Exploring 'Father Involvement' among Caregiving Fathers of Children and Youth with Neurodisabilities

• Main Author: Bogossian, Aline
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses 01-01-2017
• Subjects: Disability studies; Individual & family studies; Social work
• ISBN: 9798582598909

The scholarship on ‘parenting’ children with neurodisabilities has developed rapidly over the past thirty years; yet, on closer examination, this scholarship on ‘parents’ and “parenting” is often gender neutral and less is known about the parenting experiences of fathers. This dissertation, originating in the field of social work, is comprised of three related manuscripts. It was designed to explore the meanings fathers of children with neurodisabilities draw from their engagement with their child in order to deepen theoretical understandings of fathers’ involvement and to ultimately inform clinical practice with families. The first article represents a scoping review of empirical literature on parenting in the context of childhood neurodisability and maps the affective, behavioural and cognitive dimensions of father involvement found within this scholarship. It reveals the limited nature of research on fathers’ perspectives and through a systematic exploration, identifies aspects of father involvement that may be more fully explored in future research. The second and third articles represent an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis study based on multiple conversations with eleven biological fathers of children with neurodisabilities. Article 2 introduces Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), qualitative research approach. This article describes how Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA; Smith et al., 2009) was employed to develop an understanding of the parenting experiences of fathers of children with neurodisabilities. IPA allows for in-depth exploration of participants' unique worlds and acknowledges the researchers' role in co-constructing those experiences. These tenets resemble the starting point of any social work intervention with individuals. In this article, the congruence of IPA with social work is discussed. Article 3 draws on fathers’ narratives to build depth and enhance understandings of the concept of “father involvement”. Fathers focused their parenting energy on understanding their child and understanding how to help their child with a neurodisability. Three master themes emerged from fathers’ narrative. “Forming connections—from disruptions to new understandings” describes fathers’ early struggles and joys in fatherhood and the influence of children’s reciprocal contacts on fathers’ understandings of their role. “Taking our place in the world” describes fathers’ experiences and negotiations with the world inside and outside of their family. “Anticipating, emerging and growing” describes how fathers came to understand themselves and grow in new ways as a function of their relationship with their child. Fathers placed great importance on forging close physical and emotional connections with their child, though this was at times a slow and frustrating process. In the absence of an emotional connection or of information about how to support their child, parenting was a difficult and solitary journey. Practice implications of this study include the importance of noticing and reinforcing fathers’ emotional connection with their children, discussing parenting experiences with fathers, acknowledging fathers as resources in the family unit, and prioritizing fathers' information needs.