Fatherhood and the Unmarried Adolescent African-American Male Essay

Just around a quarter of all children are now born aside of wedlock.... Add to that the substantial fraction of children born into marriages that will not survive.... What do these high rates of marital instability imply for patterns of childbearing, and especially for fathers inter-group communication with their children? (Furstenberg & Harris, 1992, p. 199)The vast amount of research on the topic of boyish pregnancies has historically focused on the female ( much(prenominal) as Furstenberg, 1976 and Stack, 1974). Social scientists have assay to understand the problem and also avail the adolescent mother side by side(p) her decision to give birth to a child. In some places, such as Oakland, California, 73% of adolescents giving birth are African American (Smith, 1988, p.269 Massey, 1991, p. 117). With this in mind, social workers have spent most of their efforts helping adolescent African-American women. The Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and Aid to Familie s of Dependent Children (AFDC) offer help for many women and their children. Unfortunately, the social workers usually viewed Black adolescent fathers either as a cause of the problem of adolescent line or as a partial solution in their assigned role of pecuniary provider (Smith, 1988, p. 269).Introductory quote focuses on an important public conference about children born out of wedlock and fathers involvement with their children. Furtstenburg is considered an expert on the topic of pregnancy among adolescents and the changing American family. The writer further identifies the condition for the research as the social sciences and suggests how this research has influenced social workers. Sources provide command background information, sp... ...ing American family Sociological and demographic perspectives (pp. 197-223). Boulder, Colorado Westview Press.Furstenberg, F. (1976). Unplanned parenthood The social consequences of teenage childbearing. vernal York Free Press.Hendricks , L. E. (1988). A preliminary track on three ethnic groups. Adolescence, 91, 711-720Horton, C. P. & Smith, J. C. (Eds.) (1990). Statistical record of Black America. Detroit Gale Research, Inc.Massey, G. (1991). The bemuse side of teen mothers A look at teen fathers. In B. P. Bowser. (Ed.), Black male adolescents Parenting and education in community context (pp. 117-128). New York University Press of America.Smith, L. A. (1988). Black adolescent fathers Issues for service provision. Social Work, 33. 269-272.Stack, C. B. (1974). All our clan Strategies for survival in a black community. New York Harper & Row.