African-American fathers' involvement with infants: Relationship to their functioning style, support, education, and income

Using the cultural and human ecology models as a guide, African-American fathers' involvement with infants as a function of whether their wife worked full-time or part-time, and the association between father involvement and fathers' functional styles within the family, family support, income, and education were examined. Fathers were less likely to engage in and devote time to basic caregiving activities than were mothers. Paternal investment in childcare did not differ as a function of whether wives worked full-time or part-time outside of the home. Fathers were more likely to invest time in playing with the infant than in feeding or cleaning. Fathers' ability to communicate effectively within the family and their commitment to the family were significantly associated with their degree of involvement in feeding and comforting infants. The data are discussed with respect to role differentiation in caregiving in African-American families.