The Fatherless Households

Menstuff® has compiled the following information on the results of fathers not being in the home.

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Sobering Statictics
Where's Daddy? The Mythologies Behind Custody-Access-Support
The Two Extremes of Fatherhood: "Solo" Dads and "Absent" Dads Not as Different as They Seem - U.S. Census Bureau
Can a child be kept a secret from the father? - 12/29/20
See much more here

Sobering Statistics


Children from fatherless homes account for:

Where's Daddy? The Mythologies Behind Custody-Access-Support


Source: Where's Daddy? The Mythologies Behind Custody-Access-Support

The Two Extremes of Fatherhood: "Solo" Dads and "Absent" Dads Not as Different as They Seem - U.S. Census Bureau


When it comes to living with kids, there are two extremes of fatherhood — “solo” dads who appear to raise their children by themselves and “absent” dads who appear to have little or nothing to do with parenting.

These two types of fathers may seem like polar opposites. Yet, they have many characteristics in common.

In many ways, “solo” and “absent” dads seem to be more similar than different, at least when compared to the full population of fathers of minor children.

More than a quarter of the 121 million men in the United States are biological fathers of at least one child under the age of 18.

Four out of five fathers of minor children live with at least some of those children (79.8%). Almost three-quarters (72.6%) live with all of their minor children.

Additionally, there are 1.8 million men who are “solo” fathers to a minor child who live with that child and are not living with a spouse or partner.

Less than 6.0% (about 2 million) of all fathers of minor children are “solo” dads but 20.2% (about 7 million) are “absent” dads of all of their minor children.

“Solo” dads and “absent” dads both differ from the larger group of roughly 34 million fathers who have at least one child under the age of 18.

For example, they’re both more likely to have never married and to be living with their own parents.

This analysis is based on data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation, which collects detailed information about U.S. families’ economic well-being as well as complete fertility histories for all adults.

What Solo Dads and Absent Dads Have in Common

Within these data, “solo” fathers are defined as men who live with their minor children without a spouse or partner present. “Absent” fathers are those who do not live with any of their minor children.

In many ways, “solo” and “absent” dads seem to be more similar than different, at least when compared to the full population of fathers of minor children.

For example, about 30% of both “solo” and “absent” dads never married, compared to roughly 14% of all fathers of minor children.

Some of this may be explained by the diversity of ways that men approach fathering, diversity that is evident even within these small groups.

Both groups were also about twice as likely as all fathers of minor children to live with at least one parent: 22% of “solo” dads and 24% of “absent” dads live with a parent(s) compared to only 10% of all fathers of minor children.

Additionally, about a quarter of both “absent” and “solo” dads had children with more than one woman, compared to 16% of all fathers of minor children.

These statistics suggest that both groups of so-called “extreme dads” are more likely than average dads with young children to have had kids with multiple women, not to be married when they have them and to rely on their own parents for support.

How Dads Compare

There are also some ways in which these fathers at the extremes differ from each other and from all dads.

For example, about 5% of “solo” and 7% of “absent” dads were married but their spouse lives somewhere else. In contrast, less than 2% of all dads of minor children were married to an absent spouse

This suggests that at least some dads may be “solo” or “absent” due to circumstances beyond their control. “Solo” dads may include men caring for their children while their spouse is deployed with the military, for example.

Almost 5% of “absent” fathers had their child or children lived with them at some point during the year before the survey, and 42% of “absent” fathers said they had at least monthly contact with children living elsewhere.

Additionally, 12% of “solo” fathers lived in the same household with a spouse or partner at some point during the year before the survey.

These numbers suggest that some of the “absent” dads may be more involved with their children than it appears and that some of the “solo” dads may not be as solitary as they appear at first glance.

Still, there are key differences between them and all fathers of minor children. Among them:

These differences paint a complex picture of the opposite ends of the fatherhood spectrum.

The overlap of previously co-resident spouses, partners and children suggests these groups are neither static nor mutually exclusive over time.

How much of this overlap is due to temporary turbulence in the lives of fathers of young children is not evident from the data but statistics suggest “solo” and “absent” fathers are not as different from each other as they seem.

About the Data

Statistics from surveys are subject to sampling and nonsampling error. Further information on the source of the data and accuracy of the estimates, including standard errors and confidence intervals, can be found here.

All comparative statements presented here have undergone statistical testing, and, unless otherwise noted, all comparisons are statistically significant at the 10% significance level. Additional information about the populations discussed here can be found in Supplementary Table 1, “Diverging Dads: Father-only families versus Fathers living apart from children.” For more information about men’s fertility and fatherhood, see the recently released Men’s Fertility Report
Source: www.census.gov/library/stories/2019/11/the-two-extremes-of-fatherhood.html

Can a child be kept a secret from the father? - 12/29/20


In many paternity cases, a man and a woman both know about the pregnancy. The only issue is resolving any questions about paternity. If paternity is in doubt or there may be multiple potential fathers, a paternity test can help determine who has the legal obligation and rights associated with the child.

But what happens if a woman becomes pregnant and does not want the father to know? Can she keep it a secret, or does she have to inform him?

There’s no law that requires a mother to inform the father about a child’s birth

Typically, it’s up to the mother to tell the father that the child exists. She has no legal obligation. If she decides that she doesn’t want to tell the father, she can keep the news to herself — although that may limit her options when it comes to social services and other benefits.

Just the same, some women have done this after getting pregnant in a fast, short relationship with a person they ended up resenting. It was clear that the couple wasn’t a good match. In some cases, a woman may even be nervous to let her young child spend any time with that individual. Both for the sake of safety and for not having to stay in a relationship with that man, she can keep the child’s birth a secret.

Keeping a child’s paternity secret can have long-lasting ramifications for everyone

Naturally, there are consequences to that decision. The child may want to know who his or her father is when they grow up. Perhaps more importantly, however, the child also loses out on their father’s financial support and involvement in their lives. They also lose inheritance rights they might have.

The father may also suffer from the loss of their child’s companionship, which is why many potential fathers seek paternity actions on their own when they learn that a former partner has a child that may be theirs.

A situation like this can naturally get very complicated. If you’re involved in one, on either side of the equation, be sure you know what legal rights you have.
Source: www.southfloridacriminaldefenselawyer.com/blog/2020/12/can-a-child-be-kept-a-secret-from-the-father/#:~:text=Typically%2C%20it's%20up%20to%20the,social%20services%20and%20other%20benefits.

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