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Fathers and Sons

An Effective Practice

Description

Fathers and Sons enhances relationships between African American fathers and their 8-12 year old sons who are not living in the same home. By focusing on effective communication, cultural awareness, and skill building, the program helps participants strengthen their relationship through varied activities, including group discussions, role-switching sessions, and physical activities. The program includes 45 hours of contact between participating fathers and sons as well as homework assignments that are completed between sessions. Families are given memorybooks to document their experiences in the program, which concludes with a graduation ceremony to share accomplishments with the participants' extended families.

The project was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Prevention Research Center of Michigan.

Goal / Mission

The Fathers and Sons Project aims to strengthen the bonds between fathers and sons and promote positive health behaviors.

Results / Accomplishments

Effectiveness of the Fathers and Sons Project was measured by administering pre- and post-tests to 158 participating families and to 129 similar but non-participating father-son pairs. Results indicated that the intervention was promising for enhancing parental monitoring, communication about sex, intentions to communicate, race-related socialization practices, and parenting skills satisfaction among fathers. Sons who participated reported more monitoring by their fathers, improved communication about sex, and increased intentions to avoid violence, but did not demonstrate a reduction in aggressive behaviors due to the intervention.

About this Promising Practice

Organization(s)
Prevention Research Center of Michigan
Primary Contact
Cleopatra Caldwell, Ph.D.
2846 SPH I
1415 Washington Heights
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029
734-647-3176
cleoc@umich.edu
http://www.sph.umich.edu/iscr/faculty/profile.cfm?...
Topics
Community / Social Environment
Health / Children's Health
Organization(s)
Prevention Research Center of Michigan
Source
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Date of publication
2010
Date of implementation
2003
Geographic Type
Urban
Location
Flint, MI
For more details
Target Audience
Families, Racial/Ethnic Minorities