Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Family Economic Stress, Quality of Paternal Relationship, and Depressive Symptoms Among African American Adolescent Fathers

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Child and Family Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study examined the association between perceived family economic stress, quality of father–son relationships, and depressive symptoms among African American adolescent fathers. Data were collected during pregnancy from 65 African American adolescents who were first-time fathers, ages 14–19. Results from multiple regression analyses indicated that higher paternal relationship satisfaction was associated with fewer depressive symptoms among adolescent fathers. Additionally, depressive symptoms were higher among adolescent fathers who reported experiencing higher levels of conflict with their fathers. Further, paternal conflict moderated the effect of perceived family economic stress on depressive symptoms. That is, among adolescent fathers experiencing low levels of conflict with their fathers, high perceived family economic stress was associated with more depressive symptoms. Study findings suggest that the risk for depressive symptoms is highest among adolescent fathers experiencing low family economic stress and highly conflictual relations with their fathers. These results highlight the complexities of paternal relationships and perceived economic stressors on depressive symptoms during pregnancy for African American adolescent fathers. The importance of expanding research on influential familial relationships and economic stressors on adolescent African American fathers is discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ajrouch, K. J., Antonucci, T. C., & Janevic, M. R. (2001). Social networks among blacks and whites the interaction between race and age. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 56(2), S112–S118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alegría, M., Chatterji, P., Wells, K., Cao, Z., Chen, C. N., Takeuchi, D., et al. (2008). Disparity in depression treatment among racial and ethnic minority populations in the United States. Psychiatric Services, 59(11), 1264–1272.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, E. A., Kohler, J. K., & Letiecq, B. L. (2005). Predictors of depression among low-income, nonresidential fathers. Journal of Family Issues, 26(5), 547–567.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Antonucci, T. C. (1986). Measuring social support networks: Hierarchical mapping technique. Generations, 10(4), 10–12.

  • Antonucci, T. C., & Akiyama, H. (1987). Social networks in adult life and a preliminary examination of the convoy model. Journal of Gerontology, 42(5), 519–527.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bailey, R. K., Patel, M., Barker, N. C., Ali, S., & Jabeen, S. (2011). Major depressive disorder in the African American population. Journal of the National Medical Association, 103(7), 548–557.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barber, J. G., & Delfabbro, P. (2000). Predictors of adolescent adjustment: Parent–peer relationships and parent–child conflict. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 17(4), 275–288.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrera, M, Jr., Caples, H., & Tein, J. Y. (2001). The psychological sense of economic hardship: Measurement models, validity, and cross-ethnic equivalence for urban families. American Journal of Community Psychology, 29(3), 493–517.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barrera, M, Jr., Prelow, H. M., Dumka, L. E., Gonzales, N. A., Knight, G. P., Michaels, M. L., et al. (2002). Pathways from economic conditions to adolescents’ distress: Supportive parenting, stressors outside the family, and deviant peers. Journal of Community Psychology, 30(2), 135–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Black, M. M., Dubowitz, H., & Starr, R. H, Jr. (1999). African American fathers in low income, urban families: Development, behavior, and home environment of their three-year-old children. Child Development, 70(4), 967–978.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Breland-Noble, A. M., Bell, C. C., & Burriss, A. (2011). “Mama just won’t accept this”: Adult perspectives on engaging depressed African American teens in clinical research and treatment. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings, 18(3), 225–234.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Breland-Noble, A. M., Bell, C., & Nicolas, G. (2006). Family first: The development of an evidence-based family intervention for increasing participation in psychiatric clinical care and research in depressed African American adolescents. Family Process, 45(2), 153–169.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Breslau, J., Kendler, K. S., Su, M., Gaxiola-Aguilar, S., & Kessler, R. C. (2005). Lifetime risk and persistence of psychiatric disorders across ethnic groups in the United States. Psychological Medicine, 35(3), 317–327.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bronte-Tinkew, J., Horowitz, A., & Carrano, J. (2010). Aggravation and stress in parenting: Associations with coparenting and father engagement among resident fathers. Journal of Family Issues, 31, 525–555.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bryant, A. L., & Zimmerman, M. A. (2003). Role models and psychosocial outcomes among African American adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Research, 18(1), 36–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buckingham-Howes, S., Oberlander, S. E., Hurley, K. M., Fitzmaurice, S., & Black, M. M. (2011). Trajectories of adolescent Mother-grandmother psychological conflict during early parenting and children’s problem behaviors at age 7. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 40(3), 445–455.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bzostek, S. H. (2008). Social fathers and child well-being. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70(4), 950–961.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheng, Y. H., Chi, I., Boey, K. W., Ko, L. S. F., & Chou, K. L. (2002). Self-rated economic condition and the health of elderly persons in Hong Kong. Social Science and Medicine, 55(8), 1415–1424.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, S. (2004). Social relationships and health. American Psychologist, 59(8), 676.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Coley, R. L., & Chase-Lansdale, P. L. (2000). Welfare receipt, financial strain, and African-American adolescent functioning. Social Service Review, 74(3), 380–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Condon, J. T., Boyce, P., & Corkindale, C. J. (2004). The first-time fathers study: a prospective study of the mental health and wellbeing of men during the transition to parenthood. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 38(1–2), 56–64.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Conger, R. D., Conger, K. J., Elder, G. H., Lorenz, F. O., Simons, R. L., & Whitbeck, L. B. (1992). A family process model of economic hardship and adjustment of early adolescent boys. Child Development, 63(3), 526–541.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dallas, C. M., & Chen, S. P. C. (1998). Experiences of African American adolescent fathers. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 20(2), 210–222.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Das, A. K., Olfson, M., McCurtis, H. L., & Weissman, M. M. (2006). Depression in African Americans: Breaking barriers to detection and treatment. Journal of Family Practice, 55(1), 30.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, A. A. (2002). Younger and older African American adolescent mothers’ relationships with their mothers and female peers. Journal of Adolescent Research, 17(5), 491–508.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dellmann-Jenkins, M. S., Sattler, S. H., & Richardson, R. A. (1993). Adolescent parenting: A positive, intergenerational approach. Families in Society, 74(10), 590–601.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fagan, J., Barnett, M., Bernd, E., & Whiteman, V. (2003). Prenatal involvement of adolescent unmarried fathers. Fathering: A Journal of Theory, Research, and Practice about Men as Fathers, 1(3), 283–301.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fagan, J., Bernd, E., & Whiteman, V. (2007). Adolescent fathers’ parenting stress, social support, and involvement with infants. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 17(1), 1–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fagan, J., & Lee, Y. (2011). Do coparenting and social support have a greater effect on adolescent fathers than adult fathers? Family Relations, 60(3), 247–258.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fortuna, L. R., Alegria, M., & Gao, S. (2010). Retention in depression treatment among ethnic and racial minority groups in the United States. Depression and Anxiety, 27(5), 485–494.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Garrison, C. Z., Addy, C. L., Jackson, K. L., McKeown, R. E., & Waller, J. L. (1991). The CES-D as a screen for depression and other psychiatric disorders in adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 30(4), 636–641.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Garrison, C. Z., Schoenbach, V. J., Schluchter, M. D., & Kaplan, B. H. (1987). Life events in early adolescence. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 26(6), 865–872.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gee, C. B., & Rhodes, J. E. (2003). Adolescent mothers’ relationship with their children’s biological fathers: Social support, social strain and relationship continuity. Journal of Family Psychology, 17(3), 370.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Givens, J. L., Houston, T. K., Van Voorhees, B. W., Ford, D. E., & Cooper, L. A. (2007). Ethnicity and preferences for depression treatment. General Hospital Psychiatry, 29(3), 182–191.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Glikman, H. (2004). Low-income young fathers: Contexts, connections, and self. Social Work, 49(2), 195–206.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hamer, J. (2001). What it means to be daddy: Fatherhood for black men living away from their children. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Herzog, M. J., Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Madden-Derdich, D. A., & Leonard, S. A. (2007). Adolescent mothers’ perceptions of fathers’ parental involvement: Satisfaction and desire for involvement. Family Relations, 56(3), 244–257.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hurd, N. M., Zimmerman, M. A., & Xue, Y. (2009). Negative adult influences and the protective effects of role models: A study with urban adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 38(6), 777–789.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jayakody, R., & Kalil, A. (2002). Social fathering in low-income, African American families with preschool children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64(2), 504–516.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim, M. B. M. (2010). Fathering in low-income black families. In R. L. Coles & C. Green (Eds.), The myth of the missing black father (pp. 147–169). New York: Columbia University.

  • Kim, K. J., Conger, R. D., Lorenz, F. O., & Elder, G. H, Jr. (2001). Parent–adolescent reciprocity in negative affect and its relation to early adult social development. Developmental Psychology, 37(6), 775–790.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • King, V., Harris, K. M., & Heard, H. E. (2004). Racial and ethnic diversity in nonresident father involvement. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 66(1), 1–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kinnunen, U., & Pulkkinen, L. (1998). Linking economic stress to marital quality among Finnish marital couples mediator effects. Journal of Family Issues, 19(6), 705–724.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LaRossa, R. (1995). Stories and relationships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 12(4), 553–558.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lavee, Y., Sharlin, S., & Katz, R. (1996). The effect of parenting stress on marital quality an integrated mother–father model. Journal of Family Issues, 17(1), 114–135.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, Y., Fagan, J., & Chen, W. Y. (2012). Do late adolescent fathers have more depressive symptoms than older fathers? Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41(10), 1366–1381.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Letiecq, B. (2010). African American men rearing children in violent neighborhoods. In R. L. Coles & C. Green (Eds.), The myth of the missing black father (pp. 92–211). New York: Columbia University.

  • Lincoln, K. D., & Chae, D. H. (2012). Emotional support, negative interaction and major depressive disorder among African Americans and Caribbean Blacks: Findings from the National Survey of American Life. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 47(3), 361–372.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lindsey, M. A., Korr, W. S., Broitman, M., Bone, L., Green, A., & Leaf, P. J. (2006). Help-seeking behaviors and depression among African American adolescent boys. Social Work, 51(1), 49–58.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Marsiglio, W., Amato, P., Day, R. D., & Lamb, M. E. (2000). Scholarship on fatherhood in the 1990s and beyond. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62(4), 1173–1191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLoyd, V. C., Jayaratne, T., Ceballo, R., & Borquez, J. (1994). Unemployment and work interruption among African American single mothers: Effects on parenting and adolescent socioemotional functioning. Child Development, 65, 562–589.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Meeus, W. H., Branje, S. J., van der Valk, I., & de Wied, M. (2007). Relationships with intimate partner, best friend, and parents in adolescence and early adulthood: A study of the saliency of the intimate partnership. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 31(6), 569–580.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merikangas, K. R., He, J. P., Burstein, M., Swanson, S. A., Avenevoli, S., Cui, L., & Swendsen, J. (2010). Lifetime prevalence of mental disorders in US adolescents: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication–Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A). Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 49(10), 980–989.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miller-Loncar, C. L., Erwin, L. J., Landry, S. H., Smith, K. E., & Swank, P. R. (1998). Characteristics of social support networks of low socioeconomic status African American, Anglo American, and Mexican American mothers of full-term and preterm infants. Journal of Community Psychology, 26(2), 131–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, T. J. (2004). Low income fathers. Annual Review of Sociology, 30, 427–451.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parker, J. S., & Benson, M. J. (2004). Parent-adolescent relations and adolescent functioning: Self-esteem, substance abuse, and delinquency. Adolescence, 39(155), 519–530.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Paschal, A. M. (2006). Voices of African-American teen fathers: “I’m doing what I got to do”. New York, NY: Haworth Press.

  • Quinlivan, J. A., & Condon, J. (2005). Anxiety and depression in fathers in teenage pregnancy. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 39(10), 915–920.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D scale a self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1(3), 385–401.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Radloff, L. S. (1991). The use of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale in adolescents and young adults. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 20(2), 149–166.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, R. E., Andrews, J. A., Lewinsohn, P. M., & Hops, H. (1990). Assessment of depression in adolescents using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Psychological Assessment: A Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 2(2), 122.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roy, K. M. (2006). Father stories a life course examination of paternal identity among low-income African American men. Journal of Family Issues, 27(1), 31–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saleh, M. F., & Hilton, J. M. (2011). A comparison of the paternal involvement of low-income fathers in four developmental stages: Adolescence, young adult, adult, and midlife. The Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 19, 47–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salem, D. A., Zimmerman, M. A., & Notaro, P. C. (1998). Effects of family structure, family process, and father involvement on psychosocial outcomes among African American adolescents. Family Relations, 47(4), 331–341.

  • Sarason, I. G., Pierce, G. R., & Sarason, B. R. (1994). General and specific perceptions of social support. In W. R. Avison & I. H. Gotlieb (Eds.), Stress and mental health: Contemporary issues and prospects for the future (pp. 151–178). New York, NY: Plenum Press.

  • Schumacher, M., Zubaran, C., & White, G. (2008). Bringing birth-related paternal depression to the fore. Women and Birth, 21(2), 65.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sellers, K., Black, M. M., Boris, N. W., Oberlander, S. E., & Myers, L. (2011). Adolescent mothers’ relationships with their own mothers: Impact on parenting outcomes. Journal of Family Psychology, 25(1), 117.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Settersten, R. A, Jr., & Cancel-Tirado, D. (2010). Fatherhood as a hidden variable in men’s development and life courses. Research in human development, 7(2), 83–102.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sheeber, L., Hops, H., Alpert, A., Davis, B., & Andrews, J. (1997). Family support and conflict: Prospective relations to adolescent depression. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 25(4), 333–344.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smetana, J. G., Metzger, A., & Campione-Barr, N. (2004). African American late adolescents’ relationships with parents: Developmental transitions and longitudinal patterns. Child Development, 75(3), 932–947.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Thomas, P. A., Krampe, E. M., & Newton, R. R. (2008). Father presence, family structure, and feelings of closeness to the father among adult African American children. Journal of Black Studies, 38(4), 529–546.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitbeck, L. B., Simons, R. L., Conger, R. D., Wickrama, K. A. S., Ackley, K. A., & Elder Jr., G. H. (1997). The effects of parents’ working conditions and family economic hardship on parenting behaviors and children’s self-efficacy. Social Psychology Quarterly, 60, 291–303.

  • Williams, D. R., Gonzalez, H. M., Neighbors, H., Nesse, R., Abelson, J. M., Sweetman, J., & Jackson, J. S. (2007). Prevalence and distribution of major depressive disorder in African Americans, Caribbean blacks, and non-Hispanic whites: Results from the National Survey of American Life. Archives of General Psychiatry, 64(3), 305.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, T. T., Mance, G., Caldwell, C. H., & Antonucci, T. C. (2012). The role of prenatal stress and maternal emotional support on the postpartum depressive symptoms of African American adolescent fathers. Journal of Black Psychology, 38(4), 455–470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zayas, L. H., Cunningham, M., McKee, M. D., & Jankowski, K. R. (2002). Depression and negative life events among pregnant African-American and Hispanic women. Women’s Health Issues, 12(1), 16–22.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zimmerman, M. A., Salem, D. A., & Maton, K. I. (1995). Family structure and psychosocial correlates among Urban African-American Adolescent males. Child Development, 66(6), 1598–1613.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number 5 P01 MH058565-08.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Research on Ethnicity, Culture and Health, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, 1415 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2029, USA

    Cleopatra H. Caldwell

  2. School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1350 University Ave, Madison, WI, 53706-1510, USA

    Tenah K. A. Hunt

  3. Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, 4250 Plymouth Rd., Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2700, USA

    Shervin Assari

Authors
  1. Tenah K. A. Hunt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Cleopatra H. Caldwell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Shervin Assari
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tenah K. A. Hunt.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hunt, T.K.A., Caldwell, C.H. & Assari, S. Family Economic Stress, Quality of Paternal Relationship, and Depressive Symptoms Among African American Adolescent Fathers. J Child Fam Stud 24, 3067–3078 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-015-0112-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-015-0112-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation