All Dads Matter

"In Do Fathers Matter? the award-winning journalist and father of five Paul Raeburn overturns the many myths and stereotypes of fatherhood as he examines the latest scientific findings on the parent we've often overlooked. Drawing on research from neuroscientists, animal behaviorists, geneticists, and developmental psychologists, among others, Raeburn takes us through the various stages of fatherhood, revealing the profound physiological connections between children and fathers, from conception through adolescence and into adulthood--and the importance of the relationship between mothers and fathers. In the process, he challenges the legacy of Freud and mainstream views of parental attachment, and also explains how we can become better parents ourselves."--www.Amazon.com.

Life comes in seasons. In every season, dad matters. Each season of fatherhood has a different role for dads. In The Seasons of Fatherhood, we will explore some key practices to help us succeed in our role for that season. The lessons in this book are what God has been teaching me about fathering four remarkable people.

It is also evident that involvement when policy developers and program providers respect and seek to understand the character and dynamics of the communities they serve, they are better policy and equipped to contribute to the development of socially inclusive father/parent program involvement policy and program initiatives. [...] Along with paying critical attention to the social processes and structures that shape social policies and programs, it is equally important that those involved in the study, development and delivery of father/parent involvement initiatives in Canada take into account the factors that contribute to the perspectives and experiences people 1 As discussed in more detail below, the use of the term fat [...] The Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey explores many dimensions of work and family life among diverse populations in Australia, including relationships and parenting, as well as personal attitudes, health and subjective well-being.10 The Growing Up in Australia project is part of a longitudinal study of Australian children, and includes examination of the impacts and [...] Indeed, ongoing change in support of a wide variety of fatherhood involvement initiatives in this and other countries is engendered in part by the global development of a much more generous and varied ethno-cultural understanding of what fatherhood means and how men from different backgrounds and in diverse circumstances actually experience and behave in relation to their children. [...] The Social and Political Context of Father Involvement Policies and Programs Developments in Canada that continue to hinder support for social programming in general and father involvement initiatives in particular emerged during the mid-1990s with the introduction of the Canadian Health and Social Transfer (Vanier Institute of the Family, 2006).

This book presents state-of-the-art findings of research on fatherhood programs, funded by the Fatherhood Research and Practice Network (FRPN), which advance knowledge and practice in the fathering field. New Research on Parenting Programs for Low-Income Fathers includes research on how to engage mothers to support father–child contact and to successfully employ social media and online technology for practice. It offers findings on how to increase paternal engagement and parenting skills and to include fathers in policies and programs for children and families. It discusses the importance of providing staff training and resources to practitioners who work directly with fathers. Chapters also provide summaries of key implications for evidence-based practice and future directions for research that encourage effective fatherhood practice. This book is an excellent resource for therapists, social workers, fatherhood educators, fatherhood practitioners, researchers, and policy makers on how to inspire positive father engagement with children and healthy coparenting relationships.

In Essential Dads, sociologist Jennifer Randles shares the stories of more than 60 marginalized men as they sought to become more engaged parents through a government-supported “responsible” fatherhood program. Dads’ experiences serve as a unique window into long-standing controversies about the importance of fathering, its connection to inequality, and the state’s role in shaping men’s parenting. With a compassionate and hopeful voice, Randles proposes a more equitable political agenda for fatherhood, one that carefully considers the social and economic factors shaping men’s abilities to be involved in their children’s lives and the ideologies that rationalize the necessity of that involvement.

After Eric Davis spent over 16 years in the military, including a decade in the SEAL Teams, his family was more than used to his absence on deployments and secret missions that could obscure his whereabouts for months at a time. Without a father figure in his own life since the age of fifteen, Eric was desperate to maintain the bonds he’d fought so hard to forge when his children were young—particularly with his son, Jason, because he knew how difficult it was to face the challenge of becoming a man on one’s own. Unfortunately, Eric learned the hard way that Quality Time doesn’t always show up in Quantity Time. Facebook, television, phones, video games, school, jobs, friends—they all got in the way of a real, meaningful father-son relationship. It was time to take action. As a SEAL, Eric learned to innovate and push boundaries, allowing him to function at levels beyond what was expected, comfortable, ordinary, and even imaginable, and he knew that as a father he needed to do the same with his son. Meeting extreme with extreme was the only answer. Using a unique blend of discipline, leadership, adventure, and grace, Eric and his SEAL brothers will teach you how to connect, and reconnect, with your sons and learn how to raise real men—the Navy SEAL way.

When it comes to the unknown territory of having a baby, moms-to-be have nearly unending resources to plan and execute a healthy pregnancy and navigate those first months and years as a parent with confidence. New dads? Not so much. They want to get in the game too, but, says Super Bowl champion Benjamin Watson, "I could find clearer direction for putting together a baby swing than for taking care of a newborn child." The New Dad's Playbook is every man's game plan to being the best partner and the best father, from pre-season (preparing for fatherhood) to Super Bowl (birth) to post-season (after baby is home). It helps men understand what their wives are going through physically and emotionally during and after pregnancy, allowing them to support their most important teammate. It tells men what to expect when their baby is home--and what to do when the unexpected happens. This tell-it-like-it-is book will take men from just winging it to winning it.