Fathers of Young Children with Disabilities in the United States: Current Status and Implications (Report‪)‬

Showing sensitivity to families of children with disabilities has been a foundation of early childhood special education service delivery in the United States for many years. Currently mandated by federal legislation (e.g., the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004), "family-centered" services are an underpinning of current service delivery approaches for young children with disabilities and their families. Unfortunately, the design and delivery of these family-centered services shows that fathers are treated as an afterthought (Meyer, 1995; Turbiville & Marquis, 2001), resulting in a smaller family-centered knowledge base to guide education professionals (Dyer, McBride, Santos, & Jeans, 2009; Fatherhood Institute, 2007; Social Care Institute for Excellence, 2005; Turbiville & Marquis, 2001). Despite this small knowledge base, education professionals must persist in their efforts to understand fathers' roles, responsibilities, needs, and life circumstances (Davis & Carter, 2008). Reported experiences of fathers of children with disabilities are diverse and include 1) "distressed" marital relationships (Risdal & Singer 2004); 2) lack of information about resources (West, 2000); 3) an array of outcomes--both positive and negative--in response to their children's disabilities (Meyer, 1995; Young & Roopnarine, 1994); and 4) varying levels of stress when compared to their partners (Wanamaker & Glenwick, 1998). The remainder of this article examines the extant research knowledge base since 1999, and presents key findings and practitioner recommendations to guide family-centered practice.