Pop's Culture

Executive Summary

A telephone survey of 701 American men selected to be representative of American fathers age 18 and older with at least one biological or adopted child (not a stepchild) under the age of 18 yielded the following findings: 

1. Ninety-one percent of the respondents agreed that there is a father-absence crisis in the country, but strong agreement varied considerably among the different kinds of respondents, being relatively low among the very young, the less religious, and those in high-income households.

3. Only slightly more than half of the fathers agreed, and less than a fourth "strongly agreed," that they felt adequately prepared for fatherhood when they first became fathers. Although 78 percent agreed that they now have the necessary skills and knowledge to be good fathers, only a third "strongly agreed."

4. A summary index of the conditions that the respondents perceived to be obstacles to good fathering revealed substantial differences among the different kinds of fathers. Among those who perceived the greatest obstacles were those not married to the mothers of their "focal child" (the child selected for special attention by the survey), those who did not live with that child, those who had one or more stepchildren, and older fathers in low-income households.

5. When the respondents were asked which of eight possible sources of help they had drawn upon to be a better father, "wife, partner, or child’s mother" was most frequently chosen (by 89 percent of the respondents), followed by "other fathers or men," their own mother, and then their own father. About half had received help from a place of worship, and only 29 percent had sought help from a professional person.

6. Among the respondents as a whole, "work responsibilities" was most frequently given as an obstacle to being a good father, with 47 percent saying that it was "a great deal" or "somewhat" of an obstacle. "The media/popular culture" and "financial problems" ranked next. The fathers not married to the mother of the "focal child" reported resistance and lack of cooperation from that mother to be the most important obstacle to their being good fathers, followed by "work responsibilities," "financial problems," and "treatment of fathers by the courts."

7. Sixty-seven percent of the respondents agreed that the government should do more to help and support fathers, but strong agreement that more government assistance is needed was relatively infrequent among "very religious" respondents and those in higher income households. In contrast, African American fathers were very favorable toward government assistance.

8. A small majority of the respondents agreed with statements that fathers are replaceable by mothers (53 percent) and by other men (57 percent), although very few "strongly agreed" with the statements. Those most likely to agree that fathers are replaceable were the respondents with little education, but those with graduate degrees also were relatively likely to agree that other persons can be adequate substitutes for fathers. The "very religious" fathers were less likely than the less religious ones to think that fathers are replaceable.

9. Fathers of infants and very young children did not differ much from one another in their reported activities with their offspring, but fathers of older children and adolescents reported considerably more activities with their "focal child" if they lived with that child, were well-educated, and did not have a stepchild or stepchildren.

10. Respondents who did not live with their "focal child" were much more likely than other fathers to say that they did not spend enough time with that child and that they did not feel very close to that child. More surprising, respondents who had a stepchild or stepchildren under age 18 reported feeling distinctly less close to their own focal child than did other fathers regardless of whether or not they lived with their focal child. How close the respondents felt to their focal child varied inversely with the age of that child, that is, on average they felt closest to infants and very young children and least close to teenagers.

11. Ninety-nine percent of the fathers agreed that being a father was a very important part of who they are, and 94 percent "strongly agreed." At a minimum, these findings indicate a strong social norm that being a father should be a crucial aspect of a father’s identity.

To see the full report go to: http://www.fatherhood.org/downloadable_files/PopsCulture_FatherAttitude.pdf