Introduction
Fathers, children, and their families benefit from healthy co-parenting and romantic relationships. Healthy relationships can improve fathers’ mental health and the quality of their involvement with their children and can support positive health and developmental outcomes for children. Many fatherhood programs aim, or are required, to include programming that supports healthy co-parenting and romantic relationships through skill building and other services. However, despite the importance of supporting these healthy relationships, it can be difficult to do so in practice.
Through a qualitative study conducted as part of the Coparenting and Healthy Relationship and Marriage Education for Dads (CHaRMED) project, Child Trends identified three barriers fatherhood programs often face when addressing healthy relationships with fathers:
- Engaging fathers in romantic relationship content.
- Determining and implementing approaches for co-parent engagement in relationship education.
- Providing support for fathers navigating legal systems and agencies that can affect their co-parenting relationships.
This report (available for download on this page using the “Download Report (PDF)” button) includes a brief introduction and three resources offering strategies fatherhood programs can use to address these barriers and better support fathers’ healthy relationships. The three resources can be accessed and used separately using the links below:
- Addressing Romantic Relationships in Fatherhood Programs: Increasing Engagement and Tailoring Services to Fathers’ Strengths and Needs. (PDF) This resource provides suggestions for tailoring romantic relationship education to the strengths and needs of participants and strategies for maximizing fathers’ engagement in the content.
- Improving Coparenting Relationship Education in Fatherhood Programs: Strategies for Engaging Coparents. (PDF) This resource provides options for co-parent engagement with varying levels of intensity, as well as strategies programs can use to promote healthy coparenting relationships when co-parent engagement is not appropriate or feasible.
- Supporting Fathers Who Are Navigating Legal and Social Systems That Can Impact Coparenting Relationships. (PDF) This resource summarizes ways fatherhood programs can support fathers as they interact with these systems.
Methods
This report was informed by a qualitative study conducted as part of the CHaRMED project. The CHaRMED Project is funded by the Office of Family Administration (OFA), overseen by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE), and led by Child Trends. The qualitative study aimed to:
- Better understand the approaches that fatherhood programs use to support fathers’ healthy relationships.
- Explore fathers’ perceptions of and needs around relationship programming.
- Examine whether and how programs respond to those needs.
Each resource primarily draws upon data collected from interviews with 24 program staff, 36 participating fathers, and six coparents of participating fathers from nine fatherhood programs. When applicable, related strategies and examples from broader research and practice fields, including fatherhood, coparenting, healthy marriage and relationship education, child welfare, and teen pregnancy prevention are incorporated.
Citation
S. Ciaravino, E. Karberg, L. Kim, M. Bradley, M. E. Scott, A. Wilson, A. Vazzano. (2022). Resources for Supporting Healthy Relationships in Fatherhood Programs. OPRE Report #2022-115, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.