Projects
Engaging Fathers and Paternal Relatives in Continuous Learning for Better Childhood Outcomes
2017–2023
Project Overview
Objective
To build knowledge about how collaborating with system partners and continuously using data to make improvements in engagement strategies can create a child welfare culture that thinks about and engages fathers and paternal relatives.
Project Motivation
Father involvement is associated with important outcomes for children, including reduced likelihood of entry into foster care, shorter periods of time in foster care, and increased rates of reunification.
Partners in Progress
University of Denver
Prepared For
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families
Evidence suggests that positive father involvement can improve a range of well-being outcomes for children. Father involvement is also associated with reduced likelihood of entry into foster care, shorter periods of time in foster care, and increased rates of reunification.
Despite the potential for positive impacts of father involvement, systematic reviews of strategies to engage fathers and paternal relatives in child welfare cases reveal little empirical evidence to guide practice. In addition, despite increased emphasis on engaging fathers and paternal relatives, the hoped for improvement in outcomes has not been realized. This project attempted to fill this gap and address the longstanding challenge of engaging fathers and their relatives in the child welfare system.
Mathematica and the University of Denver are conducted this project under contract with the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE), within the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) and the Children’s Bureau (CB) were partners in this project.
The project involved two phases, a pilot study and an evaluation that implemented and tested the use of the Breakthrough Series Collaborative (BSC) to strengthen the engagement of fathers and paternal relatives . The BSC, developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, involves the use of Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles for rapid, small tests of change in five sites. Participating sites tracked and reported on specific measures, monitoring progress and improvements over time. In addition, participating sites collaborated within and across-sites, through learning sessions, conference calls, and other systematic means of communication for shared learning. Sites were supported by experts in the field. Based on the shared learning and successful small tests of change, sites were expected to spread change through their agencies. This work built knowledge about how collaborating with system partners and continuously using data to make improvements in engagement strategies can create a child wellbeing culture that thinks about and engages fathers and paternal relatives.
This project started in September 2017 and ran through September 2023.
Evidence & Insights From This Project
Publication
A Pathway to Engaging Fathers and Paternal Relatives in Child Welfare
This infographic shows opportunities to engage fathers in a child welfare case and gives examples of potentially promising engagement strategies.
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