Father Involvement in Canada

Diversity, Renewal, and Transformation

Edited by Jessica Ball and Kerry Daly

UBC Press

The landscape of Canadian fatherhood has changed dramatically over the past several decades. Today, “father” can mean a biological parent in the context of a heterosexual marriage, but it can also mean an adoptive parent in a same-sex union, a sperm donor, a step-parent, a single parent, a co-parent in cooperation with an ex-partner, and myriad other possibilities. The traditional family unit may not look the same as it used to, but fathers are as important today as ever before.

Father Involvement in Canada brings together more than a dozen leading scholars of fatherhood issues to examine the roles of Canadian fathers from many angles. Looking at the experiences of fathers from different ethnicities, ages, marital statuses, gender partnering, and economic brackets, the authors examine issues such as the impact of poverty, access to paternity leave, and the availability of support from social institutions. By co-considering these dimensions and viewpoints, the contributors bring to light interlocking individual, familial, and socio-economic systems in which fathers are embedded.

National in scope, Father Involvement in Canada is the first book of its kind to summarize and challenge current scholarship on Canadian fatherhood and offer new concepts, theoretical frameworks, and research directions.

Father Involvement in Canada will hold strong appeal for family researchers and advocates, gender scholars, and Aboriginal-interest groups, as well as scholars and students of sociology, psychology, education, social work, and child and youth care.

RELATED TOPICS: Family & Childhood Studies, Health & Well-Being, Parenting, Social Work, Sociology

The most inclusive, incisive, balanced, and comprehensible fathering book available … It is grounded in the best of contemporary research, theory, and policy and framed in socio-historical and contextual changes that reciprocally shape emerging understandings of fathering. Capturing the diversity, multiple-determinism, and cultural embeddedness of fathering, it is astute in presenting the challenges of understanding the complexities of fathering, while furthering a realistic and positive path forward. This book is sure to become a go-to resource for researchers, policy makers, and family interventionists. Rob Palkovitz, Professor, Human Development and Family Studies, University of Delaware

This unique and compelling volume showcases the value of using participatory research models that ground research in the activities, culture, social conditions, and politics of the local community. Although the book focuses effectively on Canadian fathers, it does plenty to advance understanding of fathering in other industrialized countries. William Marsiglio, author of Nurturing Dads: Social Initiatives for Contemporary Fatherhood

Jessica Ball is a professor in the School of Child and Youth Care at the University of Victoria. Kerry Daly is the dean of the College of Social and Applied Human Sciences at the University of Guelph.

Contributors: James W. Allen, Sarah Allen, Nicholas Bala, John Beaton, Leslie Brown, Marilyn Callahan, Lena Dominelli, Andrea Doucet, Linda Hawkins, John Hoffman, Heather L. Lawford, Elizabeth Manning, Katherine Marshall, Lindsey McKay, Ted McNeill, David Nicholas, Michael W. Pratt, Zenaida R. Ravanera, Susan Strega, Chris Walmsley, Lisa Wenger, and Denise L. Whitehead.

Foreword / Joseph H. Pleck

Part 1: Trends and Perspectives: An Overview of Father Involvement

1 Father Involvement in Canada: A Transformative Approach / Jessica Ball and Kerry Daly

2 Canadian Fathers: Demographic and Socio-Economic Profiles from Census and National Surveys / Zenaida R. Ravanera and John Hoffman

3 Fathers Make a Difference in Their Children’s Lives: A Review of the Research Evidence / Sarah Allen, Kerry Daly, and Jessica Ball

4 Feminist Mothers Researching Fathering: Advocates, Contributors, and Dissenters / Andrea Doucet and Linda Hawkins

Part 2: The Diversity of Fathering Experiences: Contested Terrain

5 Young Fatherhood, Generativity, and Men’s Development: Travelling a Two-Way Street to Maturity / Michael W. Pratt, Heather L. Lawford, and James W. Allen

6 Aboriginal Fathers in Canada through Time / Jessica Ball

7 The Short End of the Stick? Fatherhood in the Wake of Separation and Divorce / Denise L. Whitehead and Nicholas Bala

8 Fathering Within Child Welfare / Susan Strega, Leslie Brown, Elizabeth Manning, Christopher Walmsley, Lena Dominelli, and Marilyn Callahan

9 The Experiences of Fathers of a Child with a Chronic Health Condition: Caregiving Experiences and Potential Support Interventions / John Beaton, David Nicholas, Ted McNeill, and Lisa Wenger

Part 3: Toward Social Change: Policy and Practice Issues for Fathers

10 Fathers and Parental Leave in Canada: Policies and Practices / Lindsey McKay, Katherine Marshall, and Andrea Doucet

11 Looking Forward: Father Involvement and Changing Forms of Masculine Care / Kerry Daly and Jessica Ball

List of Contributors

Index

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