Southern California Family Law Attorney Blog

As the economy stagnates and recovers, and society changes what is viewed as a traditional family, the dynamic of families in California and throughout the rest of the country may change. Traditionally, most single parents were women, and women stayed home to care for their children and keep the home while the husband was working and supporting the family financially. Changes in the demographic of the American family may be responsible for increasing the number of single fathers who have child custody of their children after a divorce.

The Pew Research Center has recently seen several significant changes regarding the presence of fathers in single homes and caring for their children. Not only is the number of single dads growing, but also homes with single dads are more likely to have a partner present in the home.

The number of single fathers has risen nine times since it was first measured over five decades ago, although single fathers still make up a relatively small percentage of the total number of single parents in the country. Single fathers are also more likely to be younger, make less money and of an ethnicity that is not predominantly white.

Some experts feel the rising numbers can be attributed to the higher divorce rate and the increasing likelihood of children being born outside of a marriage, as opposed to corresponding rates when the numbers were first studied. Regardless of the reasons, these numbers may suggest that many people are taking the role of a father in a child’s life more seriously, and more fathers are working to find a balance between home and work.

Source: Huffington Post, "Single fathers: Pew Research reports number of single dads has jumped in U.S.," Lisa Belkin, July 2, 2013