The following statistics indicate how important it is for fathers to be an active participant in their children’s lives.
Fatherless children are 100-200% more likely to have emotional and behavioral problems according to the National Center on Health Statistics.
Fatherless sons are 300% more likely to be incarcerated in state juvenile institutions. Fatherless daughters are 164% more likely to give birth to an illegitimate child.
71% of pregnant teens are from fatherless homes.
Fatherless daughters are 92% more likely to fail in their own marriages.
Fatherless men are 35% more likely to experience marital failure.
90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes.
75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers are from fatherless homes.
Children from father absent homes make up 63% of youth suicides.
85% of children who exhibit anti-social behavior disorders are from fatherless homes.
72% of adolescent murderers grew up in fatherless homes.
Fatherless sons are more than twice as likely to engage in some kind of criminal activity. Fatherless daughters are 53% more likely to get married in their teenage years.
Fatherless young adults are twice as likely to need psychological help.
More than 70% of all juveniles in state reform institutions come from fatherless homes.
I wonder how much of this is about “not having a father around” and how much of it is “socioeconomic issues” that tend to arise when the father’s not around. In other words, I think that if you separate the “father” issue from the “economic” issue a reasonable portion – but not all – of these negative effects disappear. To be clear, I think that having both parents around is going to be better the vast majority of the time. But, I do think these stats are misleading without an overlay of economic issues.
