Jay Fagan - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Jay Fagan

Research paper thumbnail of Mother and father involvement in day care centers serving infants and young toddlers

Early Child Development and Care, 1994

This study compared the involvement of 28 mothers and their spouses in day care centers serving i... more This study compared the involvement of 28 mothers and their spouses in day care centers serving infants and toddlers. The sample consisted of parents who work at varying distances from the center. Parents were interviewed ten times each to determine the amount of time they spend in the center, frequency of communication with care providers, mid‐day visits to the center, playing with the child, and holding the child in the center. Factor analysis reduced these variables to one parental involvement factor. Mothers were significantly more involved than fathers in the center, after statistically controlling for distance to the workplace and occupational status.

Research paper thumbnail of Predictors of Father and Father Figure Involvement in Pre-Kindergarten Head Start

Research paper thumbnail of Welfare to Work: What are the Obstacles?

Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, Sep 1, 1996

Research paper thumbnail of Should Researchers Conceptualize Differently the Dimensions of Parenting for Fathers and Mothers?

Journal of Family Theory & Review

This article asks whether researchers should seek separate conceptualizations of fathers' and... more This article asks whether researchers should seek separate conceptualizations of fathers' and mothers' parenting behaviors. We posit that there is not sufficient evidence to conclude that the constructs of fathering and mothering are unique. Our argument is based on 3 sets of findings. First, there have been a number of studies showing that fathering and mothering constructs are the same. Second, there is evidence that fathers' parenting behaviors affect children's outcomes in ways that are similar to the effects of mothers' parenting behaviors. Third, fathers and mothers are becoming more similar in terms of their roles, the types of behaviors with which they engage children, and the amount of time they spend with children.

Research paper thumbnail of Low-Income Mothers’ and Fathers’ Cognitive Stimulation During Early Childhood and Child Vocabulary at Age 9

Journal of Child and Family Studies, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Faces of Risk and Resilience: Fathers and Their Families

Adversity and Resilience Science, 2021

Research paper thumbnail of What Nonresident Mothers and Fathers Have to Say About a Mother-Only Coparenting Intervention: A Qualitative Assessment of Understanding DadsTM

Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 2020

Coparenting between mothers and nonresident fathers is a consistent predictor of positive father ... more Coparenting between mothers and nonresident fathers is a consistent predictor of positive father involvement and is shown to have a direct positive impact on children’s behavioral outcomes. While many fatherhood programs attempt to improve coparenting relationships using father-only interventions, the information on their effectiveness is mixed. Couple interventions may be more effective than father-only approaches but are very hard to achieve with nonresident parents. Engaging mothers may be more practical and beneficial, although there is very little literature on the impact of mother-only interventions on coparenting relationships. The current study begins to address that gap. It presents qualitative reactions by mothers and fathers to a mother-only coparenting intervention and finds that a mother-only approach can achieve some important goals such as improved communication, reduced conflict, and mother’s understanding of the father’s point of view. Fathers whose parenting partne...

Research paper thumbnail of Advancing Research and Measurement on Fathering and Children's Development

Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Pilot Study of a Program to Increase Mothers' Understanding of Dads

Family process, Jan 12, 2015

The present study evaluated the effects of mothers' participation in an 8-week coparenting in... more The present study evaluated the effects of mothers' participation in an 8-week coparenting intervention program, Understanding Dad(™) , on mothers' awareness and attitudes regarding how their relationships with fathers influence paternal involvement with children, knowledge of healthy pro-relationship skills, and relationship self-efficacy. Thirty-four mothers were recruited from four sites to participate in a study that used a pretest/posttest one-group design. Over the course of this 8-week program, mothers demonstrated moderate to large gains in each of the outcome measures, after controlling for mothers' educational level. Moreover, there was one significant within-subjects interaction effect for time × location. That is, mothers made significantly greater gains in pro-relationship knowledge in one of the intervention sites. Implications for future research are discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of Perceptions and Satisfaction with Father Involvement and Adolescent Mothers’ Postpartum Depressive Symptoms

Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Explaining the Long Reach of Fathers’ Prenatal Involvement on Later Paternal Engagement

Journal of Marriage and Family, 2008

Research paper thumbnail of Effect on Preschoolers' Literacy when Never-Married Mothers Get Married

Journal of Marriage and Family, 2011

Healthy Marriage programs in the United States aim to promote marriage primarily among low-income... more Healthy Marriage programs in the United States aim to promote marriage primarily among low-income individuals. There is little research assessing whether children fare better when their never-married mothers get married. The present study uses the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey–Birth Cohort to test the hypothesis that children have higher literacy scores when their mothers who had never married when the children were 9 months old had married when the children were 48 months old (N = 2,800). A small positive effect was found, but only when marriage was compared with cohabitation. The association between marriage and literacy is partially explained by mothers' increased household income. The children of mothers who were single noncohabitants or married and then divorced or separated were also doing better with respect to literacy than children of cohabiting mothers. Future research is needed to better understand how cohabitation is associated with negative effects on children's literacy.

Research paper thumbnail of Unmarried, nonresident fathers' involvement with their infants: A risk and resilience perspective

Journal of Family Psychology, 2007

Research paper thumbnail of Longitudinal and reciprocal associations between coparenting conflict and father engagement

Journal of Family Psychology, 2012

Research paper thumbnail of The Relationship between Maternal Gatekeeping, Paternal Competence, Mothers' Attitudes about the Father Role, and Father Involvement

Journal of Family Issues, 2003

This study explored the relationships between maternal gatekeeping, mothers' perceptions of f... more This study explored the relationships between maternal gatekeeping, mothers' perceptions of father competence, mothers' attitudes about the father role, and amount of father involvement. The sample consisted of 30 nonresidential and 72 residential fathers. The results of path analysis revealed that residential status of the father had a direct link to mothers' gatekeeping behavior. Father competence was indirectly and directly linked to amount of father involvement with children. Gatekeeping mediated the relationship between father competence and involvement. Maternal gatekeeping was causally linked to amount of father involvement.

Research paper thumbnail of Mediators of the Relationship Between Stable Nonresident Households and Toddler Outcomes

Journal of Family Issues, 2011

The present study examined the associations between stable nonresidence among never married paren... more The present study examined the associations between stable nonresidence among never married parents (compared with coresident parents) and outcomes for toddlers using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey–Birth Cohort. The authors found small to medium negative associations between stable nonresidence and toddlers’ positive social behavior and small negative associations between stable nonresidence and toddlers’ cognition. The associations between stable nonresidence and positive social behavior and cognition were explained by mothers’ supportiveness during interactions with the child. The findings suggest that toddlers in stable nonresident families are at greater risk for lowered school readiness because of diminished quality of maternal interactions with the child. Implications for practice and policy are discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of Relationship Quality and Changes in Depressive Symptoms Among Urban, Married African Americans, Hispanics, and Whites

Family Relations, 2009

Bivariate analyses showed that continuously married urban African American, non-Hispanic White, a... more Bivariate analyses showed that continuously married urban African American, non-Hispanic White, and Hispanic fathers and mothers reporting greater marital support and less relational control experienced a decrease in depressive symptoms. Multiple regression showed a stronger association between concurrent marital support and decreased depressive symptoms for mothers than fathers. African American and Hispanic fathers reporting higher levels of spousal relationship support when children were infants reported a larger decrease in depressive symptoms when children were age 3 compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Relationship control at age 3 was positively related to increased depressive symptoms among all groups except African American fathers and White mothers. African American and Hispanic fathers with marital problems may need additional support services.

Research paper thumbnail of Do Coparenting and Social Support Have a Greater Effect on Adolescent Fathers Than Adult Fathers?

Family Relations, 2011

ABSTRACT

Research paper thumbnail of Randomized Study of a Prebirth Coparenting Intervention With Adolescent and Young Fathers*

Family Relations, 2008

: This randomized study tested the effects of 2 prebirth interventions, Minnesota Early Learning ... more : This randomized study tested the effects of 2 prebirth interventions, Minnesota Early Learning Design coparenting and childbirth curricula, on young African American and Hispanic fathers and their adolescent partners (N = 154). The coparenting intervention (n = 44) was associated with changing fathers’ perceptions of their coparenting behavior rather than mothers’ perceptions of the fathers’ behavior compared with the childbirth program (n = 46). Fathers and mothers consistently reported fathers’ improved coparenting behavior when the coparenting intervention was compared with a no‐intervention control group (n = 64). Fathers (regardless of residence) and mothers residing with the father reported higher levels of fathers’ engagement with the infant when the father participated in the coparenting intervention compared with fathers who participated in the childbirth intervention.

Research paper thumbnail of Longitudinal Associations among Fathers' Perception of Coparenting, Partner Relationship Quality, and Paternal Stress during Early Childhood

Family Process, 2013

This study examined the longitudinal and concurrent associations among fathers' perceptions o... more This study examined the longitudinal and concurrent associations among fathers' perceptions of partner relationship quality (happiness, conflict), coparenting (shared decision making, conflict), and paternal stress. The sample consisted of 6,100 children who lived with both biological parents at 24 and 48 months in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study‐Birth Cohort data set. The results showed that there are significant and concurrent associations between fathers' perceptions of the coparenting relationship and paternal stress, and between partner relationship quality and paternal stress. There was also a positive direct longitudinal association between partner relationship conflict and paternal stress. However, we found only one longitudinal cross‐system mediation effect: fathers' perception of coparenting conflict at 48 months mediated the association between partner relationship conflict at 24 months and paternal stress at 48 months. The family practice implications ...

Research paper thumbnail of Mother and father involvement in day care centers serving infants and young toddlers

Early Child Development and Care, 1994

This study compared the involvement of 28 mothers and their spouses in day care centers serving i... more This study compared the involvement of 28 mothers and their spouses in day care centers serving infants and toddlers. The sample consisted of parents who work at varying distances from the center. Parents were interviewed ten times each to determine the amount of time they spend in the center, frequency of communication with care providers, mid‐day visits to the center, playing with the child, and holding the child in the center. Factor analysis reduced these variables to one parental involvement factor. Mothers were significantly more involved than fathers in the center, after statistically controlling for distance to the workplace and occupational status.

Research paper thumbnail of Predictors of Father and Father Figure Involvement in Pre-Kindergarten Head Start

Research paper thumbnail of Welfare to Work: What are the Obstacles?

Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, Sep 1, 1996

Research paper thumbnail of Should Researchers Conceptualize Differently the Dimensions of Parenting for Fathers and Mothers?

Journal of Family Theory & Review

This article asks whether researchers should seek separate conceptualizations of fathers' and... more This article asks whether researchers should seek separate conceptualizations of fathers' and mothers' parenting behaviors. We posit that there is not sufficient evidence to conclude that the constructs of fathering and mothering are unique. Our argument is based on 3 sets of findings. First, there have been a number of studies showing that fathering and mothering constructs are the same. Second, there is evidence that fathers' parenting behaviors affect children's outcomes in ways that are similar to the effects of mothers' parenting behaviors. Third, fathers and mothers are becoming more similar in terms of their roles, the types of behaviors with which they engage children, and the amount of time they spend with children.

Research paper thumbnail of Low-Income Mothers’ and Fathers’ Cognitive Stimulation During Early Childhood and Child Vocabulary at Age 9

Journal of Child and Family Studies, 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Faces of Risk and Resilience: Fathers and Their Families

Adversity and Resilience Science, 2021

Research paper thumbnail of What Nonresident Mothers and Fathers Have to Say About a Mother-Only Coparenting Intervention: A Qualitative Assessment of Understanding DadsTM

Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 2020

Coparenting between mothers and nonresident fathers is a consistent predictor of positive father ... more Coparenting between mothers and nonresident fathers is a consistent predictor of positive father involvement and is shown to have a direct positive impact on children’s behavioral outcomes. While many fatherhood programs attempt to improve coparenting relationships using father-only interventions, the information on their effectiveness is mixed. Couple interventions may be more effective than father-only approaches but are very hard to achieve with nonresident parents. Engaging mothers may be more practical and beneficial, although there is very little literature on the impact of mother-only interventions on coparenting relationships. The current study begins to address that gap. It presents qualitative reactions by mothers and fathers to a mother-only coparenting intervention and finds that a mother-only approach can achieve some important goals such as improved communication, reduced conflict, and mother’s understanding of the father’s point of view. Fathers whose parenting partne...

Research paper thumbnail of Advancing Research and Measurement on Fathering and Children's Development

Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Pilot Study of a Program to Increase Mothers' Understanding of Dads

Family process, Jan 12, 2015

The present study evaluated the effects of mothers' participation in an 8-week coparenting in... more The present study evaluated the effects of mothers' participation in an 8-week coparenting intervention program, Understanding Dad(™) , on mothers' awareness and attitudes regarding how their relationships with fathers influence paternal involvement with children, knowledge of healthy pro-relationship skills, and relationship self-efficacy. Thirty-four mothers were recruited from four sites to participate in a study that used a pretest/posttest one-group design. Over the course of this 8-week program, mothers demonstrated moderate to large gains in each of the outcome measures, after controlling for mothers' educational level. Moreover, there was one significant within-subjects interaction effect for time × location. That is, mothers made significantly greater gains in pro-relationship knowledge in one of the intervention sites. Implications for future research are discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of Perceptions and Satisfaction with Father Involvement and Adolescent Mothers’ Postpartum Depressive Symptoms

Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Explaining the Long Reach of Fathers’ Prenatal Involvement on Later Paternal Engagement

Journal of Marriage and Family, 2008

Research paper thumbnail of Effect on Preschoolers' Literacy when Never-Married Mothers Get Married

Journal of Marriage and Family, 2011

Healthy Marriage programs in the United States aim to promote marriage primarily among low-income... more Healthy Marriage programs in the United States aim to promote marriage primarily among low-income individuals. There is little research assessing whether children fare better when their never-married mothers get married. The present study uses the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey–Birth Cohort to test the hypothesis that children have higher literacy scores when their mothers who had never married when the children were 9 months old had married when the children were 48 months old (N = 2,800). A small positive effect was found, but only when marriage was compared with cohabitation. The association between marriage and literacy is partially explained by mothers' increased household income. The children of mothers who were single noncohabitants or married and then divorced or separated were also doing better with respect to literacy than children of cohabiting mothers. Future research is needed to better understand how cohabitation is associated with negative effects on children's literacy.

Research paper thumbnail of Unmarried, nonresident fathers' involvement with their infants: A risk and resilience perspective

Journal of Family Psychology, 2007

Research paper thumbnail of Longitudinal and reciprocal associations between coparenting conflict and father engagement

Journal of Family Psychology, 2012

Research paper thumbnail of The Relationship between Maternal Gatekeeping, Paternal Competence, Mothers' Attitudes about the Father Role, and Father Involvement

Journal of Family Issues, 2003

This study explored the relationships between maternal gatekeeping, mothers' perceptions of f... more This study explored the relationships between maternal gatekeeping, mothers' perceptions of father competence, mothers' attitudes about the father role, and amount of father involvement. The sample consisted of 30 nonresidential and 72 residential fathers. The results of path analysis revealed that residential status of the father had a direct link to mothers' gatekeeping behavior. Father competence was indirectly and directly linked to amount of father involvement with children. Gatekeeping mediated the relationship between father competence and involvement. Maternal gatekeeping was causally linked to amount of father involvement.

Research paper thumbnail of Mediators of the Relationship Between Stable Nonresident Households and Toddler Outcomes

Journal of Family Issues, 2011

The present study examined the associations between stable nonresidence among never married paren... more The present study examined the associations between stable nonresidence among never married parents (compared with coresident parents) and outcomes for toddlers using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey–Birth Cohort. The authors found small to medium negative associations between stable nonresidence and toddlers’ positive social behavior and small negative associations between stable nonresidence and toddlers’ cognition. The associations between stable nonresidence and positive social behavior and cognition were explained by mothers’ supportiveness during interactions with the child. The findings suggest that toddlers in stable nonresident families are at greater risk for lowered school readiness because of diminished quality of maternal interactions with the child. Implications for practice and policy are discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of Relationship Quality and Changes in Depressive Symptoms Among Urban, Married African Americans, Hispanics, and Whites

Family Relations, 2009

Bivariate analyses showed that continuously married urban African American, non-Hispanic White, a... more Bivariate analyses showed that continuously married urban African American, non-Hispanic White, and Hispanic fathers and mothers reporting greater marital support and less relational control experienced a decrease in depressive symptoms. Multiple regression showed a stronger association between concurrent marital support and decreased depressive symptoms for mothers than fathers. African American and Hispanic fathers reporting higher levels of spousal relationship support when children were infants reported a larger decrease in depressive symptoms when children were age 3 compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Relationship control at age 3 was positively related to increased depressive symptoms among all groups except African American fathers and White mothers. African American and Hispanic fathers with marital problems may need additional support services.

Research paper thumbnail of Do Coparenting and Social Support Have a Greater Effect on Adolescent Fathers Than Adult Fathers?

Family Relations, 2011

ABSTRACT

Research paper thumbnail of Randomized Study of a Prebirth Coparenting Intervention With Adolescent and Young Fathers*

Family Relations, 2008

: This randomized study tested the effects of 2 prebirth interventions, Minnesota Early Learning ... more : This randomized study tested the effects of 2 prebirth interventions, Minnesota Early Learning Design coparenting and childbirth curricula, on young African American and Hispanic fathers and their adolescent partners (N = 154). The coparenting intervention (n = 44) was associated with changing fathers’ perceptions of their coparenting behavior rather than mothers’ perceptions of the fathers’ behavior compared with the childbirth program (n = 46). Fathers and mothers consistently reported fathers’ improved coparenting behavior when the coparenting intervention was compared with a no‐intervention control group (n = 64). Fathers (regardless of residence) and mothers residing with the father reported higher levels of fathers’ engagement with the infant when the father participated in the coparenting intervention compared with fathers who participated in the childbirth intervention.

Research paper thumbnail of Longitudinal Associations among Fathers' Perception of Coparenting, Partner Relationship Quality, and Paternal Stress during Early Childhood

Family Process, 2013

This study examined the longitudinal and concurrent associations among fathers' perceptions o... more This study examined the longitudinal and concurrent associations among fathers' perceptions of partner relationship quality (happiness, conflict), coparenting (shared decision making, conflict), and paternal stress. The sample consisted of 6,100 children who lived with both biological parents at 24 and 48 months in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study‐Birth Cohort data set. The results showed that there are significant and concurrent associations between fathers' perceptions of the coparenting relationship and paternal stress, and between partner relationship quality and paternal stress. There was also a positive direct longitudinal association between partner relationship conflict and paternal stress. However, we found only one longitudinal cross‐system mediation effect: fathers' perception of coparenting conflict at 48 months mediated the association between partner relationship conflict at 24 months and paternal stress at 48 months. The family practice implications ...