For my blog this week, I looked up a scholarly article titled The Effects of Father Absence. There were many important and interesting points in this article, but I will focus on only five that greatly stood out to me. I will also tell of my story of my father and his absence in the home.
The Five Points
Father absence affects education. It was found that the absence of a father due to divorce affects the education at least a little in all ages; they have found that test scores are often lower. However, the lack of father presence affects the child’s high school education and graduation the most. This is around the time you see more children without a father drop out of high school. This is very important to recognize because a lack of education may lead to a lack of money; this may lead to poverty and may provide a whole new set of problems.
Children have a higher risk of early child-bearing. A positive association was found between early child-bearing and father absence due to divorce. There is a greater risk of early child-bearing for the children who experienced their parents’ divorce in early childhood rather than middle childhood.
Father absence affects mental health. It was found that young children who experienced a divorce of their parents often display mental/social /emotional problems by having anxiety and/or depression in addition to acting more aggressively and having difficulty focusing or paying attention to things. In adolescence, mental/social/emotional problems are manifested when they have low-self-esteem, are anti-social, and possibly engaging in drug/substance abuse.
Father absence effects play out over time. It was found that mental health and social-emotional skills were negatively influenced in adults who had been without a father’s presence due to divorce as children. This is important to note because mental illness and lack of social-emotional skills can not only negatively affect their own life but also the lives of their spouse, children, and all other meaningful relationships.
It was also found that those who had father absence had a harder time having employment as adults and may be less likely to work. This, of course, has negative effects on the economy because those who don’t work often rely on welfare or other government.
Father absence affects every child. In this study, researchers tried to rid of the effects that come from an absent father (such as a higher probability to drop out to school and partake n drugs and premarital sex) by trying to include more control variables into the child’s life. For example, they added all the resources needed (food, shelter, education, money) and took out mental issues and negative relationships. No matter what or how many controlled variables they added, the child still suffered at least some of the negative effects of not having a father present.
My Story
As a child, my experiences with my father were negative. My parents had 9 kids and I am number 8 out of 9. By the time I came along, my father was always very stressed due to financial needs that were higher than the financial resources. He would get angry with us kids very quickly. He also would work very long hours and often would get home after I went to sleep. I remember some good memories of him in my young childhood; the rest are not the best. Then when I was 8, my parents got a divorce because my dad was unfaithful and decided to leave for another woman. A year later, my mom remarried and we moved away from my dad. I didn’t talk to him much until I was 15. At that time, I began to have mental health issues related to my dad and the divorce; I knew I needed to work things out with my dad. We began to work things out and talk often; we developed a good relationship. I ended up living with him and my step-mom for a few months and we grew a lot during that time.
Though our relationship is much better, I still struggle with some mental health issues which have resulted in burdensome health issues. I struggle with self-esteem and I lack confidence in many areas.
I raise a call to fathers and mothers. Please, for your own marital and life joys and fulfillment as well as for your children, humble and work on yourself. Fix whatever problems you may have. Don’t give up on your spouse and family; choose to love and give your best efforts to them. Cleave to your spouse (NO ONE ELSE) and be committed to working things out. You and your family will be greatly blessed for your efforts and love.
References
McLanahan, S., Tach, L., Schneider, L. (2013). The causal effects of father absence. NCBI. Retrieved from
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