News

FIRA Policy Papers Now Available Online

Thursday Feb 12, 2009

In 2003 FIRA commissioned three academic papers that would promote informed dialogue and debate about the relationships between policies and different aspects of father involvement. Those papers, by Lea Caragata and Wayne Miller of Wilfrid Laurier University, David Long, of King's University College in Edmonton and Edward Kruk, of the University of British Columbia, are now available in our resources section.

All Dads Matter. Towards an Inclusive Vision for Father Involvement Initiations in Canada. David Long, professor of sociology at King's University College in Edmonton, Alberta, analyzes and deconstructs social inclusion issues relevant to the social inclusion of indigenous, immigrant/refugee and gay/bi/queer fathers in Canadian policies, programs and community initiatives designed to support father involvement.

What Supports Engaged Fathering? Employment and Family Supports.
Professor Lea Caragata and doctoral candidate Wayne Miller of the Faculty of Social Work at Wilfrid Laurier University examine labour market policies as they affect the engagement of fathers in families. The authors compare parental leave and employment policies in Canada, Germany, Sweden and the U.S. and report on the impact of these approaches to policy on fathers' participation in child care and other unpaid family labour.

Child Custody, Access, and Parental Responsibility: The Search for a Just and Equitable Standard. Edward Kruk, professor of social work at the University of British Columbia, proposes a four-pillar approach to child custody determination in Canada:
  • a rebuttable legal presumption of joint physical custody after divorce
  • parenting plans, mediation and intervention/support in high conflict cases
  • shared parenting education and
  • judicial determination in cases of established abuse, along with enforcement of shared parental responsibility orders
To read the papers go to our Resources section.

The views expressed in these papers are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of FIRA or of other researchers/collaborators associated with FIRA. Communications can be addressed to the respective authors.