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The Dynamics of Young Fatherhood Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17 December 2024
Introduction
This chapter presents a detailed review of demographic and social research evidence on the lives and support needs of young fathers, drawing on an existing body of research literature beyond the findings of the Following Young Fathers (FYF) study. Our main focus is on published evidence from the UK, but selected international studies, particularly from the US and Canada, are also included. We highlight insights from some early studies, conducted in the 1980s (reviewed by Miller, 1997), whose findings are just as pertinent today as they were over 30 years ago. Our main sources are dedicated studies on young fatherhood. We also draw on key reviews of the literature, alongside studies with a broader young parenthood or fatherhood focus, which incorporate some limited insights on young fathers (for example, Edin and Nelson, 2013). As the discussion unfolds, we draw out the nature of this evidence, whether it is produced through qualitative/quantitative research and/or ‘snapshot’ or longitudinal methodologies, and we consider how robust this evidence is in generating measured findings.
Our discussion is shaped around two key orientations found in the literature: a social problems framework, which can shift seamlessly into a social deficit understanding of young fathers; and a social engagement framework, which reveals the efforts of young men to engage with and care for their children. While both frameworks have value and are complementary, they produce very different insights into the lives of young fathers. We finish the chapter by considering the methodological implications of the picture developed here, and we highlight gaps in the evidence base to which the FYF study responds.
Historicising young fatherhood research: the nature of the existing evidence
Academic interest in young fatherhood, particularly in the US and the UK, can be traced back to the 1980s and 1990s (Lane and Clay, 2000; Lau Clayton, 2016; Kiselica, forthcoming). At this time, scholars conducting research on teenage pregnancy and parenthood in the US began to acknowledge that young fatherhood was a topic of ‘empirical neglect’ (Klinman et al, 1985; Robinson, 1988; Glikman, 2004).
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