Social Work and Fathers: Child Support and Fathering Programs

In recent years social welfare policies and practices have increasingly addressed men's roles as fathers. The landmark welfare reform legislation, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) (P.L. 104-193), contains significant revisions in child support legislation. Rapid growth has occurred in the number of social services programs working with fathers. This article introduces social workers to these policy and practice initiatives. Through a critical review of research and descriptive programmatic material, this article considers the mixed implications of these policy and practice interventions for family well-being and recommends future directions for policy and practice.