Longitudinal Patterns of Unmarried Resident Fathers' Engagement with Young Children in the U.S.: Examining the Role of Ethnicity and Extended Family Relationship

This study examined the role of ethnicity and extended family relationship in the longitudinal patterns of unmarried resident fathers' engagement with young children in the U.S. Using three waves of panel data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS), data obtained from 292 respondents were analyzed by the Linear Mixed Effects Regression (LMER) method. Findings suggested that Black unmarried resident fathers exhibited more engagement with their infants at age one than their White counterparts did, but the initial difference reversed by age five as a result of decreasing engagement among Black fathers over time and comparatively increasing engagement among Whites. Results also suggested that Black unmarried resident fathers with a high relationship level with their extended family members exhibited less engagement with their infants than Black fathers with a low relationship level, but the initial difference reversed by age five as a result of decreasing engagement among Black fathers with a low relationship level over time and comparatively increasing engagement among Black fathers with a high relationship level.