Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Father-Child Involvement in English-Speaking Caribbean Countries: Links to Childhood Development

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Father Involvement in Young Children’s Lives

Part of the book series: Educating the Young Child ((EDYC,volume 6))

Abstract

The social-structural familial arrangements, beliefs about fatherhood and fathering, levels of father involvement, and the meaning of paternal involvement for childhood development are considered in English-speaking Indo-Caribbean and African-Caribbean families. Fatherhood occurs in diverse mating unions and fathers hold traditional beliefs about men’s roles that are steeped in hegemonic models of manhood. Levels of involvement are comparable to those of fathers in other developing societies. Family process variables such as stable living arrangements, cohesion, warmth and affection, and adaptability appear more influential in determining developmental outcomes than family structure. Policies and practices that may encourage male participation with children are suggested.

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

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Ahmeduzzaman, M., & Roopnarine, J. L. (1992). Sociodemographic factors, functioning style, social support, and fathers’ involvement with preschoolers in African-American families. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 54, 699–707.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, P. (2007). The changing roles of fathers in the context of Jamaican family life. Kingston: Planning Institute of Jamaica and the University of the West Indies.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, S., & Payne, M. (1994). Corporal punishment in elementary education: Views of Barbadian school children. Child Abuse and Neglect, 18, 377–386.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aunola, K., & Nurmi, J. E. (2005). The role of parenting styles in children’s problem behavior. Child Development, 76, 1144–1159.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barber, B. K. (1996). Parental psychological control: Revisiting a neglected construct. Child Development, 67, 3296–3319.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrow, C. (1998). Family in the Caribbean: Themes and perspectives. Kingston: Ian Randle.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baumrind, D. (1967). Child care practices anteceding three patterns of preschool behavior. Genetic Psychology Monographs, 75, 43–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Belsky, J., Steinberg, L., & Draper, P. (1991). Childhood experience, interpersonal development, and reproductive strategy: An evolutionary theory of socialization. Child Development, 62, 647–670.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benetti, S. P., & Roopnarine, J. L. (2006). Paternal involvement with school-aged children in Brazilian families: Association with childhood competence. Sex Roles, 55, 669–678.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, J., & Barker, G. (2003). Global diversity and trends in patterns of fatherhood. In Supporting fathers: Contributions from the International Fatherhood Summit 2003. The Hague: Bernard van Leer Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, J., Newland, A., Anderson, P., & Chevannes, B. (1997). In J. L. Roopnarine and J. Brown (Eds.), Caribbean families: Diversity among ethnic groups (pp. 85–113). Norwood: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cabrera, N., Fitzgerald, H. E., Bradely, R. H., & Roggman, L. (2007). Modeling the dynamics of paternal influences on children over the life course. Applied Developmental Science, 11, 185–189.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crawford-Brown, C. (1997). The impact of parent-child socialization on the development of conduct disorder in Jamaican male adolescents. In J. L. Roopnarine and J. Brown (Eds.), Caribbean families: Diversity among ethnic groups (pp. 205–222) Norwood: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crawford-Brown, C. (1999). Who will survive our children? The plight of the Jamaican child in the 1990s. Kingston: Canoe Press, University of the West Indies.

    Google Scholar 

  • Curtin, P. (1975). Measuring the Atlantic Slave Trade. In S. L. Engerman, and E. D. Genevose (Eds.), Race and slavery in the western hemisphere: Quantitative studies (pp. 107–128). Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Convention on the Rights of the Child. (2006). United Nations, Committee on the Rights of the Child. Geneva, Switzerland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dabydeen, D., & Samaroo, B. (1994). Across the dark water: Ethnicity and Indian identity in the Caribbean. London: Macmillan Caribbean.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darling, N., & Steinberg, L. (1993). Parenting style as context: An integrative model. Psychological Bulletin, 113, 487–496.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dann, G. (1987). The Barbadian male: Sexual beliefs and attitudes. London and Bassingstoke: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Day, R. D., & Lamb, M. E. (Eds.). (2004). Conceptualixing and measuring father involvement. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deen, S. (1995). Research into Indian family history in Trinidad. Paper presented at ISER-NCIC Conference on challenge and change. University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deerr, N. (1949–1950). The history of sugar. 2 volumes. London: Chapman and Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Draper, P., & Harpending, H. (1982). Father absence and reproductive strategy: An evolutionary perspective. Journal of Anthropological Research, 38, 255–273.

    Google Scholar 

  • Draper, P., & Harpending, H. (1987). Parent investment and the child’s environment. In J. Lancaster, J. Altmann, A. Rossi, and L. Sherrod (Eds.), Parenting across the lifespan: Biosocial dimensions (pp. 207–235). New York: Aldine de Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flinn, M. (1992). Paternal care in a Caribbean village. In B. Hewlett (Ed.), Father-child relations: Cultural and biosocial contexts (pp. 57–84). New York: Aldine de Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frazier, E. F. (1951). The Negro family in the United States. New York: Dryden Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gershoff, E. T. (2002). Corporal punishment by parents and associated child behaviors and experiences: A meta-analytic and theoretical review. Psychological Bulletin, 128, 539–579.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodnow, J. J., & Collins, W. A. (1990). Development according to parents: The nature, sources, and consequences of parents’ ideas. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grey, P. B., & Anderson, K. G. (2010). Fatherhood: Evolution and paternal behavior. Cambridge: Harvard University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Handwerker, W. P. (1996). Power and gender: violence and affection experienced by children in Barbados, West Indies. Medical Anthropology, 17, 101–128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herskovits, M. J. (1941). The myth of the Negro past. Boston: Beacon.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hewlett, B. S. (2004). Fathers in forager, farmer, and pastoral cultures. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (4th ed., pp. 182–195). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hossain, Z., & Roopnarine, J. L. (1994). African-American fathers’ involvement with infants: Relationship to their functioning styles, support, education, and income. Infant Behavior and Development, 17, 175–184.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hossain, Z., Roopnarine, J. L., Masud, J., Muhamed, A. A., Baharudin, R., Abdullah, R., & Jahur, R. (2005). Mothers’ and fathers’ childcare involvement with young children in rural families in Malaysia. International Journal of Psychology, 40, 385–394.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hossain, Z., Roopnarine, J. L., Isamel, R., Menon, S., Sombuling, A. (2008). Fathers’ and mothers’ reports of involvement in caring for infants in Kadazan families in Sabah, Malaysia. Fathering, 5, 58–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kakar, S. (1991). The inner world. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, M. (Ed.). (2010). The role of the father in child development (5th ed.). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, M. E., Pleck, J. H., Charnov, E. L., & Levine, J. A. (1987). A biosocial perspective on paternal behavior and involvement. In J. B. Lancaster, J. Altman, A. Rossi, and L. R. Sherrod (Eds.), Parenting across the life span: Biosocial perspectives (pp. 111–142). New York: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lansford, J. E., Chang, L., Dodge, K. A., Malone, P. S., Oburu, P., Palmerus, K., et al. (2005). Physical discipline and children’s adjustment: Cultural normativeness as a moderator. Child Development, 76, 134–1236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leo-Rhynie, E. (1997). Class, race, and gender issues in child rearing in the Caribbean. In J. L. Roopnarine and J. Brown (Eds.), Caribbean families: Diversity among ethnic groups (pp. 25–55). Norwood: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Low, B. S. (2005). Families: An evolutionary anthropological perspective. In J. L. Roopnarine and U. P. Gielen (Eds.), Families in global perspective (pp. 14–32). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marlowe, F. (1999). Showoffs or providers? The parenting effort of Hadza men. Evolution and Human Behavior, 20, 391–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marlowe, F. (2000). Paternal investment and the human mating system. Behavioral Processes, 51, 45–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mcalanahan, S., & Carlson, M. (2004). Fathers in fragile families. In M. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (pp. 368–396). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morisson, J., Ispa, J., & Milner, V. (1998). Ideas about childrearing among Jamaican mothers and early childhood education teachers. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 12, 166–175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munroe, R., & Munroe, R. (1992). Fathers in children’s environments: A four culture study. In B. Hewlett (Ed.), Father-child relations: Cultural and biosocial contexts. (pp. 213–229). New York: Aldine de Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nevadomsky, J. (1980a). Abandoning the renetionist model: Family and marriage change among the East Indians in rural Trinidad. International Journal of Sociology of the Family, 10, 181–197.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nevadomsky, J. (1980b). Changes over time and space in the East Indian family in rural Trinidad. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 11, 433–456.

    Google Scholar 

  • Payne, M. (1989). Use and abuse of corporal punishment: A Caribbean view. Child Abuse and Neglect, 13, 389–401.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Payne, M. A., & Furnham, A. (1992). Parental self-reports of child rearing practices in the Caribbean. Journal of Black Psychology, 18, 19–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Palkovitz, R. (2002). Involved fathering and child development: Advancing our understanding of good fathering. In C. Tamis-LeMonda and N. Cabrera (Eds.), Handbook of father involvement (pp. 119–140). Mahwah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pant, P., Roopnarine, J. L., Krishnakumar, A. (2008). Parenting styles among Indo –Guyanese Fathers: Links to early cognitive and social development. Paper presented at the Society for Cross-Cultural Research, New Orleans.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pleck, J. H., & Masciadrelli, B. P. (2004). Paternal involvement by U. S. residential fathers: Levels, sources and consequences. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (4th ed., pp. 222–270). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pleck, J. H. (2010). Paternal involvement: Revised conceptualization and theoretical linkages with child outcomes. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (5th ed., pp. 67–107). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pottinger, A. M. (2005). Children’s experience of loss by parental migration in inner-city Jamaica. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 75, 485–496.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quinlan, R. J., & Flinn, M. V. (2003). Intergenerational transmission of conjugal stability in a Caribbean community. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 34, 569–583.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramdin, R. (2000). Arising from bondage: A history of the Indo-Caribbean people. New York: New York University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramkissoon, M. W. (2002). The psychology of fathering in the Caribbean: An investigation of the physical and psychological presence of the Jamaican father. Unpublished Masters Thesis, University of West Indies, Mona, Jamaica.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rohner, R. P., Kean, K. J., & Cournoyer, D. E. (1991). Effects of corporal punishment, perceived caretaker warmth, and cultural beliefs on the psychological adjustment of children in St. Kitts, West Indies. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 53, 681–693.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L. (2005). The Roving Caregiver Program in Jamaica: Its theoretical and research foundations and efficacy. Bernard van Leer Foundation and Caribbean Strategic Initiative: The Hague and Bridgetown.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L. (2007, June). Missing fathers: Impact on childhood development. Paper presented at the 8th Annual World Family Policy Forum. Ruben Clark Law School, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L. (2011). Cultural variations in beliefs about play, parent-child play, and children’s play: Meaning for childhood development. In A. Pellegrini (Ed.), Oxford handbook on play. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L., & Ahmeduzzaman, M. (1993). Puerto Rican fathers’ involvement with their preschool age children. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 15, 96–107.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L., Brown, J., Snell-White, P., Riegraf, N. B., Crossley, D., Hossain, Z., et al. (1995). Father involvement in child care and household work in common-law dual-earner and single-earner families. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 16, 35–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L., & Krishnakumar, A. (2010). Parenting styles and childhood outcomes in Trinidadian families. Paper presented at the Society for Cross-Cultural Research, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L., Krishnakumar, A., Metindogan, A., & Evans, M. (2006). Links among parenting styles, academic socialization, and the early academic and social skills of pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten-age children of English-speaking Caribbean immigrants. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 21, 238–252.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, J. L., Krishnakumar, A., Xu, Y. (2009). Beliefs about mothers’ and fathers’ roles and the division of childcare and household labor in Indo-Caribbean immigrant families. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 15, 173–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roopnarine, L. (2006). Indo-Caribbean indenture: Resistance and accommodation, 1838–1920. Mona: University of the West Indies Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Samms-Vaughan, M. (2005). The Jamaican pre-school child: The status of early childhood development in Jamaica. Kingston: Planning Institute of Jamaica.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sargent, C., & Harris, M. (1992). Gender ideology, childrearing, and child health in Jamaica. American Ethnologist, 19, 523–537.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shweder, R. (1982). Beyond self-constructed knowledge: The study of culture and morality. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 28, 41–69.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sigel, I., & McGillicuddy-DeLisi, A. (2002). Parental beliefs are cognitions: The dynamic belief systems model. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook on parenting (2nd ed., Vol. 3). Mawah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silverstein, L., Auerbach, C., Woldenberg, C. Z., Pegaro, A., & Tacher, S. (2003). Creolization: Latino fathers constructing new father identities. Unpublished manuscript, New York, Yeshiva University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh, S. (2005). The Indo-Trinidadian family in transition: Historical and contemporary perspective. Retrieved from http://www.saxakali.com/indocarib/sojourner4.html. Accessed on 23 September 2005.

  • Smith, R. T. (1996). The matrifocal family: Power, pluralism, and politics. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sorkhabi, N. (2005). Applicability of Baumrind’s parent typology to collective cultures: Analysis of cultural explanations of parent socialization effects. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29, 552–563.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spijk, J. V., Rosmberg, C., & Janssens, W. (2008). RCP impact evaluation in St. Lucia. Amsterdam: Amsterdam Institute for International Development.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sun, L. C., & Roopnarine, J. L. (1996). Mother-infant, father-infant interaction and involvement in childcare and household labor among Taiwanese families. Infant Behavior and Development, 19, 121–129.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Super, C., & Harkness, S. (1997). The cultural structuring of child development. In J. Berry, P. Dasen, and T. Saraswathi (Eds.), Handbook of cross-cultural psychology. Vol. 2: Basic processes and human development (pp. 1–39). Needham: Allyn & Bacon.

    Google Scholar 

  • Suppal, P., & Roopnarine, J. L. (1999). Paternal involvement in childcare as a function of maternal employment in nuclear and extended families in India. Sex Roles, 40, 731–744.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tamis-LeMonda, C. S., & McFadden, K. E. (2010). Fathers from low-income backgrounds: Myths and evidence. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (5th ed.). Hoboken: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Der Veer, P., & Vertovec, S. (1991). Brahmanism abroad: On Caribbean Hinduism as an ethnic religion, Ethnology, 30, 149–166.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, S., Brown, J., & Roopnarine, J. L. (2006). Childrearing in the Caribbean: Technical report. Barbados: Caribbean Child Support Initiative.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, L. C. (1989). Family and structure and dynamics in the Caribbean: An examination of residential and relational matrifocality in Guyana. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Michigan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, L. C., & Kposowa, A. J. (1994). Paternal involvement with children: Evidence from Guyana. International Journal of Sociology of the Family, 24, 23–42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, L. C., Williams, D., & Williams, K. (1992). Family structure and mental health in Guyana. Anthropology, 10, 117–126.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang, C., Hart, C. H., Nelson, D. A., Porter, C. L., Olsen, S. F., Robinson, C. C., et al. (2003). Fathering in a Beijing, Chinese sample: Associations with boys’ and girls’ negative emotionality and aggression. In R. Day and M. Lamb (Eds.), Reconceptualizing and measuring fatherhood (pp. 185–215). Mahwah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yeung, W. J., Sandberg, J. F., Davis-Kean, P. E., & Hofferth, S. L. (2001). Children’s time with fathers in intact families. Journal of Marriage and Family, 63 , 136–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child and Family Studies, Syracuse University, 426 Ostrom Avenue, 13244, Syracuse, NY, USA

    Jaipaul L. Roopnarine

Authors
  1. Jaipaul L. Roopnarine
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jaipaul L. Roopnarine .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Department of Teacher Education, California State University, Bellflower Boulevard 1250, Long Beach, 90840-2201, California, USA

    Jyotsna Pattnaik

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Roopnarine, J. (2013). Father-Child Involvement in English-Speaking Caribbean Countries: Links to Childhood Development. In: Pattnaik, J. (eds) Father Involvement in Young Children’s Lives. Educating the Young Child, vol 6. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5155-2_11

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation