PFF Study – Research

Pathways for Fathers and Families

Study Abstract
Objective. The main goal of this study was to evaluate the impact of the Pathways for Fathers and Families (PFF) program in changing attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors regarding positive parenting and healthy relationships among non-custodial fathers in Milwaukee, WI.

Study design. The study utilized a randomized control trial design. Participants (n = 482) enrolled in a fatherhood and healthy relationship program at one community agency in Milwaukee, WI. Before the onset of the PFF program, fathers were randomly assigned to either a treatment group, which received the full fatherhood program, or a control group that received a subset of the services provided in the full program. Data collection occurred before the onset of training, immediately after the completion of training, and six months following the completion of training.

Results. No significant changes in positive parenting skills or attitudes were found at the completion of the PFF program. Fathers in the treatment group (receiving the full program) did not demonstrate significantly better outcomes than those in the control group. Secondary analyses found that six months after the completion of the training program participants in the treatment group did show significantly more positive views on healthy co-parenting, better communication with their co-parent, increased conflict resolution skills, more positive views on healthy parenting, and more engagement with their child, relative to participants in the control group.

Conclusion. The full PFF program did not appear to significantly improve fathers’ parenting, conflict resolution, and communication skills immediately after completion of the program. While statistically significant improvements were detected at six months after the completion of the program, these analyses were exploratory, and their results should be interpreted with caution.