THE FACTS ON FATHERLESSNESS
Prepared for the Fatherhood Foundation by Bill Muehlenberg, Australian Family buttociation - August 2002
Fatherlessness is a growing problem in Australia and the Western world. Whether caused by divorce and broken families, or by deliberate single parenting, more and more children grow up without fathers. Indeed, 85 per cent of single parent families are fatherless families. Father absence has been shown to be a major disadvantage to the well being of children. The following is a summary of the evidence for the importance of fathers and the need for two-parent families.
One expert from Harvard medical school who has studied over 40 years of research on the question of parental absence and children's well-being said this: "What has been shown over and over again to contribute most to the emotional development of the child is a close, warm, sustained and continuous relationship with both parents." Or as David Blankenhorn has stated in Fatherless America: "Fatherlessness is the most harmful demographic trend of this generation."
Fatherlessness increases crime
a.. A British study found a direct statistical link between single parenthood and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence against strangers, car theft and burglary.
b.. One American study even arrived at this startling conclusion: the proportion of single-parent households in a community predicts its rates of violent crime and burglary, but the community's poverty level does not. Neither poverty nor race seem to account very much for the crime rate, compared to the proportion of single parent families.
c.. In Australia, a recent book noted the connection between broken families and crime. In a discussion of rising crime rates in Western Australia, the book reported that "family breakdown in the form of divorce and separation is the main cause of the crime wave".
Fatherlessness increases drug abuse
a.. A UCLA study pointed out that inadequate family structure makes children more susceptible to drug use "as a coping mechanism to relieve depression and anxiety."
b.. Another US study found that among the homes with strict fathers, only 18 per cent had children used alcohol or drugs at all. In contrast, among mother-dominated homes, 35 per cent had children who used drugs frequently.
c.. A New Zealand study of nearly 1000 children observed over a period of 15 years found that children who have watched their parents separate are more likely to use illegal drugs than those whose parents stay together.
