3-178 - Fathering from a distance: New modes of contact and implications for father-child relationships

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Communication between fathers and children promotes high-quality relationships and a feeling of efficacy among parents. However, much of the prior work has focused on residential fathers and their children with less attention to modes of communication and quality of the relationships between fathers and children who are separated from each other. In the current panel, we share results from four studies of “fathering at a distance” which examine ways of maintaining quality relationships with children in four unique separation circumstances: non-custodial fathers, incarcerated fathers, fathers deployed in the military, and transnational fathers (i.e., fathers who live in the United States while their children live in Mexico). There are common themes among these father–child circumstances as well as some distinctive differences that promote and compromise parent-child communication. For example, non-custodial fathers may have regular access to their children while the other three types may not, and both transnational and military-deployed fathers may reside in different countries than their children. Incarcerated fathers may have legal restrictions placed on their contact with their children. In this panel, we examine the modes of communication used by fathers to bridge the distance between themselves and their children and how fathers feel about their circumstances and their relationships with their children. By bringing attention to these distance-based father–child relationships, we can broaden our understanding of fathering and potentially develop strategies to improve father–child ties when face-to face contact is limited.

Sub Unit

• Family Context & Processes

Chairs

• Ross D Parke, University of California - Riverside

• Jeff Cookston, San Francisco State University

Individual Presentations

• Conceptualizing and Measuring Low Income, Nonresident Fathers’ Contact with Children - Presenting Author: Jay Fagan, Temple University; Rebecca Kaufman, Temple University; Justin Dyer, Brigham Young University

• Fatherhood at a Distance: Just Beginning Program for Incarcerated Teen Fathers - Presenting Author: Rachel Barr, Georgetown Psychology; Hannah Ayasse, Georgetown University; Mary Troxel, Georgetown University; Carole Shauffer, Youth Law Center, San Fransisco, CA; Jennifer Rodriguez, Youth Law Center, San Fransisco, CA; Terry Harrak, Youth Law Center, San Fransisco, CA; Benjamin Richeda, Youth Law Center, San Fransisco, CA; Fred Butcher, Department of Social Work, Cleveland, OH

• Transnational Fathers (& Mothers): Modes of contact and parent-child relationships - Presenting Author: Jeff Cookston, San Francisco State University; Chase Boyer, San Francisco State University; Eric Vega, La Sierra University; Ross D Parke, University of California - Riverside