Happy Father’s Day: Celebrating How Dads Benefit Our Kids

So, what’s the big deal if dads are involved in their kids’ lives? They don’t carry the baby. Their body doesn’t provide the baby’s sustenance. Does it really matter if fathers are supportive—or even around?

Uh, yeah. It does.

Turns out, it seriously matters.

Children raised in homes without a father, or father figure, are more likely to experience neglect, child abuse, behavioral problems, poverty, exposure to drugs and alcohol, poor grades in school, teen pregnancy, and even death in infancy according to Fatherhood.gov.

Phew. That was a long list, right?

It gets worse.

The National Fatherhood Initiative, along with countless others, claim there is a father absence crisis in America. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 18.3 million children (that’s 1 in 4) live without a biological, step or adoptive father in the home. And, consequently, there is a father factor in nearly all social ills facing America today.

How depressing is that? Is there any hope??

5 Undeniable Benefits of Fatherhood Engagement—Why We Need Dads

Yes. There is hope. Encouraging fatherhood engagement is key. But first, what is an “engaged father”?

An “engaged” dad is one who “feels responsible for and behaves responsibly toward his child, is emotionally engaged and physically accessible, provides material support to sustain the child’s needs, is involved in childcare, and exerts influence in child rearing decisions.” (CalSWEC-Berkely.edu).

And these dads have the power to greatly influence our kids’ futures.

Which is why it’s more important than ever to:

spread the word about how important dads are and
honor those dads who show up, contribute, and maintain loving relationships with their children.

So this Father’s Day—and, truthfully, everyday—I’d like to send a big “thank you” to our nurturing and supportive dads who make a difference.

And, as a mother who sees lots of dads working harder than ever, bringing awareness to the impact fathers have on a child’s life is close to my heart.

So, let’s take a deep dive into why dads (just like moms) are so important for our kids.

The National Fatherhood Initiative, along with countless others, claim there is a father absence crisis in America. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 18.3 million children (that’s 1 in 4) live without a biological, step or adoptive father in the home. And, consequently, there is a father factor in nearly all social ills facing America today.

1. Engaged Dads Encourage Early Development

Dads matter right from the start. At the earliest stages of life, fathers play an important role in early brain and child development.

Perhaps surprisingly to some, the relationship between father and child can be as important as that between mother and child in the early stages of development. A father’s involvement positively impacts an infant’s health, with improved breastfeeding rates and improved weight gain in preterm infants.

Research on Early Head Start programs showed that toddlers with involved dads felt more secure and more likely to enthusiastically explore their world. And those with playful fathers were predicted to have higher language development in preschool.

A dad’s support is also tied to positive developmental, cognitive, and sociobehavioral child outcomes like higher receptive language skills and academic achievement. [1]

Related: Father’s Day Gift Ideas

2. Supportive Dads Boost Children’s Academic Success

When dads are supportive, there’s a lot of evidence it not only promotes kids’ language and cognitive development, but also their interest in learning.

Children with fathers who are more involved have shown higher IQs by age 7 (and 11 and 16 in other, similar studies). And preschoolers with involved fathers process stronger verbal skills than those without.

Boys and girls may also experience different gains from their dad’s involvement. For example, boys with dads who are highly involved attain higher grades and even score a year above their expected age level on exams. And girls with close relationships to their dads have stronger math skills.

In fact, when a father is interested in his child’s education, especially around age 11, it’s been shown to have more influence on educational success than family background, the child’s personality or poverty. [2]

A Father's Day Quote that reads No man stands so tall as when he stoops to help a child. By Abraham Lincoln. There's a photo in the background of a father on this knees hugging his young child in front of a school.

3. Loving Dads Elevate Emotional, Mental and Physical Health

Dads who have loving, supportive relationships with their children positively impact their kids’ emotional, mental and physical health. Kids with dads who interact meaningfully with them have higher levels of confidence, self-control and sociability. And they aren’t as likely to partake in risky behaviors in their adolescence.

For example, fatherless children are at a significantly greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse. They’re more likely to smoke, drink alcohol, and abuse drugs both in their youth and as adults.

Children with absent fathers are also regularly overrepresented on a range of mental health problems, especially anxiety, depression and suicide.

A father’s engagement even impacts the genders differently. It reduces the number of behavioral problems in boys. And boys rely on their fathers more than anyone else to develop their social skills. But girls need their dads, too. Daughters who have strong relationships with their fathers are less likely to take sexual risks in their teen years and have reduced psychological problems and rates of depression as young women. [3]

A dad looking at his daughter smiling while his daughter looks at the camera and smiles. Text over the image says Just the Facts Involved dads improve their children's overall emotional and social well-being. The photo is from the National Fatherhood Initiative, www.fatherhood.org. — When dads are engaged, it greatly influences the child’s emotional and social well-being. SOURCE: National Fatherhood Initiative.

4. Involved Dads Decrease Chances of Poverty and Crime

Sadly, when Dad (or a dad-like figure) isn’t around, a child is more likely to experience poverty or be involved in a crime.

Kids in homes without a father are almost four times more likely to be poor. Of the runaway and homeless children in the U.S., 90% are from fatherless homes. And kids who lived in female-headed families without a spouse around had a poverty rate of 47.6%, over four times the rate of married-couples.

One of the most shocking finds I came across was a study that used data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health that studied the connection between family structure and the risk of violent acts in neighborhoods. Want to know what they found? If the neighborhood has a low number of fathers, there is an increase in acts of teen violence. And overall, adolescents living in intact families were less likely to become involved in a delinquency than their peers living in single-parent and step families.

In addition to an increase in being involved in a crime, if Dad isn’t around it may also contribute to kids witnessing or being the victim of a crime. Children ages 10-17 who lived with two biological or adoptive parents were less likely to witness violence in their families and experience major violence such as child maltreatment or sexual assault. [4]

5. Devoted Dads Increase Chances of Success

Dads play a crucial role when it comes to our kids’ futures. Children who feel close to their dads are twice as likely as those who don’t to go to college and secure a stable job after high school. And fatherless children are more likely to have low incomes, experience unemployment or homelessness, and remain on social assistance.

But fathers also play a role in our kids’ happiness. Having a loving and nurturing father was found to be as important for a child’s happiness, well-being and social and academic success as having a loving and nurturing mother according to one analysis of over 100 studies on parent-child relationship.

And in a separate 26-year-long study, researchers found the number one factor in developing empathy in kids was father involvement. Dads who spent alone time regularly with their kids led to children who grew into compassionate adults.

Perhaps most surprising for some, one study (that looked across 24 other studies) found that while mothers are often viewed as more nurturing in their relationship with children, fathers tend to be better at preparing children to deal with life. Dads apparently have a more realistic assessment of their kids’ abilities and can better predict problem behavior that may eventually arise in their children’s lives. [5]

Pin for Pinterest that had toy letters spelling DAD on a mat, with the words Happy Father's Day! Celebrating How Dads Benefit Our Kids and the URL Mama Has Her Mindful dot com

Celebrating the Increase in Fatherhood Engagement

Does all the data seem daunting?

Perhaps.

But, at least we know and can begin working towards change.

Put plainly, having a second, engaged adult around exposes children to more diversity and social experiences. The second parent will discipline, teach and play differently. Having them there introduces children to other ways of dealing with life.

Giving kids more opportunities for success in life.

We need our fathers to be supportive, engaged and nurturing.

And, thankfully, there’s some good news.

Fatherhood engagement is up! In fact, in a 2016 national survey from Zero to Three, dads in the U.S. love being dads! In their study, 90% said being a dad is their greatest joy, 85% said being a dad is the best job in the world, 73% said their lives began when they became a dad, and 62% of dads want more information on how to be a better parent.

And in the same study, dads said they did more of the following with their kids than their dad did with them:

52% show more affection
47% participate in more playtime or other quality time
46% read more with their children
54% say “I love you” more

Dads are more involved than ever and it looks like that trend will continue.

Happy Father’s Day to a Special Group of Dads

All those stats are intense, right?

But do we really need the researchers to tell us what we already know? Witness a child’s awe-struck gaze as she looks up at her father and you understand the impact a father has on his child.

So, let’s celebrate all the dads out there trying their best and giving it their all.

The world needs them. Our sons and daughters need them. We pray they continue sharing their love, support and presence.

It matters.

Stay mindful, even when your mind’s full,
~Chelsea

P.S. Thinking of celebrating dad with a gift? Check out these sentimental father-daughter gift ideas for Father’s Day!

***Citations***

[1] All 4 Kids – Why Fatherhood Engagement Matters

Fathers and the well-child visit

Head Start ECLKC Birth to 5 Father Engagement Guide

[2] Fatherhood Global: How Does a Father Influence His Children?

National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (Fatherhood.gov): Fatherhood Involvement in Education

Fatherhood Research Institute: Father’s Impact on Their Children’s Learning and Achievement