1. Influences on Fathers' Information- and Support-Seeking for Parenting.
- Author
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Wade, Catherine, Matthews, Jan, Forbes, Faye, Burn, Mathew, May, Fiona, and Cann, Warren
- Subjects
PSYCHOLOGY of fathers ,MENTAL health ,CHILDREN with disabilities ,SELF-efficacy ,STATISTICAL significance ,RESEARCH funding ,INTERVIEWING ,LOGISTIC regression analysis ,HELP-seeking behavior ,PARENTING ,ANXIETY ,DESCRIPTIVE statistics ,SURVEYS ,ODDS ratio ,INFORMED consent (Medical law) ,SOCIAL support ,CONFIDENCE intervals ,DATA analysis software ,INFORMATION-seeking behavior ,MENTAL depression - Abstract
The study aimed to document the preferences of fathers in accessing and using parenting supports and to investigate the influence of a range of family contextual factors including paternal mental health, child disability, the co-parenting relationship and parenting sense of efficacy on fathers' help-seeking. Participants included a representative sample of 1,044 fathers of zero- to 18-year-olds. Results suggest that most fathers feel supported in their parenting role and rely on their own efforts (e.g. online searches) for information to support their parenting in preference to in-person interactions with professionals or attendance at groups. The co-parenting relationship and paternal mental health were also identified as important factors impacting on paternal help-seeking behaviours. These results from one of the largest surveys of fathers of its kind provide credible insights into the parenting help-seeking experiences and support needs of fathers, with clear implications for policy makers and service providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
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