ii NONRESIDENT FATHER INVOLVEMENT

Children in America are increasingly growing up in households without the presence of their biological fathers. Data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey-Birth cohort (ECLS-B) is used to examine the levels and quality of nonresident father involvement and its relationship with child well-being. Children from this first wave of the survey include infants between 8-12-months-old, and outcome measures include cognitive and motor performance using a revised form of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. The analysis of this data does not support the hypothesis that higher quality father involvement is associated with increased child well-being. Nonresident fathers may not have a differential impact on infants at this early stage in life, or differences may not be adequately captured using existing tools for this age group. Follow-up surveys may reveal an association between quality of father involvement and child cognitive and motor development