Trajectories of psychological distress among fathers and their children's mental health in adolescence: Findings from a longitudinal Australian population-based study

It is well established that fathers' mental health difficulties in the early years of parenting are associated with poor mental health outcomes for children. However, little is known about fathers' mental health difficulties beyond the postnatal period, and their potential impact their children as they reach adolescence. The aims of the study were to investigate (a) the course of fathers' psychological distress over a 15-year period from the first postnatal year, and (b) the association between fathers' trajectories of psychological distress and the mental health of their adolescent children at 14-15 years. The sample was comprised of 3932 fathers and their children participating in the Growing Up in Australia: Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). Latent Growth Mixture Modelling (LGMM) identified three distinct trajectories of psychological distress: minimal and stable distress (89%), decreasing distress (5%), and increasing distress (6%). Adolescents exposed to a pattern of decreasing distress or increasing distress reported higher emotional-behavioural difficulties and anxiety symptoms than adolescents exposed to minimal distress over time. This has important implications for health professionals and services engaging with fathers about their mental health across the early years of parenting through to when their children transition into adolescence.