 37405

Phone: (423) 267-5383

Fax: (423) 267-8876

E-mail: ftf@fi rstthings.org

Web site: http://www.fi rstthings.org/

GOLDEN DADS

A National Campaign to 

Promote Responsible Fatherhood

While this national campaign was started by the 

National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI), communities 

and groups can work with the NFI to start their own 

local campaign. Th e NFI, Warner Bros. Records, 

Rendezvous Entertainment, HUM Recordings, 

and Kid Scoop conducted a national campaign to 

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acknowledge and reward the acts of outstanding 

fathers during Father’s Day weekend of 2003. 

Representatives of the campaign scoured zoos, parks, 

libraries, and other public places where families were 

gathered in search of fathers who were interacting 

positively with their children. Winners were touted 

as “Golden Dads,” as inspired by the Rendezvous 

Entertainment CD, “Golden Slumbers: A Father’s 

Lullaby,” a 2003 “Parents’ Choice” award-winning 

collection of classic and unexpected lullabies made 

especially for fathers and their children and featuring 

the Grammy-nominated performances of Dave Koz 

and Jeff Koz. 

Fathers “caught” being Golden Dads in Atlanta, 

Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Washington, 

DC, received a copy of the “Golden Slumbers” CD, 

NFI’s “10 Ways to Be a Better Dad” brochure, and a 

limited-edition “Golden Dad” button. One hundred 

“Golden Dads” were awarded in each of the targeted 

cities for a total of 500 “Golden Dads” across the 

country. Th e campaign partners hope to promote 

the importance of responsible fatherhood by publicly 

recognizing the unique and irreplaceable contributions 

good fathers can make to their children.

NFI President Roland C. Warren said, “A lot of 

people have been asking us what exactly a Golden 

Dad is. Simply put, it’s a dad who exemplifi es the 

three characteristics of what NFI feels a good father 

is: involved, responsible, and committed. Th is 

can be demonstrated in a number of ways, such as 

comforting a crying child, changing diapers, playing 

with his kids, pushing a stroller, or teaching his kid 

to ride a bike.”

For more information, contact:

National Fatherhood InitiativeTM

101 Lake Forest Boulevard, Suite 360 

Gaithersburg, MD 20877

Phone: (301) 948-0599

Fax: (301) 948-4325

Web site: http://www.fatherhood.org/golden_dads.htm
 62 Fatherhood Programs

GREAT BEGINNINGS START BEFORE BIRTH

Working with Fathers-to-be and Th eir Partners

Th e best time to begin prevention eff orts is during 

the prenatal period. Th e latest technology has created 

a landslide of evidence that clearly demonstrates 

that the intellectual and physical development of 

the unborn child can be greatly enhanced through 

prenatal stimulation and interaction with both the 

mother and father. Beginning home visiting services 

at this time has enormous advantages. It provides 

an opportunity for the home visitor to establish a 

trusting relationship with the parents before the baby 

arrives. Th e home visitor can provide information, 

resources, and support that will improve the parent’s 

knowledge of child care and self care to ensure 

healthier outcomes for the mother, father, and baby.

Research shows that the father’s support is essential 

to the mother and, therefore, to their child’s wellbeing. Stress can contribute to potentially serious 

health problems for both mother and baby, and 

fathers certainly experience stress as well. A healthy, 

supportive relationship with the baby’s father can 

contribute to reducing the mother’s stress and off ers 

the opportunity for fathers to bond with their unborn 

child. Studies also show that: 

Fathers who bond with their children before 

or shortly after birth are much more likely to 

continue contact with and support their children 

even if they are not in a relationship with the 

mother.

Infants whose fathers are involved demonstrate 

a lower degree of stressfulness or anxiety and are 

better able to deal with frustrations.

Great Beginnings Start Before Birth is a training 

program and curriculum based on the Healthy 

Families model that works with prenatal families. 

It has been fi eld-tested and a fatherhood component 

was added. Th e prenatal module is targeted to home 

visitors and other service providers who provide 

services to prenatal families. It provides instruction 

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and many opportunities to involve fathers right from 

the start, to reduce stress for the mother, and to 

engage in prenatal bonding and stimulation activities 

with the unborn child. 

Th e curriculum works to engage fathers from the 

beginning, addresses concerns both partners may 

have about father involvement or lack thereof, 

provides videos on engaging fathers, and disseminates 

handouts such as tips for fathers on how to support 

their pregnant partners. (For more ideas, see 

Appendix E, Tips for Dads.)

For more information on the program, contact:

Prevent Child Abuse America

200 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 1700

Chicago, IL 60604

Phone: (312) 663-3520

Web site: http://www.preventchildabuse.org

LEADING BY EXAMPLE

A Faith-based Fatherhood Initiative and 

Mentoring Program

Leading by Example, a faith-based fatherhood initiative 

sponsored by the National Fatherhood Initiative, is 

designed to have a thought provoking, life-changing 

eff ect on Christian men. Its mission is to improve the 

quality of life for the next generation by ensuring that 

more young men grow up with a better understanding 

of what it is to be a man. It highlights the four Cs—

character, commitment, consistency, and caring in a 

nurturing way—which are essential ingredients to the 

shaping of boys into men.

Two programs comprise Leading by Example—a 

curriculum and a mentoring initiative. Th e curriculum 

encompasses practical fatherhood principles based on 

the Bible, which are presented in such a way as to engage 

its participants in a roundtable discussion in an intimate 

small group setting. Th is 10-week ministry is designed 

to assist faith-anchored men in understanding the 

importance of being a man of character who is above 

reproach. Many of today’s men have grown up with 
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 63

their parents telling them to do as they say not as they 

do. However, in today’s society, we fi nd more young 

people doing as we do and not as we say. Th e Scriptures 

emphasize that as a leader of one or as a leader of many, 

it is essential that men lead by example. 

Th e groups are made up of 8 to 12 participants who 

meet once a week for 2 hours over a 10-week period. 

Topics discussed include: 

Being a man of good character

Possessing a strong commitment to family

Improving communication skills

Th e importance of cultivating a caring spirit

Managing anger

Th e importance of good communication within 

my family structure

Healthy relationships

Th e bondage of generational curses

My legacy to my children

Developing a support system. 

Leading by Example’s mentoring initiative is a 

character-based, educational, self-help support 

program designed to meet the unique, specifi c needs 

of today’s young men. Participants meet weekly to 

share, encourage, support, and assist one another as 

they struggle with the concepts of manhood. Many 

young men struggle with the concept of what is a man 

and what is a man’s role in his home and community. 

How do young men who have never had a healthy 

role model tap into the potential that lies within 

them? How does a young man lead a family when he 

becomes an adult when he has never had a model of a 

healthy marriage or relationship? 

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For more information, contact:

Urban Family Council

Chris Pender

PO Box 11415

Philadelphia, PA 19111 

Phone: (215) 663-9494

Fax: (215) 663-9444.

E-mail: cpender@urbanfamily.org

PREVENTION AND RELATIONSHIP

ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM (PREP)

Enhancing and Supporting Healthy Marriages

PREP is a comprehensive education program focused 

on divorce prevention and marriage enhancement. 

Th is program includes a curriculum structured around 

skill- and principle-building, which is designed to 

help couples work through relationship diffi culties 

and build stronger bonds with one another. Th ere are 

two versions of the PREP curriculum, a secular and 

a Christian version. Th e curricula consist of twelve 

hours of mini-lectures and discussions on topics 

related to marriage enhancement such as: 

Communication

Confl ict management

Forgiveness

Expectations 

Evaluations of PREP have shown that, in the long 

run, couples who have gone through the PREP 

curriculum report improvements in their marriage 

quality, as well as reduced divorce rates within the 

fi rst three to fi ve years after marriage. Furthermore, 

compared with couples who did not go through the 

program, PREP couples reported greater marriage 

satisfaction, a greater ability to communicate more 

eff ectively with one another, and fewer confl icts.

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 64 Fatherhood Programs

For more information, contact:

PREP, Inc.

P.O. Box 4793

Greenwood Village, CO 80155-4793

Phone: (800) 366-0166

E-mail: info@prepinc.com 

Web site: http://www.prepinc.com/index.asp

PROJECT FATHERHOOD

Helping At-risk Fathers 

Learn How to Parent Eff ectively

Children’s Institute International (CII) developed 

Project Fatherhood in response to a growing local, State, 

and national focus on the urgent need to re-engage 

many fathers—particularly in urban settings—in the 

care and upbringing of their children. Advocacy for 

biological fathers’ involvement in the lives of their 

children and all the children of the community is the 

major overarching goal of the program. CII’s main 

goal is to increase the involvement of fathers in child 

rearing and to enhance the parenting skills of fathers 

so they can help their children grow into healthy, 

responsible adults. However, most child welfare 

agencies are ill-equipped to work eff ectively with 

fathers and often avoid including them in treatment 

programs. With the help of trained counselors and 

other fathers, Project Fatherhood helps men begin the 

process of growth and training, which is necessary to 

be eff ective parents and to support each others’ eff orts 

to become good fathers to their children.

Project Fatherhood provides a new approach to services 

typically available to families and off ers an impressive 

array of specially designed programs that teach men 

how to parent. Th e target population includes fathers 

who are facing poverty, homelessness, a familial history 

of single parenthood, violence, physical abuse, substance 

abuse, recent or long-term lack of employment, or limited 

experience in interacting with their children. Assessment 

and case management by trained CII professionals, as 

well as a peer mentor program, provide the necessary 

tools to build healthy relationships between fathers and 

their children. By sharing experiences and learning new 

skills, these fathers fi nd increased satisfaction in their 

roles as parents.

Th e program includes such core services as:

Men in Relationships Groups

Individual family counseling

Activity groups for children

Advocacy for fathers in the court system

Links to other CII programs addressing family 

needs for food, housing, shelter, and medical 

assistance. 

Th e core component of the Fatherhood Program is 

the Men in Relationships Group (MIRG). Th is is an 

open-ended group led by trained and licensed mental 

health professionals. While the men attend the 

group, there are parallel activities for their children. 

All men are asked to bring their children every time 

they come to group. For men who are unemployed or 

underemployed, there is a Job Club—which teaches 

a behavioral approach to job seeking. Once fathers 

have made suffi cient progress, they can be paired with 

a professional to begin another MIRG group. Men 

do not “graduate” from the program; they can stay 

in forever. CII also has biannual fi ve-day trainings 

in the MIRG model, leading to a certifi cate and the 

ability to lead MIRG groups. 

For more information, contact:

Children’s Institute International

711 South New Hampshire Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90005

Phone: (213) 385-5100

Fax: (213) 251-3673

Web site: http://www.childrensinstitute.org

Hershel K. Swinger

Director, Project Fatherhood

E-mail: hswinger@childrensinstitute.org

Kenneth Cole

Program Manager, Project Fatherhood

E-mail: kcole@childrensinstitute.org

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 65

PROJECT MECCA AND ANOTHER

CHOICE FOR BLACK CHILDREN

Supporting Children and Families 

During and After Adoption

Another Choice for Black Children, Inc., is the fi rst 

adoption agency in North Carolina specializing in 

recruiting families to adopt African American and 

other special needs children in the foster care system. 

Since it opened in 1995, this agency has recruited 

families to adopt more than 500 children, the majority 

being school-aged and members of siblings groups. 

Boasting of a less than 1 percent disruption rate, 

Another Choice prides itself on providing responsive 

and respectful services that are tailored to meet the 

needs of the agency’s adoptive families. 

Building on the mission that “children grow better in 

families,” this agency has created a family atmosphere 

that is conducive to this line of work. Another 

Choice has had positive experiences with African 

American men in their program. Many of the fathers 

participate on the speakers bureau, while others 

provide direct assistance to families. In the past, the 

dads met on a monthly basis, and now they meet at 

their discretion—generally, for special occasions or 

to organize an event. 

In October 2002, Another Choice was awarded a 

Federal grant to recruit 60 African American men to 

become adoptive or foster parents. Project MECCA 

(Men Embracing Children Collectively Th rough 

Adoption) works in partnership with Mecklenburg 

County Youth and Family Services to identify children 

in need of adoptive families. It specifi cally focuses 

on older children and those who are members of a 

sibling group. Th is grant has gained such widespread 

attention in the African American community that 

more than 150 men (the majority are married) have 

contacted the agency and completed the initial 

application to become adoptive or foster parents. 

Some of the men have stated an interest in becoming 

mentors for children in the system.

Project MECCA aims to be a national model to 

encourage African American males to adopt based on 

the belief that fathers play a critical role in the home 

and community. Project MECCA staff work tirelessly 

to assist the fathers during and after placement and to 

reaffi rm the men that they are valued and are needed 

to help strengthen and prepare the next generation.

Reaching potential fathers through traditional 

and nontraditional methods are key tenets, such as 

frequenting barber and beauty shops, communities 

of faith, and other nonprofi t organizations and 

disseminating brochures, fl yers, pamphlets, and 

other information to inform the public of the need 

for adoptive or foster families.

Adoption is a lifelong process. Committed to the 

belief that services must be respected and responsive, 

the staff of Another Choice (of which Project MECCA 

is a part) strive to become part of the “extended 

family” to each adoptive family. Families and staff 

can provide assistance, support, and understanding 

to families within the network. Tailoring services 

based on the needs of the particular family has proved 

successful in keeping families intact. Th e majority 

of these services were initially funded through a 

Federal grant, however, Another Choice has been 

able to continue these services through other funding 

streams without charging any fees to families.

Among the pre- and post-placement services available 

to families are: 

Kids Night Out, which brings together children 

ages 5 years and above with their brothers and 

sisters for respite. 

Teen Konnection, which serves to connect teenagers 

whose lives have been touched by adoption with 

other teens in foster care to help them understand 

adoption and normalize the process.

Sisters to Sisters and For Daddies Only, which 

are groups that meet at their discretion to provide 

support, encouragement, and information. 

Respite and tutoring services are also available. 

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 66 Fatherhood Programs

Chat‘N’Chill, which provides in-home services 

to families when the family is facing challenges. 

Friends of Black Children Conference, an 

annual weekend that is a mixture of a family 

reunion, revival, and large support group gettogether. A special breakout, “For Men Only,” 

allows the men an opportunity to share with one 

another about their challenges, how to show and 

deal with their emotions, and how to get other 

men to become involved. 

For more information, contact:

Another Choice 

2340 Beatties Ford Road

Charlotte, NC 28216

Phone: (704) 394-1124

Fax: (704) 394-3843

Web site: http://www.anotherchoice.org

SHALOM BABY—

BOOTCAMP FOR NEW JEWISH DADS

Working with Fathers Prior to 

and Immediately after Birth 

Boot Camp for New Jewish Dads is a program of 

the Shalom Baby Initiative, which is funded by the 

Rose Foundation of Denver and run by the Robert 

E. Loup Jewish Community Center. Th e goal is to 

provide programs and services addressing the needs 

of children ages 3 and under, to support new Jewish 

families, and to encourage Jewish affi liation. 

A cornerstone of Shalom Baby is Jewish Baby 

University (JBU), a 6-week, prenatal class that 

combines Lamaze childbirth techniques taught by 

a certifi ed instructor with Jewish family traditions 

taught by a local rabbi. Fathers are invited to a Boot 

Camp session at the Jewish Community Center 

where “veterans” of past sessions bring their new 

babies, usually ages 2-6 months, to show “rookie” 

dads what they have learned about caring for new 

babies. Th is program is affi liated with the National 

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Boot Camp (http://www.newdads.com). Th e menhelping-men approach is successful in assisting new 

dads, and sessions include attention to supporting 

new moms, baby care techniques, calming a crying 

baby, Shaken Baby Syndrome and its prevention, 

postpartum depression, baby safety, and addressing 

the unique concerns of the “rookies,” who also have 

the opportunity to hold, feed, and change the babies 

in the class.

For more information, contact:

Doug Gertner, Ph.D.

7949 East 28th Place 

Denver, CO 80238 

Phone: (303) 886-4114 or (303) 377-8081

E-mail: doug@emuconsulting.com

Shalom Baby

Robert E. Loup Jewish Community Center

350 South Dahlia Street

Denver, CO 80246 

Phone: (303) 316-6377

Web site: http://www.jccdenver.org/childrenyouth

 shalombaby.htm

Boot Camp for New Dads 

4605 Barranca Pkwy, Ste. 205 

Irvine, CA 92604 

Phone: (949) 786-3146

Web site: http://www.newdads.com

STAY-AT-HOME DADS

How to Start a Playgroup or 

Local Dad-to-Dad Chapter

Where do I start?

You may feel that you are the only at-home dad in 

your town or city, but it is estimated that there are 

two million at-home dads in the United States. In an 

average town of 20,000, there is a minimum of 10-20 

dads who stay home with their children. Now it is 

time to fi nd these dads.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 67

So how do I find at-home dads in my local area? 

Make out an ad. Draw up an ad, something 

like: “At-home dad playgroup in formation for 

fathers who are primary caregivers for their 

children. Th is weekly playgroup will provide fun 

and support for you and your children. Please 

call John Doe at 555-1212 for more information.” 

John W. placed this ad in his local suburban paper 

in Winnetka, Illinois. At fi rst, he received fi ve 

calls from this ad. In a letter updating his eff orts, 

he writes, “Now, every Friday morning, six dads 

and their kids get together for coff ee, support, and 

refereeing among our toddlers from 14 months 

to some terrible twos. Imagine—Bob, Tom, Pat, 

Andy, Palo, John and Burt—all from adjoining 

towns! I actually discovered another at-home dad 

from around the corner!” John also states, “Th e 

moral of this story is that daddy playgroups are 

just waiting to happen. Consider this: Th ere are 

two million at-home dads while the total prison 

population is only 1.6 million. If we can better 

organize ourselves, then full-time parenting will 

seem a bit less like solitary confi nement.”

Post the ad (above) or a simple fl yer in the 

local library children’s section. A library will 

usually permit you to do this. 

Call the local mothers’ groups in town. Th ey 

sometimes get calls form other dads looking to 

connect. 

Seek out other dads you may meet at the 

playground. Th ey may also be at-home dads. 

Talk to your local paper. Th ey may be 

interested in doing a story about your new group. 

In addition, a statewide paper may be interested 

in doing a story about your group, which may 

attract more members. 

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Join the At-Home Dad Network. All paid 

subscribers can have their name and contact 

information listed in a hardcopy version of the 

quarterly newsletter, which is sent to 1,000 athome dads across the country. 

I found a few dads, where should we meet? 

Th e best place is a neutral meeting place, such as an 

indoor/outdoor playground. Once you get to know 

each other you may want to keep it that way or to 

meet at each others’ houses. 

What do we do now? 

Your group may be happy just meeting at the local 

playground or you may want to plan additional 

activities. Curtis Cooper planned weekly activities 

such as trips to the zoo, local restaurants with indoor 

playgrounds, or even to children’s museums. You 

also could plan a day trip to a baseball game (kids 

permitting). You may want to seek out the local places 

in your area that may be of interest to your group.

What other activities can we do for the dads in 

our group?

One dad-to-dad activity started by Mr. Cooper was 

“Dad’s Night Out.” One night each month, the dads 

go out to a local restaurant or event. Th is gives the 

dads time to get to know each other while the kids 

are at home. 

What can I do to keep my group organized?

Th e best way to keep your local events organized is 

to have a monthly newsletter or calendar, which can 

be mailed out to the members in your group. You 

can make a regular schedule of playgroup meetings, 

Dad’s Nights Out, and special fi eld trips, complete 

with dates and time. You also can add comments on 

what happened on recent events. 

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For more information, contact:

Curtis Cooper

E-mail: DadtoDad@aol.com

Peter Baylies

E-mail: Athomedad@aol.com 

Web site: http://slowlane.com/connecting/starting_

 a_playgroup.html
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 69

FEDERAL INITIATIVES

The Federal Government has increasingly been 

involved in developing programs and policies to 

strengthen and support the roles of fathers. Th e U.S. 

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 

has taken the lead in developing a special initiative 

guided by the following principles: 

All fathers can be important contributors to the 

well-being of their children. 

Parents are partners in raising their children, even 

when they do not live in the same household. 

Th e roles fathers play in families are diverse and 

related to cultural and community norms. 

Men should receive the education and support 

necessary to prepare them for the responsibility 

of parenthood. 

Government can encourage and promote father 

involvement through its programs and through 

its own workforce policies.115

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CHAPTER 9

Federal Fatherhood

Initiatives 

Th e Department’s activities also recognize that there 

are circumstances under which increased involvement 

by a father or a mother may not be in the best interest 

of the child and support family preservation and 

reunifi cation eff orts when they do not risk the safety 

of the child.116 

Th e Toolkit for Fatherhood, developed by HHS, 

provides fatherhood programs and interested 

individuals with tools and information related to 

fatherhood and fathering such as the Responsible 

Fatherhood Management Information System, 

funding and program development, and related Web 

sites. HHS Regional Offi ces are working to coordinate 

fatherhood activities throughout the States and have 

sponsored a variety of forums to bring together local 

public and private organizations and individuals to 

support fathers’ involvement in their families and 

communities. 

FEDERAL LEGISLATION

Several bills have been presented before Congress on 

legislation to strengthen and support the roles fathers 

Th e Toolkit for Fatherhood and additional lists of resources, research, funding, and programs on the 

fatherhood initiative can be found at http://fatherhood.hhs.gov/index.shtml. 
 70 Federal Fatherhood Initiatives

play in the lives of their children by including the 

following:

Encourage the formation and maintenance of 

healthy two-parent, married families; encourage 

responsible fatherhood; and prevent and reduce 

the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies.

Provide for the demonstration, evaluation, 

and dissemination of information concerning 

promising approaches to promoting and 

supporting involved, committed, and responsible 

fatherhood, and promoting and supporting 

healthy marriages.

Establish block grants to States and territories 

to implement, at their option, media campaigns 

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promoting the formation and maintenance of 

married, two-parent families; strengthen fragile 

families; and promote responsible fatherhood. 

Develop a national clearinghouse to assist States 

and communities to promote and support 

marriage and responsible fatherhood.

Award competitive matching grants to eligible 

entities to help fathers and their families avoid 

or leave welfare and to improve their economic 

status.117

While none of these bills have yet been enacted, 

interest continues and the potential for more active 

support for the importance of fathers in the lives and 

development of their children continues to grow. 

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 71

1

 National Child Welfare Resource Center for FamilyCentered Practice. (2002, Summer). Father involvement 

in child welfare: Estrangement and reconciliation 

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 75

Adjudicatory Hearings – held by the juvenile and 

family court to determine whether a child has been 

maltreated or whether some other legal basis exists 

for the State to intervene to protect the child.

Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) – signed 

into law November 1997, ASFA was designed to 

improve the safety of children, to promote adoption 

and other permanent homes for children who need 

them, and to support families. Th e law requires 

CPS agencies to provide more timely and focused 

assessment and intervention services to the children 

and families that are served within the CPS system.

CASA – court-appointed special advocates (usually 

volunteers) who serve to ensure that the needs 

and interests of a child in child protection judicial 

proceedings are fully protected.

Case Closure – the process of ending the relationship 

between the CPS worker and the family. Case closure 

involves a mutual assessment of progress and includes 

a review of the beginning, middle, and end of the 

helping relationship. Optimally, cases are closed 

when families have achieved their goals and the risk 

of maltreatment has been reduced or eliminated.

Case Plan – the casework document that outlines 

the outcomes and goals necessary to be achieved to 

reduce the risk of maltreatment. 

Case Planning – the stage of the CPS case process 

where the CPS caseworker develops a case plan with 

the family members.

Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 

(CAPTA) – see Keeping Children and Families Safe 

Act.

Child Advocacy Center – community-based and 

child-friendly facilities designed to coordinate services 

to victims of nonfatal abuse and neglect, especially 

cases of child sexual abuse and severe physical abuse. 

Child Protective Services (CPS) – the designated 

social services agency (in most States) to receive 

reports, investigate, and provide rehabilitation or 

treatment services to children and families in which 

child maltreatment has occurred. Frequently, this 

agency is located within larger public social service 

agencies, such as Departments of Social Services.

Concurrent Planning – identifying alternative 

forms of permanency; that is, addressing both 

how reunifi cation can be achieved and how legal 

permanency with a new parent or caregiver can be 

achieved if reunifi cation eff orts fail.

Cultural Competence – a set of attitudes, behaviors, 

and policies that integrates knowledge about groups 

of people into practices and standards to enhance the 

quality of services to all cultural groups being served.

APPENDIX A

Glossary of Terms
 76 Appendix A—Glossary of Terms

Diff erential Response – an area of CPS reform that 

off ers greater fl exibility in responding to allegations 

of abuse and neglect. A “diff erential response,” also 

referred to as “dual track” or multi-track” response, 

permits CPS agencies to respond diff erentially to 

children’s needs for safety, the degree of risk present, 

and the family’s need for services and support.

Dispositional Hearings – held by the juvenile and 

family court to determine the disposition of children 

after cases have been adjudicated such as whether 

placement of the child in out-of-home care is necessary 

and what services the children and family will need 

to reduce the risk of maltreatment and to address the 

eff ects of maltreatment.

Emergency Hearings – held by the juvenile and 

family court to determine the need for emergency 

protection of a child who may have been a victim of 

alleged maltreatment.

Evaluation of Family Progress – the stage of the 

CPS case process where the CPS caseworker measures 

changes in the family behaviors and conditions (risk 

factors); monitors risk elimination or reduction; 

assesses strengths; and determines when the CPS case 

can be closed.

Exposure to Violence – when children live in an 

environment of domestic violence, whether the child 

actually witnesses the violence or not (i.e., hearing, 

observing, or intervening in the violence or its 

aftermath).

Family Assessment – the stage of the child protection 

process when the CPS caseworker, community treatment 

provider, and the family reach a mutual understanding 

regarding the behaviors and conditions that must change 

to reduce or eliminate the risk of maltreatment; the most 

critical treatment needs that must be addressed; and the 

strengths on which to build.

Family Meetings – child protection activity that 

brings together the family, extended family, and 

others important in the family’s life (e.g., friends, 

clergy, neighbors) to make decisions on how best to 

ensure safety of the family members and reduce risk 

of maltreatment. 

Guardian ad Litem – a lawyer or lay person who 

represents a child in juvenile or family court. Usually 

this person considers the “best interest” of the child 

and may perform a variety of roles, including those 

of independent investigator, advocate, advisor, and 

guardian for the child. A layperson who serves in this 

role is known sometimes as a court-appointed special 

advocate, or CASA.

Home Visitation Programs – prevention programs 

that off er a variety of family-focused services to 

pregnant mothers or families with new babies. 

Activities frequently encompass structured visits to 

the family’s home and may address positive parenting 

practices, nonviolent discipline techniques, child 

development, maternal and child health, available 

social services, and advocacy.

Indicated Prevention – services for families 

where maltreatment has already occurred to reduce 

the negative consequences of the maltreatment 

and to prevent its recurrence. See also “tertiary 

prevention.”

Initial Assessment or Investigation – the stage of the 

CPS case process where the CPS caseworker determines 

the validity of the child maltreatment report, assesses 

the risk of maltreatment, determines if the child is safe, 

develops a safety plan if needed to assure the child’s 

protection, and determines services needed.

Intake – the stage of the child protection case process 

when community professionals and the general public 

report suspected incidents of child abuse and neglect 

to CPS or the police; CPS staff and the police must 

determine the appropriateness of the report and the 

urgency of the response needed.

Juvenile and Family Courts – established in most 

States to resolve confl ict and to otherwise intervene in 

the lives of families in a manner that promotes the best 

interest of children. Th ese courts specialize in areas 

such as child maltreatment, domestic violence, juvenile 

delinquency, divorce, child custody, and child support.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 77

Keeping Children and Families Safe Act – Th e 

Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003 

(P.L. 108-36) included the reauthorization of the 

Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) 

in Title I, Sec. 111. CAPTA provides minimum 

standards for defi ning child physical abuse and neglect 

and sexual abuse that States must incorporate into 

their statutory defi nitions in order to receive Federal 

funds. CAPTA defi nes child abuse and neglect as “at 

a minimum, any recent act or failure to act on the 

part of a parent or caretaker, which results in death, 

serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or 

exploitation, or an act or failure to act which presents 

an imminent risk of serious harm.”

Kinship Care – formal child placement by the 

juvenile court and child welfare agency in the home 

of a child’s relative (e.g., grandmother).

Long-distance Dads – fathers who are unable to 

live with their children for a period of time for such 

reasons as military deployment, job responsibilities, 

or divorce.

Mandated Reporter – groups of professionals 

required by State statutes to report suspected child 

abuse and neglect to the proper authorities (usually 

CPS or law enforcement agencies). Mandated 

reporters typically include: educators and other 

school personnel, health care and mental health 

professionals, social workers, childcare providers, and 

law enforcement offi cers.

Neglect – the failure to provide for the child’s 

basic needs. Neglect can be physical, educational, 

or emotional. Physical neglect can include not 

providing adequate food or clothing, appropriate 

medical care, supervision, or proper weather protection 

(heat or coats). It may include abandonment. 

Educational neglect includes failure to provide 

appropriate schooling or special educational needs, 

allowing excessive truancies. Psychological neglect

includes the lack of any emotional support and love, 

never attending to the child, spousal abuse, drug 

and alcohol abuse including allowing the child to 

participate in drug and alcohol use. 

Noncustodial or Nonresidential Fathers – fathers 

who do not live with their children for various 

reasons (e.g., divorce, nonmarriage, job relocation, 

incarceration).

Out-of-Home Care – child care, foster care, or 

residential care provided by persons, organizations, 

and institutions to children who are placed outside 

their families, usually under the jurisdiction of 

juvenile or family court.

Parent or Caregiver – person responsible for the care 

of the child.

Physical Abuse – the infl icting of physical injury 

upon a child. Th is may include, burning, hitting, 

punching, shaking, kicking, beating, or otherwise 

harming a child. Th ough the parent or caretaker 

may not have intended to hurt the child, the injury 

is not an accident. It may, however, have been the 

result of over-discipline or physical punishment that 

is inappropriate to the child’s age.

Primary Prevention – activities geared to a sample 

of the general population to prevent child abuse and 

neglect from occurring. Also referred to as universal 

prevention.

Protective Factors – Strengths and resources that 

appear to mediate or serve as a “buff er” against 

risk factors that contribute to vulnerability to 

maltreatment or against the negative eff ects of 

maltreatment experiences. 

Psychological Maltreatment – a repeated pattern of 

caregiver behavior or extreme incidents that convey 

to children that they are worthless, fl awed, unloved, 

unwanted, endangered, or only of value in meeting 

another’s needs. Th is can include parents or caretakers 

using extreme or bizarre forms of punishment or 

threatening or terrorizing a child. Other forms 

of psychological maltreatment include spurning, 

belittling, using derogatory terms to describe the child, 

habitual scapegoating or blaming, exploiting, and 

refusing needed treatment. Th e term “psychological 

maltreatment” is also known as emotional abuse or 

neglect, verbal abuse, and mental abuse.
 78 Appendix A—Glossary of Terms

Response Time – a determination made by CPS and 

law enforcement after receiving a child abuse report 

regarding the immediacy of the response needed by 

CPS or law enforcement.

Review Hearings – held by the juvenile and family 

court to review dispositions (usually every 6 months) 

and to determine the need to maintain placement in 

out-of-home care or court jurisdiction of a child.

Risk – the likelihood that a child will be maltreated 

in the future.

Risk Assessment – an assessment and measurement 

of the likelihood that a child will be maltreated in 

the future, frequently through the use of checklists, 

matrices, scales, or other methods of measurement. 

Risk Factors – behaviors and conditions present in 

the caregiver, family, child, or environment, which 

contribute to the increased likelihood of child 

maltreatment occurring in the future.

Safety Assessment – a part of the CPS case process 

in which available information is analyzed to identify 

whether a child is in immediate danger of moderate 

or serious harm.

Secondary Prevention – activities targeted to prevent 

breakdowns and dysfunctions among families who 

have been identifi ed as at risk for abuse and neglect. 

Also referred to as selective prevention. 

Selective Prevention – activities and services for 

families at high risk of maltreatment intended to 

alleviate the conditions associated with problem. 

Also referred to as secondary prevention. 

Service Provision – the stage of the CPS casework 

process when CPS and other service providers 

provide specifi c treatment services geared toward the 

reduction of risk of maltreatment. 

Sexual Abuse – inappropriate sexual behavior with a 

child. It includes fondling a child’s genitals, making 

the child fondle the adult’s genitals, intercourse, incest, 

rape, sodomy, exhibitionism and sexual exploitation. 

To be considered child abuse these acts have to be 

committed by a person responsible for the care of a 

child (for example a baby-sitter, a parent, or a day care 

provider) or related to the child. If a stranger commits 

these acts, it would be considered sexual assault and 

handled solely be the police and criminal courts.

Shelter – a short-term, undisclosed haven for adult 

victims of intimate partner violence and their children 

where they are provided with safety, confi dentiality, 

advocacy, and access to resources related to their 

victimization.

Substantiated – an investigation disposition that 

concludes that the allegation of maltreatment or risk 

of maltreatment was supported or founded by State 

law or State policy. A CPS determination that credible 

evidence exists that child abuse or neglect has occurred.

Tertiary Prevention – treatment eff orts geared 

to address situations where child maltreatment has 

already occurred with the goals of preventing child 

maltreatment from occurring in the future and 

avoiding the harmful eff ects of child maltreatment. 

Also referred to as indicated prevention.

Treatment – the stage of the child protection case 

process when specifi c services are provided by CPS 

and other service providers to reduce the risk of 

maltreatment, support families in meeting case goals, 

and address the eff ects of maltreatment.

Universal Prevention – activities and services 

directed at the general public with the goal of stopping 

the occurrence of maltreatment before it starts. Also 

referred to as primary prevention. 

Unsubstantiated (Not Substantiated) – an 

investigation disposition that determines that there 

is not suffi cient evidence under State law or policy 

to conclude that the child has been maltreated or is 

at risk of maltreatment. A CPS determination that 

credible evidence does not exist that child abuse or 

neglect has occurred.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 79

Listed below are several representatives of the 

many national organizations and groups that 

deal with various aspects of child maltreatment, as 

well as several that address fatherhood issues. Please 

visit http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/profess/tools/

usermanual.cfm to view a more comprehensive 

list of resources and visit http://nccanch.acf.hhs.

gov/general/organizations/index.cfm to view an 

organization database. Inclusion on this list is for 

information purposes and does not constitute an 

endorsement by the Offi ce on Child Abuse and 

Neglect or the Children’s Bureau.

FOR FATHERS AND FATHERHOOD GROUPS

Bootcamp for New Dads

address: 230 Commerce, Suite 210

Irvine, CA 92602

phone: (714) 838-9392

Web site: http://www.newdads.com

Supports fi rst-time fathers through a Web site fi lled 

with practical and sound advice on starting a new 

family as well as a national network of local chapters.

Center on Fathers, Families, and Public Policy 

address: 23 N. Pinckney St., Suite 210

Madison, WI 53703

phone: (608) 257-3148

fax: (608) 257-4686

Web site: http://cff pp.org

Conducts policy research, technical assistance, 

training, litigation and public education in order to 

focus attention on the barriers faced by never-married, 

low-income fathers and their families.

Center for Successful Fathering

address: 13740 Research Blvd., Suite L-2

Austin, TX 78750

phone: (800) 537-0853

(512) 335-8106

fax: (512) 258-2591

e-mail: info@fathering.org

Web site: http://www.fathering.org

Trains parent educators to implement father 

involvement programs in schools attracting all races 

and types of fathers including custodial, noncustodial, 

single-parent, teen, and incarcerated fathers.

APPENDIX B

Resource Listings of Selected 

National Organizations 

Concerned with Fatherhood

and Child Maltreatment
 80 Appendix B—Resource Listings

Family and Corrections Network 

address: 32 Oak Grove Rd.

Palmyra, VA 22963

phone: (434) 589-3036

fax: (434) 589-6520

Web site: http://www.fcnetwork.org

Off ers information, training, and technical assistance 

on children of prisoners, parenting programs for 

prisoners, prison visiting, incarcerated fathers and 

mothers, hospitality programs, keeping in touch, 

returning to the community, and the impact of the 

justice system on families.

Th e Fathers Network 

address: 2657 10th Ave., West

Seattle, WA 98119

phone: (206) 284-2859

email: jmay@fathersnetwork.org

Web site: http://www.fathersnetwork.org

Provides current information and resources to assist 

all families and care providers involved in the lives of 

children with special needs.

National Center on Fathering

address: P.O. Box 413888

Kansas City, MO 64141

phone: (800) 593-DADS 

fax: (913) 384-4665 

e-mail: dads@fathers.com

Web site: http://www.fathers.com

Serves as a catalyst in communities across the country 

to stimulate increased involvement by fathers in the 

lives of children by empowering local organizations 

and individuals.

National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome

address: 2955 Harrison Blvd., Suite 102

Ogden, UT 84403

phone: (888) 273-0071

(801) 627-3399, ext. 110

fax: (801) 627-3321

e-mail: asalazar@dontshake.com

Web site: http://www.dontshake.com

Off ers information on infant crying and shaken baby 

syndrome specifi cally written for fathers, explains 

how dads can promote early brain development, and 

provides helpful tips for dads on how to bond with 

their new baby.

National Fatherhood Initiative

address: 101 Lake Forest Blvd., Suite 360 

Gaithersburg, MD 20877

phone: (301) 948-0599

fax: (301) 948-4325

Web site: www.fatherhood.org

Works to improve the well-being of children by 

increasing the proportion of children growing up 

with involved, responsible, and committed fathers.

National Latino Fatherhood and Family Institute

address: 5252 Beverly Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90022

phone: (323) 728-7770

(323) 728-9577

fax: (323) 728-8666

Web site: http://www.bienvenidos.org/nlffi 

Addresses the multifaceted needs of Latino males 

as it relates to their positive involvement with their 

families and communities through research, training, 

and direct services.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 81

National Practitioners Network for Fathers and 

Families, Inc. 

address: 1003 K St., NW, Suite 565

Washington, DC 20001

phone: (800) 34N-PNFF 

(202) 737-6680 

fax: (202) 737-6683 

e-mail: info@npnff .org

Web site: http://www.npnff .org

Supports the profession of practitioners working to 

increase the responsible involvement of fathers in the 

lives of their children by fostering communication, 

promoting professionalism, and enhancing collaboration among individuals working with fathers and 

fragile families. 

Slowlane.com 

address: 1216 East Lee St.

Pensacola, FL 32503

phone: (850) 434-2626

fax: (850) 434-7937

Web site: http://www.slowlane.com

Provides a searchable online reference catalog, 

resources, and national network for stay-at-home 

dads and their families.

FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC

Childhelp USA

address: 15757 North 78th St.

Scottsdale, AZ 85260

phone: (800) 4-A-CHILD

(800) 2-A-CHILD (TDD line)

(480) 922-8212

fax: (480) 922-7061

e-mail: help@childhelpusa.org

Web site: http://www.childhelpusa.org

Provides crisis counseling to adult survivors and child 

victims of child abuse, off enders, and parents and 

operates a national hotline.

National Center for Missing and Exploited 

Children 

address: Charles B. Wang International 

Children’s Building

699 Prince St.

Alexandria, VA 22314-3175

phone: (800) 843-5678

(703) 274-3900

fax: (703) 274-2220

Web site: http://www.missingkids.com

Provides assistance to parents, children, law 

enforcement, schools, and the community in 

recovering missing children and raising public 

awareness about ways to help prevent child abduction, 

molestation, and sexual exploitation.
 82 Appendix B—Resource Listings

Parents Anonymous

address: 675 West Foothill Blvd., Suite 220

Claremont, CA 91711

phone: (909) 621-6184

fax: (909) 625-6304

e-mail: Parentsanonymous@parentsanonymous.org

Web site: http://www.parentsanonymous.org

Leads mutual support groups to help parents provide 

nurturing environments for their families.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

Th e Center for Faith-Based and Community 

Initiatives

e-mail: CFBCI@hhs.gov

Web site: http://www.hhs.gov/faith/

Welcomes the participation of faith-based and 

community-based organizations as valued and 

essential partners with the Department of Health 

and Human Services. Funding goes to faithbased organizations through Head Start, programs 

for refugee resettlement, runaway and homeless 

youth, independent living, childcare, child support 

enforcement, and child welfare.

Family Support America

(formerly Family Resource Coalition of America)

address: 205 West Randolph Street, Suite 2222

Chicago, IL 60606

phone: (312) 338-0900

fax: (312) 338-1522

e-mail: info@familysupportamerica.org

Web site: www.familysupportamerica.org

Works to strengthen and empower families and 

communities so that they can foster the optimal 

development of children, youth, and adult family 

members.

National Exchange Club Foundation for the 

Prevention of Child Abuse

address: 3050 Central Ave.

Toledo, OH 43606-1700

phone: (800) 924-2643

(419) 535-3232

fax: (419) 535-1989

e-mail: info@preventchildabuse.com

Web site: http://www.nationalexchangeclub.com

Conducts local campaigns in the fi ght against child 

abuse by providing education, intervention, and 

support to families aff ected by child maltreatment. 

PREVENTION ORGANIZATIONS

National Alliance of Children’s Trust and 

Prevention Funds 

address: 5712 30th Ave. NE

Seattle, WA 98105

phone: 206-526-1221

fax: 206-526-0220

e-mail: trafael@juno.com

Web site: www.ctfalliance.org

Assists State children’s trust and prevention funds to 

strengthen families and protect children from harm.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 83

Prevent Child Abuse America

address: 200 South Michigan Ave., 17th Floor

Chicago, IL 60604-2404

phone: (800) 835-2671 (orders)

(312) 663-3520

fax: (312) 939-8962

e-mail: mailbox@preventchildabuse.org

Web site: http://www.preventchildabuse.org

Conducts prevention activities such as public 

awareness campaigns, advocacy, networking, 

research, and publishing. Also, provides information 

and statistics on child abuse.

CHILD WELFARE ORGANIZATIONS

American Humane Association Children’s 

Division

address: 63 Inverness Dr., East

Englewood, CO 80112-5117

phone: (800) 227-4645

(303) 792-9900

fax: (303) 792-5333

e-mail: children@americanhumane.org

Web site: http://www.americanhumane.org

Conducts research, analysis, and training to help public 

and private agencies respond to child maltreatment.

AVANCE Family Support and Education Program

address: 118 N. Medina

San Antonio, TX 78207

phone: (210) 270-4630

fax: (210) 270-4612

Web site: www.avance.org

Operates a national training center to share and 

disseminate information, material, and curricula 

to service providers and policy makers interested in 

supporting high-risk Hispanic families. 

Child Welfare League of America 

address: 440 First St., NW, Th ird Floor

Washington, DC 20001-2085

phone: (202) 638-2952

fax: (202) 638-4004

Web site: http://www.cwla.org

Provides training, consultation, and technical 

assistance to child welfare professionals and agencies 

while also educating the public about emerging issues 

aff ecting children.

National Black Child Development Institute

address: 1101 15th St., NW, Suite 900

Washington, DC 20005

phone: (202) 833-2220

fax: (202) 833-8222

e-mail: moreinfo@nbcdi.org

Web site: www.nbcdi.org

Operates programs and sponsors a national training 

conference through Howard University to improve and 

protect the well-being of African-American children.
 84 Appendix B—Resource Listings

National Indian Child Welfare Association

address: 5100 SW Macadam Ave., Suite 300

Portland, OR 97239

phone: (503) 222-4044

fax: (503) 222-4007

e-mail: info@nicwa.org

Web site: http://www.nicwa.org

Disseminates information and provides technical 

assistance on Indian child welfare issues. Supports 

community development and advocacy eff orts to facilitate 

tribal responses to the needs of families and children.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and 

Neglect Information

address: 1250 Maryland Avenue, SW

Eighth Floor

Washington, DC 20024

phone: (800) 394-3366

(703) 385-7565 

fax: (703) 385-3206

e-mail: nccanch@caliber.com

Web site: http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov

Collects, stores, catalogs, and disseminates information 

on all aspects of child maltreatment and child welfare 

to help build the capacity of professionals in the fi eld. 

A service of the Children’s Bureau.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 85

Each State designates specifi c agencies to receive and investigate reports of suspected child abuse 

and neglect. Typically, this responsibility is carried out by child protective services (CPS) within a 

Department of Social Services, Department of Human Resources, or Division of Family and Children 

Services. In some States, police departments also may receive reports of child abuse or neglect.

Many States have local or toll-free telephone numbers, listed below, for reporting suspected abuse. Th e 

reporting party must be calling from the same State where the child is allegedly being abused for most 

of the following numbers to be valid.

For States not listed, or when the reporting party resides in a diff erent State from the child, please call 

Childhelp, 800-4-A-Child (800-422-4453), or your local CPS agency. For additional information, 

including State Web addresses, visit http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/pubs/reslist/rl_dsp.cfm?rs_id=5&rate_

chno=11-11172.

APPENDIX C

State Telephone Numbers

for Reporting Child Abuse

Alabama (AL)

334-242-9500

Alaska (AK)

800-478-4444

Arizona (AZ)

888-SOS-CHILD

(888-767-2445)

Arkansas (AR)

800-482-5964

California (CA)

916-445-2771

Connecticut (CT)

800-842-2288

800-624-5518 (TDD)

Delaware (DE)

800-292-9582

302-577-6550

District of Columbia (DC)

877-617-7233

202-671-SAFE (7233)

Florida (FL)

800-96-ABUSE

(800-962-2873)

Idaho (ID)

800-926-2588

Illinois (IL)

800-252-2873

817-785-4020

Indiana (IN)

800-800-5556

Iowa (IA)

800-362-2178

515-281-3240

Kansas (KS)

800-922-5330

785-296-0044

Kentucky (KY)

800-752-6200

502-595-4550

Louisiana (LA)

225-342-6832
 86 Appendix C—State Telephone Numbers for Reporting Child Abuse

Maine (ME)

800-452-1999

207-287-2983

Maryland (MD)

800-332-6347

Massachusetts (MA)

800-792-5200

617-232-4882

Michigan (MI)

800-942-4357

517-373-3572

Minnesota (MN)

651-291-0211

Mississippi (MS)

800-222-8000

601-359-4991

Missouri (MO)

800-392-3738

573-751-3448

Montana (MT)

866-820-KIDS (5437)

406-444-5900

Nebraska (NE)

800-652-1999

402-595-1324

Nevada (NV)

800-992-5757

775-684-4400

New Hampshire (NH)

800-894-5533

603-835-5510

New Jersey (NJ)

800-792-8610

800-835-5510 (TDD)

New Mexico (NM)

800-797-3260

505-841-6100

New York (NY)

800-342-3720

518-474-8740

800-369-2437 (TDD)

North Dakota (ND)

800-245-3736

Oklahoma (OK)

800-522-3511

Oregon (OR)

800-854-3508, ext. 2402

503-378-6704

503-378-5414 (TDD)

Pennsylvania (PA)

800-932-0313

717-783-8744

Rhode Island (RI)

800-RI-CHILD

(800-742-4453)

South Carolina (SC)

803-898-7318

South Dakota (SD)

605-773-3227

Tennessee (TN)

877-237-0004

Texas (TX)

800-252-5400

512-834-3784

Utah (UT)

800-678-9399

Vermont (VT)

800-649-5285

Virginia (VA)

800-552-7096

804-786-8536

Washington (WA)

866-END-HARM

(866-363-4276)

West Virginia (WV)

800-352-6513

Wisconsin (WI)

608-266-3036
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 87

This questionnaire is designed to assess the cultural competence training needs of mental health and 

human service professionals. Th e self-assessment process is used to develop agency-specifi c training 

interventions that address cross-cultural weaknesses and build upon cross-cultural strengths of the staff , 

generally, and the organization, specifi cally. Cultural competence is a development process; therefore, the 

goal is to promote positive movement along the cultural competence continuum. Th us, the assessment 

should be viewed as an indication of areas in which the agency and staff can enhance attitudes, practices, 

policies, and structures concerning service delivery to culturally diverse populations. 

APPENDIX D

Cultural Competence Selfassessment Questionnaire, 

Service Provider Version1

Instructions: Please circle or otherwise mark the response that most accurately refl ects your perceptions. 

If you have trouble understanding a question, answer to the best of your ability. Feel free to expand your 

responses or note concerns on the backs of the pages. Inapplicable questions will be eliminated from the 

analysis. Please keep in mind that there is no way to perform poorly. Th e higher the score, the more 

culturally competent your agency and staff are.

KNOWLEDGE OF COMMUNITIES

1. How well are you able to describe the communities of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

2. Please list the cultural group(s) of color who reside in your service area and how much of the overall 

population this represents:

Group Percent of Population

in Service Area

Percent of Population

in State

 

1 Th e National Fathers’ Network. (1996). Cultural competence self-assessment questionnaire: Service provider version. Equal 

partners: African American fathers and systems of health care: Discussion and resource guide (pp.19–28). Bellevue, WA: Author.
 88 Appendix D—Cultural Competence Self-assessment Questionnaire

2a. How well are you able to describe within-group diff erences?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

3. How well are you able to describe the strengths of the groups of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

4. How well are you able to describe the social problems of the groups of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

5. To what extent do you know the following demographic characteristics within communities of color in 

your service area? (Circle the number of your response for each area.)

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

Unemployment rates 1 2 3 4

Geographical locations 1 2 3 4

Income diff erentials 1 2 3 4

Educational attainment 1 2 3 4

Birth/death rates 1 2 3 4

Crime rates 1 2 3 4

Homicide rates 1 2 3 4

Owner occupancy rates 1 2 3 4

6. To what extent do you know the following resources regarding people of color in your service area? (Circle 

the number of your response for each area.)

 NOT AT ALL1 BARELY2

 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

Social historians 1 2 3 4

Informal supports and 1 2 3 4

natural helpers

Formal social service 1 2 3 4

agencies

Formal leaders 1 2 3 4

Informal leaders 1 2 3 4

Business people 1 2 3 4

Advocates 1 2 3 4

Clergy or spiritualists 1 2 3 4

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 89

7. Do you know the prevailing beliefs, customs, norms, and values of the groups of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

8. Do you know the social service needs within communities of color that go unaddressed by the formal 

social service system?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

9. Do you know of social service needs that can be addressed by natural networks of support within the 

communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

10. Do you know of any confl icts between or within groups of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

11. Do you know the greeting protocol within the communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

12. Do you know the cultural-specifi c perspectives of mental health/illness as viewed by the groups of color in 

your area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

13. Do you understand the conceptual distinction between the terms “immigrant” and “refugee”?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

14. Do you know what languages are used by the communities of color in your area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

15. Are you able to describe the common needs of people of all colors in your community?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

PERSONAL INVOLVEMENT

16. Do you attend cultural or racial group holidays or functions within the communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

17. Do you interact socially with people of color within your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4
 90 Appendix D—Cultural Competence Self-assessment Questionnaire

18. Do you attend school-based meetings that impact people of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

19. Do you attend community forums or neighborhood meetings within communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

20. Do you patronize businesses owned by people of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

21. Do you pursue recreational or leisure activities within the communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

22. Do you feel safe within communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

23. Do you attend interagency coordination (IAC) meetings that impact service delivery in communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

24. Do you attend community- or culturally based advocacy group meetings within communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

RESOURCES AND LINKAGES

25. Does your agency work collaboratively with programs that provide...

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

Employment training? 1 2 3 4

Educational opportunity? 1 2 3 4

Housing? 1 2 3 4

Alcohol/substance treatment? 1 2 3 4

Maternal and child health 1 2 3 4

services? 

Public health services? 1 2 3 4

Juvenile justice services? 1 2 3 4

Recreation services? 1 2 3 4

Child welfare services? 1 2 3 4

Youth development services? 1 2 3 4

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 91

26. Does your agency have linkages with institutions of higher education (e.g., colleges, universities, or 

professional schools) that can provide accurate information concerning communities of color?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

27. Does your agency have linkages with civil rights, human rights, or human relations groups that provide 

accurate information concerning populations of color?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

28. Does your agency have linkages with the U.S. Census Bureau, local planners, Chamber of Commerce, or 

philanthropic groups who can provide you with accurate information regarding populations of color?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

29. Does your agency publish or assist in the publication of information focusing on cultural groups of color?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

30. Has your agency conducted or participated in a needs assessment utilizing consumer or family members of 

colors as respondents?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

31. Has your agency conducted or participated in a needs assessment utilizing consumer or family members of 

color as respondents?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

32. Does your agency have linkages with advocates for communities of color who can provide reliable 

information regarding community opinions about diverse and important issues?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

33. Does your agency conduct open house-type events to which you invite providers, consumers, and others 

concerned with service delivery to communities of color?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

34. Does staff utilize cultural consultants who can help them work more eff ectively within a cultural context?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

35. Does your agency utilize interpreters to work with non-English speaking persons?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

36. Does your agency subscribe to publications (local or national) in order to stay abreast of the latest 

information about populations of color?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4
 92 Appendix D—Cultural Competence Self-assessment Questionnaire

37. Does staff have access to culturally related materials (e.g., books and videos)?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

38. Do you maintain a personal library with cultural resources?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

39. Does your agency staff regularly attend cross-cultural studies?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

40. Are agency staff encouraged to take ethnic studies courses?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

41. Do agency workspaces contain cultural artifacts?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

STAFFING

42. Are there people of color on the staff of your agency?

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

43. Are there people of color represented in...

 NONE1

 A FEW2 SOME3 MANY4

Administrative positions? 1 2 3 4

Direct service positions? 1 2 3 4

Administrative support 1 2 3 4

positions?

Operational support 1 2 3 4

positions?

Board positions? 1 2 3 4

Agency consultants? 1 2 3 4

Case consultants? 1 2 3 4

(Sub) contractors? 1 2 3 4

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 93

44. Does your agency...

 NEVER1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 REGULARLY4

Hire natural helpers or 1 2 3 4

other noncredentialed people

of color as professionals?

Hire practicum students 1 2 3 4

or interns of color?

Out-station staff in 1 2 3 4

communities of color? 

Hire bilingual staff ? 1 2 3 4

45. Does your agency prepare new staff to work with people of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

46. Does your agency provide training that helps staff work with people of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

47. Does your agency emphasize active recruitment of people of color?

 NONE1

 A LITTLE2 SOME3 A LOT4

48. How well has your agency been able to retain people of color on staff ?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

49. Does your agency staff routinely discuss barriers to working across cultures?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

50. Does your agency staff routinely discuss their feelings about working with consumers/coworkers of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

51. Does your agency staff routinely share practiced-based “success stories” involving people of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

52. Does your agency direct students of color towards careers in human service or related occupations?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

53. Does your agency convene or reward activities that promote learning new languages relevant to the 

communities of color that the agency serves?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

•

•

•

•
 94 Appendix D—Cultural Competence Self-assessment Questionnaire

SERVICE DELIVERY AND PRACTICE (FOR DIRECT SERVICE ONLY)

54. Are you familiar with limitations of mainstream diagnostic tools as applied to people of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

55. Do you discuss racial/cultural issues with consumers in the treatment process?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

56. Do you willingly share information with clients about your personal or professional background?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

57. Do you share some of your personal feelings with clients?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

58. Do you assess client acculturation or assimilation with respect to the mainstream culture?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

59. How well do you see cultural strengths and resources when planning services to clients of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

60. Do you use cultural references or historical accomplishments as a source of empowerment for people 

of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

61. Do you use treatment interventions that have been developed for populations of color? 

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

62. Do your treatment plans contain a cultural perspective (e.g., role of extended family, spiritual/religious 

beliefs, issues related to the formation of cultural identity) that acknowledges diff erent value systems of 

people of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

63. Do you advocate for quality-of-life issues (e.g., employment, housing, educational opportunities) identifi ed 

as important by communities of color in your service area?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

64. Are you familiar with the use of moderator variables?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 95

65. Do you use ethnographic interviewing as a technique to gather information that is more accurate?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

66. Do you use self-disclosure in the treatment process?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

67. Do you encourage the involvement of extended family members or signifi cant others in diagnosis, treatment 

planning, or evaluation of treatment?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

68. Do you see clients outside of your usual offi ce setting?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

69. Do you use clergy from the spiritual community to enhance services to people of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

70. Do you dismiss clients that come late for their appointments?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

71. Do you use consumer satisfaction measures to evaluate service delivery?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

72. Do you ensure that clients of color have transportation, child care, and other arrangements that facilitate 

access to your services?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4
 96 Appendix D—Cultural Competence Self-assessment Questionnaire

ORGANIZATION POLICY AND PROCEDURES

73. As a matter of formal policy, does your agency...

 NO CONSIDERING CURRENTLY POLICY IN 

 POLICY1

 POLICY2 WRITING PLACE4 

 FORMAL

 POLICY3

Use culture-specifi c 1 2 3 4

instruments for 

 diagnosis?

Use culture-specifi c 1 2 3 4 

treatment approaches?

Envision community 1 2 3 4

empowerment as a

 treatment goal?

Review case practice on a 1 2 3 4

 regular basis to determine

 relevancy to clients of 

 color?

Provide or facilitate child 1 2 3 4

 care?

Provide or facilitate 1 2 3 4

 transportation (e.g.,

 bus tickets, ride-

 sharing)?

Allow access after 1 2 3 4

regular business 

hours (e.g., through

message-beeper,

agreements with

crisis providers)?

Specifi cally consider 1 2 3 4

inservice plans?

Conduct outreach 1 2 3 4

to community-based 

organizazations, social 

service agencies,

natural helpers,

or extended families? 

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 97

 NO CONSIDERING CURRENTLY POLICY IN 

 POLICY1

 POLICY2 WRITING PLACE4 

 FORMAL

 POLICY3

Take referrals from 1 2 3 4

nontraditional sources? 

Translate agency 1 2 3 4

materials into 

languages that 

refl ect the linguistic

diversity in your

service area? 

Solicit input from 1 2 3 4

groups of color

with respect to

physical plant

location and

interior design? 

Advocate for a better 1 2 3 4

quality of life for

persons of color in 

addition to providing 

services?

74. In general, how well are policies communicated to agency staff ?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

75. Is information on ethnicity or culture of clients specifi cally recorded in your organization’s management 

information system?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

•

•

•

•
 98 Appendix D—Cultural Competence Self-assessment Questionnaire

REACHING OUT TO COMMUNITIES

76. How well do you ensure that communities of color are aware of your program and the services and resources 

you off er?

 NOT AT ALL1

 BARELY2 FAIRLY WELL3 VERY WELL4

77. Does your organization or agency reach out to...

 NEVER1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 REGULARLY4

Churches and other 1 2 3 4

places of worship,

clergy persons,

ministerial alliances,

or indigenous

religious leaders

in communities of

color?

Medicine people, 1 2 3 4

health clinics,

chiropractors,

naturopaths,

herbalists, or

midwives that

provide services in

communities of 

color?

Publishers, broadcast 1 2 3 4

or other media 

sources within

communities of 

color?

Formal entities that 1 2 3 4

provide services?

Cultural, racial, 1 2 3 4

or tribal organizations

where people of color

are likely to voice 

complaints or

issues?

Business alliances 1 2 3 4

or organizations

in communities

of color?

•

•

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 99

78. Are people of color depicted on agency brochures or other print media?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

79. Does your agency participate in cultural, political, religious, or other events or festivals sponsored by 

communities of color?

 NOT AT ALL1

 SELDOM2 SOMETIMES3 OFTEN4

The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 101

SIXTEEN THINGS FATHERS CAN DO TO SUPPORT THEIR PREGNANT PARTNERS

1. Go with your partner to her prenatal visits. Th e baby’s heart starts beating 22 days after conception, or 

the fi fth week of pregnancy, and you can hear it with an ultrasound anywhere between the seventh and 

twelfth weeks. 1

 During the second trimester, go with your partner if she needs an ultrasound. You can see 

the baby’s head, arms, hands, legs, and feet. You may even fi nd out the sex of the baby. During the third 

trimester, ask how you can help during the delivery.

2. Watch videotapes, listen to audiotapes, check out the Internet, or read books about prenatal development, 

birthing, and becoming a parent.

3. Help plan for the baby. Talk with your partner about what you both want for your baby. Ask friends and 

family members if you can borrow a crib, changing table, or baby clothes. Many people are glad to let you 

use their things. Save a little money each week. It will make it easier once the baby arrives.

4. Go to classes that will teach you and your partner about childbirth.

5. Help your partner stay healthy during pregnancy. Help her eat many diff erent foods. Watch what you eat 

too. If you eat right, you will make it easier for her. Help your partner stay away from alcohol. Alcohol 

can cause birth defects. Encourage her to drink juice or milk.

6. Help your partner stay away from street drugs. If you use illegal drugs, stop now, and if your partner uses 

them, get help for her. Also, encourage her to check with the doctor before taking any over-the-counter 

drugs or prescription drugs.

7. Make sure your partner stays away from dangerous household products. Strong cleansers, paint products, 

and insecticides can all harm your baby. Do not let her empty the cat litter box.

1

 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. (2005). Pregnancy [On-line]. Available: 

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/pregnancy.html#overviews; Kids Health for Parents (n.d.). Pregnancy calendar

[On-line]. Available: http://kidshealth.org/parent/pregnancy_calendar/week6.html and http://kidshealth.org/parent/

pregnancy_calendar/week9.html; Greenfi eld, M., MD. (2004) Hearing the fetal heartbeat [On-line]. Available: http://www.

drspock.com/article/0,1510,9851,00.html; EhealthMD.com. (2004). Is my pregnancy going well? [On-line]. Available: http://

yourmedicalsource.com/library/pregnancy/PGW_normal.html.

APPENDIX E

Tips for Dads
 102 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

8. Exercise during pregnancy. Walk or swim together. Both are safe exercises and provide time together.

9. Be sure your partner gets enough rest. Help with the household chores. Encourage her to use relaxation 

exercises and join in. Stress can be very harmful to both mother and baby. Talk out diff erences in a 

supportive way. If you fi nd yourself becoming angry and having diffi culty controlling negative feelings, seek 

out counseling. Never use physical force, intimidation, belittling comments, or other abusive behaviors. 

Th ese are not productive for any relationship and are especially harmful during pregnancy.

10. Understand the diff erent changes both you and your partner are going through as you prepare for 

parenthood. Pregnancy causes many changes in how a woman feels about how her body is changing. You 

can still have sex. Talk to each other about what feels good.

11. Support your partner’s choice on how to feed the baby. Breast milk is best for the baby. If mom chooses 

bottle feeding, you can often take over the feeding of the baby and give mom a rest. Even if breast feeding, 

mom can pump milk into a bottle, which will allow your participation in the feeding of the baby.

12. To attach with your baby, take time to learn about the developmental stages and how nutrition, lifestyles, 

and stress can aff ect prenatal growth. Listen to your child’s heartbeat, feel the kicks. From the second 

trimester on, you can play the “tapping” game. Each time the mother feels the unborn baby kick, you can 

respond by tapping her stomach in the same area. Th e unborn baby quickly learns this “call and response” 

game. Talk and sing to your baby. Direct positive thoughts and loving feelings to your unborn child. 

Visualize yourself holding, touching, rocking, or talking to your child. Th ink about the kind of father you 

want to be to your child.

13. Find an infant massage class and attend with your partner. Infant massage is a wonderful way to soothe a 

baby.

14. Learn how to bathe, feed, diaper, hold, and comfort a baby. All of these activities will build a father’s 

confi dence and enhance bonding with the child.

15. Find a “New Fathers” support group or talk to other men who have had or are going to have new babies. 

Share feelings, ideas on supporting the pregnant mom, and tips to make sure you are taking care of 

yourself.

16. As soon as the baby is born, hold the baby and look into the baby’s eyes. If you talked to the baby before he or she 

was born, speak to him or her at birth, then he or she will probably recognize your voice.

Prevent Child Abuse America. (n.d.). Th ings fathers can do to support their pregnant partner. Chicago, IL: Author.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 103

TIPS FOR DADS: CARING FOR NEW MOMS

Th e fi rst few weeks home with a new baby are often a gauntlet of doubt, sleep deprivation, and frustration, with 

sporadic moments of joy when the baby goes to sleep. It gets a lot better. It is generally worse for Mom. She 

is recovering from birth and a C-section, riding an emotional and physical roller coaster, trying to breast-feed 

a screaming infant she may believe she is starving, and has little experienced help. 

Life as she knew it has evaporated. Her traditional support structure is gone. She feels trapped and often is physically 

attached. Under the best of circumstances, she may get no more than a few hours rest a day. Exhausted and overwhelmed, 

as well as due to her “maternal instinct,” she is expected to also know and do all the baby needs. Talk about a setup!

Th e following is standard advice for fathers for the fi rst week at home: 

Quickly learn to change diapers, burp, and calm your crying baby by jumping in from the start. Show 

mom she can count on you.

Coordinate any help. Obtain what is needed from family, friends, or neighbors, and make sure it is 

actually helpful.

Keep necessary resources available, including phone numbers of doctors, the hospital, and helpful books, 

and use them.

Tell her she is doing great and will be a wonderful mom.

Help her get some sleep, and try to get some yourself. 

Mom also may think she inherently is supposed to know it all, but may feel overwhelmed and lost.

Reassure her that you are in it together, and you will get through it together. Be positive, constructive, 

encouraging, and help build her confi dence.

Pitch in as much as possible. In the middle of the night when the baby is crying and both of you are dead 

tired, reach deep and fi nd the strength to get up and handle the baby. Sleep will do her good.

On occasion, when your baby is calm, remind her of the miracle that she brought into your world. Together, 

check out your baby’s fi ngers, toes, and nose, and talk of the future—your child’s fi rst date, fi rst day at 

school, and of course, the fi rst time he sleeps through the night.

Some new moms totally thrive like they were born to be a mom. Some babies sleep through the night right off 

and rarely cry. If so, enjoy, but do not count on it. Be aware that “natural” moms and calm babies need just as 

much from dad, so do not be left out.

More than any other issue, veteran dads stress the importance of taking care of new moms. When you are dog 

tired and perhaps taking heat for not being perfect, being magnanimous with mom can be trying. Down the 

road, however, when you look back, you will want to know you were up to it, and you will want her to know 

too. Often the little things count the most. “Nice job, Mom” when your baby goes to sleep after being fussy. 

Th e impromptu backrub that feels good and leaves mom feeling loved and appreciated. 

Boot Camp for New Dads. (2003). Caring for new moms [On-line]. Available: http://www.newdads.com/CaringMom.htm.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•
 104 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

TROUBLESHOOTER’S GUIDE TO CRYING BABIES

It is the middle of the night, 1 hour after his last feeding, and he has been crying for 10 minutes for no apparent 

reason. Mom is exhausted and may lose it. You have to go to work early. 

It is time to earn your spurs, Dad. Th ink troubleshooter’s guide. A practical, proactive approach is in order. Proven 

at Boot Camp, this guide employs the same approach used in fi xing cars, computers, or other mechanical items.

What do you do? 

To deduce the cause of his crying, develop a mental list of why your baby cries. Being hungry will be at the 

top of the list, followed by tired. All lists will be as diff erent as babies are, but think gas, wet diaper, rash, 

constipation, hot, cold, just wants to be held, or burped—and add new issues as they develop.

Keep trying solutions like you do when troubleshooting a car that will not start. Check the gas, battery, 

starter, spark plugs, and so on. As long as you are proactively testing solutions, you will minimize anxiety 

and frustration, which tend to upset babies.

When you fi nish your baby’s regular list, keep checking. Th e new nipple on his bottle may not have a hole 

or a sharp edge of the tape on his diaper may be poking him.

When you have tried everything and nothing worked, go back to the second item on the list—tired. After 

30 minutes of crying, your baby is going to be overtired, and putting her to sleep will be challenging.

Of course, if at any point you suspect your baby may need medical attention, call a doctor. Th is advice comes 

from pediatricians, who say you should be on the safe side. Check your resources for indications.

Here are some tips for calming crying babies from veteran dads: 

Do not take the crying personally. 

Go for a walk. Babies often love the motion of a stroller or riding in a backpack, pouch, or sling. 

A taut tummy or kicking legs may indicate gas pain. Bicycle her legs, gently rub her tummy, or lay him 

across your lap with one leg under his tummy and pat his back. 

Try tag team parenting with mom. Taking turns is much better than both of you up all night together. 

Give mom a break and do not have her pop the baby on her breast every time he whimpers. Develop 

alternate techniques. 

Invest in a baby swing. 

Once you get her to sleep, use a heating pad to warm her bedding (remove before putting baby in crib) so 

the shock of cold sheets does not wake her up. 

Rhythmic motion and background noise also help lull babies to sleep. Try the vacuum, car rides, music at 

a low volume, or the washer or dryer.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 105

Th ere may be times when walking your crying baby for hours is the only alternative. Babies can be tough, some 

much more than others. Even the worst cases of colic will pass, and, while the memories of the tough times 

may never be fond, a dad will always know that he was there when he was needed. Th is feeling is the basis for 

a very strong relationship as one’s child grows. Hang in there. 

Boot Camp for New Dads. (2003). Troubleshooting for crying [On-line]. Available: http://www.newdads.com/troubleshooter.htm.
 106 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

TEN WAYS TO BE A BETTER DAD

1. Respect Your Children’s Mother

One of the best things a father can do for his children is to respect their mother. If you are married, keep 

your marriage strong and vital. If you are not married, it is still important to respect and support the mother 

of your children. A father and mother who respect each other and let their children know it provide a secure 

environment for them. When children see their parents respecting each other, they are more likely to feel that 

they are also accepted and respected.

2. Spend Time with Your Children

How a father spends his time tells his children what is important to him. If you always seem too busy for your 

children, they will feel neglected no matter what you say. Treasuring children often means sacrifi cing other 

things, but it is essential to spend time with your children. Kids grow up so quickly. Missed opportunities are 

lost forever.

3. Earn the Right to Be Heard

All too often, the only time a father speaks to his children is when they have done something wrong. Th at is 

why so many children cringe when their mother says, “Your father wants to talk with you.” Begin talking with 

your kids when they are very young so that diffi cult subjects will be easier to handle as they get older. Take 

time and listen to their ideas and problems.

4. Discipline with Love

All children need guidance and discipline, not as punishment, but to set reasonable limits. Remind your 

children of the consequences of their actions and provide meaningful rewards for desirable behavior. Fathers 

who discipline in a calm and fair manner show love for their children.

5. Be a Role Model

Fathers are role models to their kids whether they realize it or not. A girl who spends time with a loving father 

grows up knowing she deserves to be treated with respect by boys, and what to look for in a husband. Fathers 

can teach sons what is important in life by demonstrating honesty, humility, and responsibility.

6. Be a Teacher

Too many fathers think teaching is something others do, but a father who teaches his children about right and 

wrong, and encourages them to do their best, will see his children make good choices. Involved fathers use 

everyday examples to help their children learn the basic lessons of life.

7. Eat Together as a Family

Sharing a meal together (breakfast, lunch, or dinner) can be an important part of healthy family life. In 

addition to providing some structure in a busy day, it gives kids the chance to talk about what they are doing 

and want to do. It is also a good time for fathers to listen and give advice. Most importantly, it is a time for 

families to be together each day.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 107

8. Read to Your Children

In a world where television often dominates the lives of children, it is important that fathers make the eff ort 

to read to their children. Children learn best by doing and reading, as well as seeing and hearing. Begin 

reading to your children when they are very young. When they are older, encourage them to read on their 

own. Instilling your children with a love for reading is one of the best ways to ensure they will have a lifetime 

of personal and career growth.

9. Show Aff ection

Children need the security that comes from knowing they are wanted, accepted, and loved by their family. 

Parents, especially fathers, need to feel both comfortable and willing to hug their children. Showing aff ection 

everyday is the best way to let your children know that you love them.

10. Realize Th at a Father’s Job Is Never Done

Even after children are grown and ready to leave home, they still look to their fathers for wisdom and advice. 

Whether it is continued schooling, a new job, or a wedding, fathers continue to play an essential part in the 

lives of their children as they grow and, perhaps, marry and build their own families.

National Fatherhood Initiative. (n.d.). 10 ways to be a better dad [On-line]. Available: http://www.fatherhood.org/tenways.htm.
 108 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

TIPS FOR DADS: PRACTICAL TIPS FOR KNOWING YOUR CHILD—NONTRIVIAL QUESTIONS

It is amazing what things men commit to memory, for example, key statistics for the Atlanta Braves or Chicago 

Bulls, specifi cations for next year’s Corvette, or lyrics to songs from 20 years ago. However, how many dads can 

answer even simple questions about their children, who are as important as anyone or anything in their lives?

Here are some questions fathers can ask their children. Some may be easy, some are not, but this is not just 

trivia. Th ese questions provide a marker for how aware a father is of his child and his or her world. A healthy 

awareness will help in so many areas of fathering. It can be as simple as going out for a soda and asking about 

his child’s friends at school and what they like to do together. Th is should not turn this into an interrogation. 

A child can tell whether the questioner is genuinely interested or simply collecting data that may be used 

against him or her later. It is simply to get to know more about the various aspects of the child’s life. Some 

examples of appropriate questions include:

Who is your child’s all-time hero?

What is your child’s most prized possession?

Who is his or her best friend?

What causes your child to lose sleep?

What were your child’s greatest achievements and disappointments in the last year?

What is your child’s favorite meal?

What would your child like to do when he or she grows up? 

If your child had $20 to spend, what would he or she buy?

What does your child most like to do with you?

What is the most important thing you need to discuss with your child in the next 6 months?

Even for the most aware fathers, these questions may serve as a wake-up call. After asking such questions, a 

father may decide he needs to sit down with his child and fi nd out more about what makes him or her tick. It 

could lead to a great discussion about who he or she is and hopes to become. Fathers also should listen to their 

child’s friends, teachers, coaches, and, especially, their mothers. All of these people see a diff erent side of the 

child, and they will give dads insights they would have never noticed on their own.

Canfi eld, K. (n.d.). Practical tips for knowing your child [On-line]. Available: http://www.fathers.com/articles/articles.

asp?id=103&cat=23.

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The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 109

TWENTY LONG DISTANCE ACTIVITIES FOR DADS AT A DISTANCE

Th e Dads at a Distance Web site has been designed to help fathers who are business travelers, military men, 

noncustodial fathers, airline pilots, travel guides, traveling salesmen, railroad workers, truckers, professional 

athletes, musicians/entertainers, actors, corporate executives, and any other fathers who have to be away from 

their children to maintain and strengthen the relationships they have with their children while they are away. 

1. Go to the mall and have a photo of yourself put on a pillow case and then send it to your child. If you have 

a favorite cologne, you might want to put a little bit on the pillowcase to remind your child of you. 

2. Purchase or make stickers of your child’s name and stick them over the names of a character in one of their 

favorite books. You also can get a picture of your child’s face and place it over the character’s face. 

3. Make a video or audiotape of you reading bedtime stories. Send them to your child along with the book. 

4. Arrange for fl owers or pizza to be delivered to your child before or after a special event (e.g., a play, recital, 

or sports game). Include a note telling them how proud you are of their accomplishment. 

5. Send a package containing all the things your child will need if he or she gets sick. For example, you could 

send a can of chicken noodle soup, a special blanket or pillowcase, a video or audiotape wishing them a 

speedy recovery, crossword puzzles, or a stuff ed animal. 

6. Send home a photo documentary of what you do all day when you are away. Be sure to include things like 

what you eat and how you travel. Th ings that you might think are boring, your kids will be very interested 

in seeing. Have your child do the same. 

7. Have a star offi cially named after your child. 

8. Send a postcard attack. (Send a postcard everyday for a week straight; try to send postcards from unique 

places.) 

9. If both you and your child have access to cell phones, then go fi shing with them from a distance. 

10. Include surprises within your letters: fast food wrappers, foreign currency, pencil shavings, coasters, BandAids, your own art, fl ower petals, Sunday comics, sand, fortunes from cookies, newspaper clippings, 

stamps, or old shoe laces.

11. If both you and your child have access to the Internet, then go on a virtual fi eld trip together. Be sure to use 

a chat program so you can communicate with each other while looking at the Web sites. A couple of places 

to start would be NASA’s Web site at http://www.nasa.gov or the PBS Web site at http://www.pbs.org. 

12. Find unique things to write your letters on, for example, things your child likes—a favorite color of paper, 

stickers, or pictures of things they like; fun objects—coaster, napkins, paper tray liners at restaurants, 

air sickness bags, old handkerchiefs, or pictures of you or of favorite spots; paper cut into special shapes 

(holiday shapes like shamrocks or hearts); or puzzles (cut your fi nished letter into pieces; try sending one 

piece at a time). 
 110 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

13. Send home some money so that your child can go to the ice cream parlor. Be sure to send a special letter 

along that can only be read at the ice cream parlor. If you both have access to cell phones, then you can 

both be at a ice cream parlor talking over your ice cream. 

14. Write a newsletter (have a regular issue of your own family newsletter with columns about each child, 

family events, and exciting news). 

15. If your child does not already have access to a speakerphone, then buy one. Set the phone in the middle of 

the room, and you will be able to have dinner with them, be there as they brush their teeth, and get ready 

for bed.

16. Start a letter and take it with you throughout the day. Add a sentence every now and then and be sure to 

add where you are when you write the diff erent sentences (i.e., an elevator, taxi, or café).

17. Play Internet games together like Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune. Other games that can be found on the 

Internet include golf, card games, chess, checkers, and strategy games.

18. Make a package that contains cookie cutters and the non-perishable ingredients of your child’s favorite 

cookie so you can “help” them bake while you are away. 

19. Choose a photo from your photo album that you can send to your child and then write a letter explaining 

the events surrounding it. Also, if both you and your child have access to the Internet, have a family 

home page. 

20. Begin a life’s lessons booklet. Each week write down a few of the lessons you have learned in life and 

how you learned those lessons. When the booklet is full, send it to your child to use as he or she begins 

or continues the journey of life.

Before you leave home next time, hide some treasure (notes of appreciation, videos of you reading stories, 

candy, or toys) around the house. Be sure to draw a treasure map of where you have hidden these things, 

and then mail it home. If your child has a portable phone, then you can talk to them and give hints as 

they hunt for the treasure. If you are not living with your child, you can still do this activity by mailing 

the treasures ahead of time to the person who is taking care of your child.

More activities and resources for long distance dads and their families can be found at Dads at a Distance Web site at 

http://www.daads.com.

Th e National Long Distance Relationship Building Institute. (2001). 20 long distance activities for dads at a distance [On-line].

Available: www.daads.com/fathering.html.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 111

TEN WAYS TO STAY INVOLVED WITH YOUR CHILDREN DURING DEPLOYMENT

Most of us do not want to think about deployment. After all, it means time away from those we love! Th e fact 

is that military families do separate, and deployment can be tough when not prepared for it. Here are 10 great 

tips that can help you and your family to make it through deployment. 

1. Be Creative

Today’s military off ers many ways to stay connected: video and cassette tapes, video conferencing, phone calls, 

postcards, letters, e-mail and Web sites, just to name a few. Use the ones that work best for you, and use them 

often!

2. Put a “Message in a Bottle”

Before you leave, write as many short messages to your children as possible and put them in a large jar, can, or 

box. Tell your child to pull out one message a day while you are gone. 

3. Draw Pictures for Your Children

Your kids will love to receive your drawings. Everyone can draw. Th e best part is that your kids will love your 

artwork, even if you do not. So, take a pencil, some paper, and spend 5 minutes drawing a simple picture of 

you and your child. Th en give it to them. You will make their day.

4. Record Helpful Phone Numbers

Th e parent who stays home will need to know who to call in a crisis. Even when it is not a crisis, it is easier 

to have a phone list handy to avoid fumbling for it while the kids are screaming. Make the list before you are 

deployed. If you are already deployed, encourage the other parent that stays home to do it. 

5. Get Your House in Order

Take care of fi nancial, medical, and legal needs before you leave. Create a deployment spending plan for the 

family and decide which parent will pay the monthly bills during deployment. It might make sense to have two 

checking accounts, one for the parent who stays home and one for the deployed parent. Make sure your family 

knows how to use its medical insurance and to get legal aid from the military. Create a Family Care Plan, 

off ered by the military. It describes how your family will want fi nancial, medical, and legal aff airs handled 

during deployment. 

6. Prepare for Changes in Your Children 

Th e biggest complaint many military fathers have about deployment is the changes that they will miss in their 

children. Th ey might miss their fi rst steps, fi rst words, or fi rst birthday. One way to accept the changes is to stay 

connected as much as possible during deployment so the changes will not overwhelm you when you return. 

7. Learn the Basics of Child Development

Even though your children will change while you are away, they will do so in regular and predictable ways. 

Take the time to learn the basics of child development. If you know what your children will be able to do and 

not do when you return, you will know what to expect. Suppose you return to a 6-month-old daughter and 
 112 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

expect that she can eat with a spoon. You might be disappointed when she grabs a handful of mashed carrots 

with her fi st instead. Armed with knowledge about how children develop, you will know that it will take 

another 6 months before your princess’ table manners improve. 

8. Allow Your Children to Ask Questions and Express Fears 

Th e world can be a scary place. It is your job to keep your kids safe. Kids these days not only have to deal with 

the boogey man and monsters in the closet, they worry about things they see on the evening news, in the paper, 

and in real life. War, crime, and disease seem to be the main topics these days. Deployment also can scare and 

worry kids. Before and after you leave, talk with your children calmly and reassure them that everything is 

okay. Allow them to ask questions and express fears about anything. Th is will comfort your children.

9. Get Help if You Need It 

If you need help during deployment, it is available. Th ere are all kinds of help for all kinds of problems. You 

are not alone. Do you have the blues or feel depressed? Do you need a baby-sitter because you are up to your 

neck in kids? Are you in a deep crisis and need spiritual guidance? Regardless of your need, there are people 

who can help. Check your local phone book for counselors, parenting classes, spiritual leaders, recreational 

outlets, swimming pools, suicide hotlines, social organizations, gyms, libraries, and more. Th e military has 

many activities for families, from outdoor events to basketball leagues to private counseling. It is all at your 

fi ngertips. If nothing else, call a relative or an old friend. Reach out for help...for your children’s sake.

10. Remember Your Sacrifi ce for Country and Family

It is no surprise: Parents give up a lot for their children. Military parents give up more than most. Th ey give 

up personal time, family time, and stable home lives. Who benefi ts from your sacrifi ce? Your family, your 

neighbors, and all Americans! Talk with your kids about the meaning of this sacrifi ce. It will make it easier for 

them to handle being away from you.

For more on dealing with family issues during deployment, please visit the Health Parenting Initiative: Information 

for Military Personnel and Th eir Families Web site at http://www.mfrc-dodqol.org/healthyparenting/

deployment.cfm.

National Fatherhood Initiative. (2002). 10 ways to stay involved with your children during deployment [On-line]. Available: http://www.

fatherhood.org/military-fams.htm.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 113

ADVICE TO NONRESIDENTIAL FATHERS

1. Respect the mother of your children.

Regardless of their feelings for the mother of their children, fathers need to treat her with respect—for the 

sake of their children. Children are happier and feel more secure when their parents get along. Fathers should 

ignore negative comments, compliment the mother when they can, and keep the lines of communication open. 

Fathers should try to seek common ground with mothers around common goals for their children, and they 

should never criticize their children’s mother in front of their children.

2. Keep your promises.

Children who have endured divorce or the breakup of a parental relationship often feel abandoned and 

distrustful of the adults in their lives. Nonresidential fathers need to be careful to nurture or restore their 

children’s faith in adults and in them, in particular. Hence, they need to keep the promises they make to their 

children. If this means promising their children less, fi ne, but fathers need to earn their children’s trust by 

keeping their word.

3. Do not be a “Disneyland Dad.”

Nonresidential fathers are often tempted to play “Disneyland Dad,” that is, to spend virtually all the time they 

have with their children in fun activities. “Disneyland Dads” miss opportunities to help their children grow in 

virtue; they also miss chances to get to know their children in their ordinary lives. Nonresidential fathers need 

to challenge their children to grow in virtue and they also need to spend time doing ordinary things with them. 

Th ey need to help their children with homework, to have them do chores around their home, and to tuck them 

into bed on a school night. Generally, they will discover much more about their children amidst the ordinary 

struggles of daily life than they will eating popcorn with their children in a darkened movie theater. 

4. Stay in regular contact.

Nonresidential fathers should stay in regular contact with their children. If they live locally, they should be 

faithful about seeing their children on a given day. If they do not live close by or are incarcerated, they should 

be faithful about calling or sending a letter or email to their children on a weekly basis. Children thrive on 

maintaining regular contact with their fathers. Th is advice holds even for teenagers, who may have to be asked 

to make sacrifi ces in their social or sports schedules to keep up with their fathers. In the end, maintaining the 

father-child bond is more important than a missed game or movie with friends.

5. Do not be soft on your kids.

Nonresidential fathers often feel like they should go easy on their children when it comes to discipline. Given 

the brevity of father-child visits, many fathers do not want to alienate their children by disciplining them for 

misbehavior, but this is a big mistake. Children will take advantage of their fathers’ laxity by pushing the 

behavioral envelope even more. Nonresidential fathers should be fi rm, consistent disciplinarians with their 

children, even if that means that one or two visits are spent largely on discipline. In the long-term, children 

who are disciplined well are better behaved and more respectful of their fathers than children who are given a 

free reign.
 114 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

6. Take care of your children fi nancially.

Nonresidential fathers need to take at least partial responsibility for the fi nancial welfare of their children. 

Children who receive regular fi nancial support from their fathers do better educationally and are more confi dent 

that their father is there for them and their family. Th ey should pay child support on time and be fl exible 

enough to help their children when unforeseen expenses come up. If possible, they should tell their adolescents 

that they will help pay for college or vocational training. If employment or child support is a problem, fathers 

should contact a local fatherhood program to get help with job-skills, job placement, and addressing any 

outstanding child support they may owe.

Note: Th is advice draws on educational material from Th e Children’s Trust Fund of Massachusetts, Th e National Fatherhood 

Initiative, the National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families, and the National Center for Fathering.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 115

TIPS FROM A FATHER IN PRISON

Th e following is a list of suggestions that you can use to maintain the attachment to your children from inside 

a prison.

1. Even if your relationship with the mother of your children is over, you need to establish and maintain 

a positive relationship with her. For the sake of your children, try to fi nd ways to connect with her 

respectfully.

2. Do not expect big changes right away from your family members. Take your time.

3. Find out about policies regarding how you can connect with your child—visitation, letters, telephone calls, 

and audiotapes. Ask your prison chaplain, counselor, or other staff .

4. Develop a plan and follow it on how often you will connect with your child.

5. When explaining to your children why you are not living with them, be honest but respect their ability to 

understand it according to their age.

6. When telling your children how important they are to you, do not be surprised if they do not respond the 

way you want them to. Children are often angry that you did something wrong that prevents you from 

being with them.

7. To establish and maintain your family relationships, be ready to make amends and apologize to them.

8. Find ways to support your children emotionally, fi nancially, and spiritually as much as possible.

9. Your family and children need to be able to rely on you if you say you will call or write regularly, so be 

consistent in your approach and contact schedule.

10. Be realistic about goals and expectations. Do not expect too much, too soon from them.

11. Remember family celebrations, special occasions, and cultural events. If you have a hobby or crafts at 

prison, make gifts or draw pictures and make them into a coloring book.

12. If at all possible, purchase small items for your children through the commissary or mail order catalogs.

13. Use your time constructively. Get your GED, or take parenting classes, anger management, adult 

continuing education classes, anything that betters yourself.

14. Some prisons allow you to purchase and make video or audiotapes. Use these to tell stories, share memories, 

and bedtime stories. Have your children listen to it when they miss you.

15. Before your release date, clear up any legal problems that may be pending such as your driving record, 

credit problems, or child support.

16. Your children might not know how to say exactly what they are feeling and thinking, so be patient with 

them.
 116 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

17. Make a realistic plan and follow through, no matter how bad things get, when re-connecting with your 

children after you are released from jail.

18. While you are still in prison, research programs that might help you reach your goals once released. Seek 

out programs about parenting, housing, jobs, legal problems, or credit problems.

19. Work with other prison fathers trying to connect with their children from inside prison.

20. Get some counseling from the appropriate staff (psychologist, chaplain, case manager, correctional 

counselor).

21. Th ink about how you want to be a parent and your future as a dad and make decisions about that future. 

Look at your own relationship with your dad to see what was learned, good and bad.

22. Go to the prison library, take the time to read what you can to try to learn about being a better dad. Try 

to read as much as you can about father/child relationships.

23. Check out some of the other resources in the Incarcerated Fathers Library.

For more help for incarcerated parents and their families, please visit the Family and Corrections Network at 

http://www.fcnetwork.org.

Carlin, M. (2002). Tips from a father in prison [On-line]. Available: http://www.fcnetwork.org/library/p10TipsFromAFather.html.
The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children 117

Parenting can be rewarding, but it also can be a diffi cult and demanding responsibility. Particularly with 

all of the demands facing busy families, it perhaps is not surprising that children tend to thrive best in two 

parent households, providing that it is not a high-confl ict marriage. Th ere are numerous factors that can impact 

a healthy marriage, but those factors should be assessed diff erently for diff erent populations. For instance, the 

challenges and concerns of couples with a partner away on a military deployment or because of incarceration 

are diff erent than those of a couple living together. In addition, it is important to recognize that couples do 

not either have a healthy marriage or not—healthy marriages exist in varying degrees along a continuum. Th e 

quality of the marriage and the contentment of each person involved are likely to vary over time.1

Th ere is a growing consensus that it is not just marriage in and of itself that matters, but healthy marriage.2 

Th ere are 10 components instrumental in building a healthy marriage, based on decades of research on marriage 

and the perspectives of researchers working in the fi eld.

1. Commitment of the couple—taking a long-term perspective toward the relationship, being willing to 

persevere when diffi culties arise, and committing to caring for the other person.

2. Satisfaction—being contented and happy with various aspects of and with the marriage overall.

3. Communication—involving just not the sheer volume of communication in the marriage, but also the 

quality and nature of it.

4. Confl ict resolution—having the ability to address and resolve confl ict that can otherwise undermine the 

relationship.

5. Lack of domestic violence—experiencing confl ict is a normal part of marriage, but physical assaults and 

psychological abuse are markers of an unhealthy marriage.

6. Fidelity—being faithful to one’s spouse is an important component and many relationships do not survive 

this betrayal of trust.

7. Interaction and time together—having positive interactions and enjoying time together is as important as 

the amount of time spent together.

1

 McLanahan, S., & Sandefur, G. (1994); Amato, P. R. (2000); Coleman, M., et al. (2000); Amato, P. R., et al. (1995); Jekielek, 

S. M. (1998). 2

 Horn, W. F. (2003, September). 

APPENDIX F

Healthy Marriages
 118 Appendix E—Tips for Dads

8. Intimacy and emotional support—experiencing feelings of trust, caring, and love, as well as physical 

aff ection, represent important dimensions of a healthy marriage.

9. Commitment to children—being committed to the development and well-being of all children born to or 

adopted by either spouse is an important element for couples with children.

10. Duration and legal marital status—remaining married, as long as it is not characterized by violence or high 

confl ict, contributes to the stability of the children and family.3

3

 Straus, M. A. (1992). Sociological research and social policy: Th e case of family violence. Sociological Forum, 7(2), 211–238; 

Straus, M. A., & Gelles, R. J. (1990). Physical violence in American families: Risk factors and adaptations to violence in 8,145 

families. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers; Smock, P. J., & Manning, W. D. (2003). Th e conceptualization 

and measurement of relationship quality: Insights from a qualitative study of cohabiting young adults. Unpublished memo 

commissioned by Child Trends. Washington, DC; Amato, P. R., et al. (1995).
To view or obtain copies of other manuals in this series, contact the 

National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information at:

800-FYI-3366

nccanch@caliber.com

http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/profess/tools/usermanual.cfm