Abstract

The present study examined how acculturation, mental health problems, and parenting stress are associated with two dimensions of father involvement longitudinally for Latino and Chinese immigrant fathers using a nationally representative sample of young children and their resident fathers from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (ECLS-B). After controlling for a variety of individual and demographic characteristics and previous levels of father involvement, results from multiple group structural equation modeling revealed that immigrant fathers' English proficiency is negatively associated with care-taking involvement at 2 years, but positively associated with care-taking involvement at 4 years. Interestingly, mothers' English proficiency is also positively associated with fathers' care-taking involvement at 2 years. In addition, fathers' US citizenship is positively associated with care-taking involvement at 2 years. Finally, mothers' US citizenship is negatively associated with fathers' literacy or language involvement at 2 years. In contrast with the hypotheses, no significant differences between Latino and Chinese immigrant fathers were found. Findings suggest that some dimensions of acculturation affect different dimensions of father involvement across different groups of immigrants, and the impacts may remain significant even four years after the child birth.

Degree

PhD

College and Department

Family, Home, and Social Sciences; Marriage, Family, and Human Development

Rights

http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2015-12-01

Document Type

Dissertation

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd8232

Keywords

father involvement, immigrants, acculturation, mental health, parenting stress, ECLS-B, cross-cultural study, Latino fathers, Chinese fathers

Language

english

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