THE STATUS OF MEN

IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

FIRST BIENNIAL REPORT

OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE COMMISSION

ON THE STATUS OF MEN

http://www.nh.gov/csm/

NOVEMBER 1, 2005

1

CHARTER

The General Court recognizes that men are an important resource for families and

children, and wishes to explore the causes and consequences of a variety of social, economic, and

health problems facing men, and to have recommendations for relief made available to the public.

Specifically, the General Court recognizes that fatherlessness is a severe social problem and that

New Hampshire children who have a poor or nonexistent

relationship with their father are the

largest users of a variety of statefunded

services. In addition, men whose average life expectancy

was formerly on a par with that of women are now dying 10 years sooner, with much higher rates

of suicide and mortality from the 15 leading causes of diseases and accidents. Educationally, the

General Court recognizes the need to address the relatively poor performance of boys in the areas

of reading and comprehension and to increase the grade passage rate for boys while encouraging

the pursuit of postsecondary

degrees. The New Hampshire Commission on the Status of Men

was therefore created by the legislature to address and reverse the deteriorating status of men and

boys in New Hampshire.

The Commission was enabled by passage of HB587FNA

(Chapter 267:2, Laws of 2002,

effective July, 1, 2002).

Membership consists of seven members appointed by the Governor:

· Joseph H. Mastromarino, MD, Chair

· Scott A. Garman, Secretary

· Alfred Lerandeau

· Marshall D. Hickok

· Stephen H. Gorin

· Michael J. Geanoulis

· Larry Colby, Treasurer (resigned, May 2005. No replacement has been appointed as of

the date of this report, 1 November 2005)

Duties of the Commission shall include but not be limited to:

· Examining issues and effects of cultural biases and stereotyping, beginning with

childhood experiences and programs in public schools, and extending to include a study

of male suicide and adult concerns such as family relations, promoting education and

policies which bring fathers and children closer together.

· Studying health problems unique to men or which predominately affect men, and making

appropriate recommendations.

· Promoting initiatives and programs that will enable men to develop career skills and

continue their education so that they may become productive and responsible citizens.

The Commission, with this report, meets the legislative requirement to report its activities,

findings, and recommendations for the general court and the administration pursuant to Chapter

19I,

on or before November 1, 2005.

2

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

THE NEW HAMPSHIRE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF MEN wishes to

recognize the cooperation and expertise of the many specialists and state agencies who

contributed to the substance of this report. Without their cooperation and assistance, this report

would not have been possible.

Ann Larney, Office of the NH Attorney General

Thom Linehan, UNH Extension Services, Family Education

Chuck Rhoades, author of "A Study of Men and Their Health"

Rep. David A. Bickford

Gerard J. Boyle, former Chair of the Commission on the Status of Men

Lee Newman, Executive Director, SAFENH

Linda Sheldon, NH State Office of Information Technology

Dr. Murray A. Straus, PhD, CoDirector,

Family Research Lab, UNH

Tom Andrew, MD, Chief Medical Examiner, State of New Hampshire

The Department of Education

The Department of Health & Human Services

Office of Child Support Enforcement

Bureau of Health Statistics and Data Management

Youth Detention Center

The National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI)

The New Hampshire State Library

The UphamWalker

House

We are deeply grateful to the members of the public who took valuable time away from

their personal obligations in order to bring us a better sense of the problems described herein.

We are especially indebted to our spouses, loved ones, families, and friends for their

tolerance, support, suggestions, and advocacy during this period.

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Table

of Contents Page

Introduction and Overview 5

History 6

Men's Health 7

Table A: Suicide Rates by Age and Gender 9

Fatherhood Issues 10

Public Comments 10

The Status of Fathers 10

The Importance of Fathers 11

Domestic Violence 13

Child Support 17

The Task Force on Family Law 19

Minority Expression 20

Paternity Fraud and Certificates of Birth 22

Education 23

Early Childhood Education 23

Reading Scores 24

NH Grade 4 NAEP Reading Scores, 2005 24

NH Grade 8 NAEP Reading Scores, 2005 25

Mathematics Scores 25

NH Grade 4 NAEP Mathematics Scores, 2005 25

NH Grade 8 NAEP Mathematics Scores, 2005 26

Teachers 26

Secondary Education 27

Postsecondary Education 27

UNH, Durham Graduate

Students by Sex, 19992005

28

UNH, Durham Undergraduate

Students by Sex, 19992005

29

UNH, Durham Associate

Degree Students by Sex, 19992005

30

Education Conclusions 31

Summary of Recommendations 31

Appendix A 34

Summary Abstracts of Articles from the Fall 2005 issue of The Psychology of Women

Appendix B 38

Appendix C 40

Appendix D 41

Bibliography 43

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INTRODUCTION

AND OVERVIEW

There are those who contend that men continue to enjoy marked advantages, and always

have benefited from the initial patriarchal construction of western society. However, the

predominant role of financial provider to the family, coupled with shifting demands of society,

evolved to require that on average, men spend a significantly increasing amount of time in work

activities (as compared to women in similar "fulltime"

jobs), and that they engage in

considerably more demanding and dangerous career choices. Men respond as "doers" both as a

result of societal conditioning and neurobiologic differences and tend to pursue their goals

without the significant processing, forethought, discussion, and counseling than women tend to

engage in. For better or worse, men have come to value tenaciousness of intent and singularity of

purpose as opposed to the measured decision by consensus that women more frequently

subscribe to. To imply that these multiple negative male outcomes are genderspecific

denies the

profound effect they have on our wives, our daughters, and society, both locally and globally.

That men would need help by way of a chartered Commission to improve their status

seemed counterintuitive given the popular image of men as independent, selfsufficient

survivors, able to overcome the most difficult of life's challenges on their own. Modern pressures,

however, find men and their families experiencing significant difficulties due to evolving values,

health problems, growing educational deficiencies, and new socioeconomic

family standards.

This report calls attention to serious problems in the lives of New Hampshire men and boys that,

prior to the establishment of this Commission, were "off of the radar screen" in terms of their

negative impact on society.

· Boys continue to have inferior reading and comprehension scores and lower graduation

rates. Men are much less likely to pursue secondary degrees and university graduate

programs.

· The suicide rates for boys, young fathers, and older men range from four to ten times

higher than that of women, depending on such factors as age, marital status, and

emotional wellbeing.

The general health of men is seen as in a serious crisis according to

Dr. William Pollack of the Harvard Medical School Center for Men.

· Men, for a variety of reasons, continue to have problems keeping up with courtordered

child support payments in spite of, or possibly because of, wellintentioned

federal

mandates designed to improved family wellness.

· Fatherlessness, according to growing numbers of social thinkers, is among our most

serious social problems. Fatherless children have a higher dependency on expensive statefunded

services such as welfare, DCYF/Foster Care programs, child support enforcement,

special education services, detention centers, etc. There appears to be a strong link

between father absence and a wide variety of pathologies, including juvenile delinquency,

substance abuse, teen pregnancy, and educational failure. Children having a poor or nonexistent

relationship with their natural father have lower wellness levels in the areas of

safety, health, education, and economic security.

· Men are often portrayed as the primary cause of domestic violence. However, the research

reveals this problem as more complex than is commonly thought, and the subject will be

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treated

in detail in this report.

· For the reader's convenience, the Commission's recommendations will appear in bold

face throughout the body of this report and the Summary of Recommendations section

on page 33.

Commissioner Stephen Gorin would like it known that although he shares authorship of this

document, he does not necessarily agree with some portions of the sections of this report dealing

with Fatherhood Issues, Child Support, and Domestic Violence.

HISTORY

In 1998, House Bill 1377 was first introduced to the New Hampshire Legislature, asking

for the establishment of a full Commission on the Status of Men (CSM). It failed to gain the

approval of the House Finance Committee. The following year, the effort was repeated under

House Bill 553. After a detailed inspection of preliminary evidence, including burgeoning male

mortality, suicide, educational failure, and fatherless rates, the House was moved to share the

sense of urgency of the bill’s sponsor, Representative David Bickford, and recommended passage

on June 23, 1999 by a vote of 210 to 76.

The Senate Executive Departments Committee then amended the bill. In the ensuing

House/Senate committee of conference convened to iron out differences, it was agreed to create a

Legislative Committee to Study the Status of Men (LCSSM) to review these alleged problems in

further detail, make recommendations as necessary, and come back to the Legislature by

February 15, 2001 with a full report. The bill passed the Legislature in this form and was signed

into law by the Governor in June, 2000.

The duties of the LCSSM were threefold: To examine, study, and promote, as explained in

the duties requirements of HB 553. The LCSSM noted with some alarm the rapidly deteriorating

status of men in New Hampshire. This deterioration begins with the increasing rates of

fatherlessness, includes marked and accelerating trends of subpar

reading scores, dropout rates,

higher crime and incarceration rates, lower graduation rates, lower rates of enrollment in

secondary and graduate degree programs, and progresses through the second highest child

support rate in the nation, perceived negative disparities in the Family Court system, and

perceived use of false or exaggerated claims of domestic violence in divorce cases to deprive men

of their families, homes, and possessions without appropriate due process, lack of a legislative

presence due to gross inequities of funding compared to women's programs, and culminates in

significantly fewer programs geared towards preventive health services for men, a paucity of

support groups for men in general, relative underfunding

of health issues which affect primarily

men, markedly higher suicide rates than women, and ultimately resulting in mortality rates that

are higher than those of women beginning at birth and ending with a life span that is significantly

less than women in New Hampshire.

Due to the overwhelming nature of the problems uncovered, the LCSSM could do little by

6

way

of “promotion” or “prevention” because of time and resource constraints. The LCSSM could

not, for example, explore causes and prevention for the heartbreak of suicide; nor could it

promote higher levels of father involvement with their children or improve the education deficit

of boys. Furthermore, many items on the list of topics the LCSSM hoped to examine were not

readily available and recommended establishing a Commission on the Status of Men (CSM) to

promote initiatives, programs, and further study.

Early in 2001, Representative David Bickford filed HB587FNA

for the purpose of

establishing a commission on the status of men (CSM) and appropriating $69,561 to facilitate its

duties. After passing the House, the Senate amended the bill months later by stripping its

funding. HB587 and the unfunded Commission on the Status of Men became effective the

following year on July 1, 2002.

Because of many delays in the membership nominations process, the Commission on the

Status of Men was not able to hold its first meeting until October 31, 2003, over a year after it

became effective under the law. In addition, the ability of the CSM to perform its prescribed

duties pursuant to RSA19I:

4 is considerably compromised by lack of funding.

To facilitate the promotion of programs and to treat the problems described in this report,

this Commission needs to be funded as originally intended under HB587 (2001). This

Commission, therefore, recommends that the state provide adequate funding to finance an

Executive Director, support personnel, office, supplies, telephone, computer and other

office equipment.

MEN'S HEALTH

RSA 19I

charges the Commission on the Status of Men with "[s]tudying health problems

unique to men or which predominantly affect men, and making appropriate recommendations."

The Commission has taken tentative steps to address these issues. Members of the Commission

have met with a representative of the Men's Health Network (http://www.menshealthnetwork.org)

and distributed some of the Network's literature. We expect to focus further on health issues

during the next year.

Health issues remain a central concern for men in New Hampshire. In a study of New

Hampshire men, Rhoades (2000) noted that due to gender roles, (i.e. "the attitudes, behaviors and

expectations that American culture assigns to males and females") many men find it difficult to

acknowledge their own vulnerability and lack of knowledge and seek needed health care. A 2002

report by the Endowment for Health on "social and cultural barriers to accessing health and

health care in New Hampshire" noted:

Mortality rates from all causes (cancer, diabetes, heart disease, injuries, suicide etc.) are

significantly higher for men than women. A number of studies document a disparity

between men and women's health status and health seeking behaviors. According to one

7

study,

70% of the uninsured men surveyed did not have a regular physician. Minority

men are most likely to be uninsured and are at the highest risk. The study indicates that

health care providers are missing opportunities to incorporate preventive care and

anticipatory guidance in the illness or injury related visits most common among men.

Additionally, screenings for prostate and colorectal cancers are not as well subsidized or

funded as breast and cervical cancer screening for women. Other gender considerations

include depression and suicidal ideation related to gender identification (especially in

adolescents) and the issues of domestic and sexual violence.

(http://www.endowmentforhealth.org/theme_social/resources_view.asp?K=4&T=P&R=

M).

These issues are compounded by the reality that many men in New Hampshire do not

have health insurance. In 20023,

12% of nonelderly

New Hampshire men had no health

insurance (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2005). Studies show that the health of individuals without

insurance "is worse than it would otherwise be if they were insured" and "providing health

insurance to uninsured adults would result in improved health, including greater life expectancy"

(IOM, 2002, p. 5).

Nationwide, approximately 9% more men will develop prostate cancer in 2005 than

women will develop breast cancer. However, according to estimates by the American Cancer

Society 2005 Surveillance Research (http://www.pccnc.org/CAFF2005f4PWsecured.pdf), this

percentage of men in New Hampshire will be markedly increased to 29%, or over three times the

national average! According to these projections for 2005, 890 women will be diagnosed in New

Hampshire with breast cancer, whereas 1,150 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. New

Hampshire is not alone in its lack of commitment or action: The federal government spends

approximately seven times more on breast cancer research than on prostate cancer research ($550

million versus $80 million, in 1996 there was $12,000 in research dollars spent for each death

from breast cancer versus $2,000 in research dollars for each death from prostate cancer

www.prostateaction.org/resources). The causes of this disparity are manifold, but certainly New

Hampshire lags at executive and legislative initiatives to guarantee that insurers provide coverage,

and that the state provide programs for those men who are uninsured, for the appropriate

screening tests for prostate cancer similar to the longmandated

coverage and programs

specifically to screen for breast and other cancers that affect primarily women. In fact, the huge

disparity may reflect the effectiveness of these early detection and screening programs for breast

cancer which have been put in place by state government. This glaringly underlines the failure to

make a similar investment in men’s health. When the few bills attempting to correct the situation

in New Hampshire have been defeated by the (predominantly male) legislature, the causes of the

failure of that legislation are unclear, but the results are anything but: Men are suffering and

dying needlessly in New Hampshire due to the inaction of good people who apparently have been

led to believe that legislative activity designed to primarily benefit men is somehow not

appropriate politically, financially, or otherwise. Every preventable death, male or female,

lessens us as a society by virtue of our preceding lack of leadership, vision, commitment, and

action. The Commission recommends that the State of New Hampshire take steps to reduce

the disparity between the investment in women’s health issues and men’s health issues, and

8

to

design programs concentrating on addressing in a genderneutral

manner those

conditions and diseases with the highest incidence and the highest rates of morbidity and

mortality.

Men in New Hampshire continue to kill themselves at much higher rates than their female

counterparts. With a relatively small statewide population, it is difficult to document specific

trends with accurate statistical significance. From a statistical standpoint, such small numbers

skew widely the death rate for suicide. In 2001, the death rate of suicide in New Hampshire

resulted in a ranking of number 17 of the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, whereas in

2002, the difference of 35 deaths from suicide caused the ranking to drop to number 39. This

year may result in a smaller number of overall deaths from suicide in New Hampshire if the trend

through midOctober

continues (data from Dr Tom Andrew, Chief Medical Examiner). However,

85% of these deaths were male, a higher percentage than the national ratio of male suicides to

overall suicides. The causes of the higher suicide rate for males are numerous, complex, and

interdependent. The Commission recommends that the State of New Hampshire provide

further directed study and proactive intervention programs, including educational

programs at the elementary school level directed at bolstering the selfesteem

of boys and

helping them develop increased coping skills and new approaches to personal and

interpersonal conflict, coupled with increased prevention programs directed at those

segments of our society most likely to succeed in committing suicide.

Table A: Suicide in New Hampshire by Gender and Age, 20022005

2002 2002 2003 2003 2004 2004 2005 2005

to date to date

AGE GROUP FEMALE MALE FEMALE MALE FEMALE MALE FEMALE MALE

10 20

3 13 2 8 4 6 0 4

21 25

1 9 3 9 1 8 1 3

26 30

2 8 0 8 1 9 0 4

31 35

1 11 4 10 2 8 1 3

36 40

3 13 6 12 4 9 2 5

41 45

6 12 4 12 6 10 1 5

46 50

1 14 3 14 3 16 2 7

51 55

3 11 2 15 1 9 1 6

56 60

1 7 2 14 7 7 1 6

61 65

0 6 3 7 0 8 0 3

66 70

2 4 2 4 1 4 1 4

71 75

1 2 1 1 0 1 0 3

76 80

0 6 0 5 1 2 1 3

81 85

0 2 0 5 1 2 0 2

86 90

0 1 0 4 0 3 0 2

91 95

0 0 0 0 0 3 0 1

24 119 32 128 32 105 11 61

Total for the Year 143 160 137 72 to date

% Male Victims 83.20% 80.50% 76.60% 84.70%

9

FATHERHOOD

ISSUES

Public Comments

The CSM meetings were open to the public for comment and discussion. Early on, fathers

came forward to complain about abnormal relationships with their children and unfair treatment

in family court. Many complained about child support guidelines that seemed inflated and did

not allow them to live on their remaining income; lawyers who seemed uncaring; perceptions that

lawyers were not effectively fighting for them; an inability to get redress for emotional and

physical abuse inflicted on them and their children; misleading and inaccurate testimony being

brought to the legislature by professional court advocates who had no regard for the importance

of the father/child relationship; being made to feel like a criminal in the courtroom; judges

avoiding or ignoring the negative impact of father absence on children; the need for men's

support groups and counseling for men; perjury and false accusations being used as weapons to

render fathers impotent in court; the manufacture of acrimony to secure custody; Guardian ad

Litems who don't care about the father/child connection; the process of divorce being used as a

moneymaking

proposition (money going to lawyers and other members of the "divorce industry"

that could have been used, instead, for the welfare of the children); the permanent nature of

"temporary" orders; the misleading and inaccurate perception that domestic violence is primarily

a male responsibility; insufficient services for male victims of domestic violence; and feelings of

suicide as the ultimate solution.

Second wives, mothers, grandmothers, teachers, and girlfriends came forward to validate

many of the complaints being brought by men. One second wife reported levels of stress so

severe that both she and her disenfranchised husband were forced into the welfare system. A

school nurse told us that most of the children to which she administers medication like Ritalin

and Prozac come from homes where the connection with one of the parents (usually the father)

was compromised.

The Status of Fathers

As women have had difficulty establishing their role as important contributors to the

workplace, men have had difficulty establishing themselves as important nurturers for their

families and children. While the status of fathers and fatherless rates in New Hampshire are

difficult to quantify, this Commission finds little reason to hope that the problem is much

improved over what it was in 2001, when the Legislative Committee to Study the Status of Men

(LCSSM) discovered that the U.S. is the world's leader in fatherless families. Nationally, 40% or

about 24 million children go

to bed in homes absent their biological father on any given

night (with the possible exception of every other weekend) according to the latest available data.

(http://www.nh.gov/csm/publications.html)

The fatherless problem, along with its link to the pathology of dysfunctional and

disadvantaged children, seems as an invisible elephant in the room. There seems to be

10

widespread

casual regard to the notion that caring and involved fathers are ordinarily beneficial

for the safety, health, economic security, education, and overall wellness of children.

In some places, fathers are even billed as villains to be avoided. In a public lecture entitled

"Sexually Abusive Fathers," the University of New Hampshire's Family Research Lab (FRL)

once produced a rightful attempt to get relief from the sexual abuse of children. However, it was

noted by the speaker during the presentation that stepfathers or livein

boyfriends are six times

more likely than natural fathers to commit such heinous acts. Children are typically best

protected from sexual abuse, not by a father's absence, but by his presence. (David Blankenhorn,

Fatherless America, New York, Basic Books, 1995; See also the Father Facts Booklet available

from http://www.fatherhood.org; and the Garbage Generation by Dan Amneus at

http://www.mugu.com)

On May 19, 2005, Judge Edwin Kelly told the Child and Family Law Committee that sole

custody rates for fathers are holding steady at about 10% for uncontested cases (15% for

contested cases), while mother's custody rates hovered around 66% for uncontested cases (75%

for contested cases). The balance, 24% and 10% respectively, were awarded joint custody.

(http://www.nhcustody.org/NH_custody_statistics.htm) This may reflect a mindset that says

fathers should be restricted to the breadwinner role while mothers should be restricted to the

caretaking role.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, women are projected to comprise 47 percent

of the total labor force in 2012 (as they did in 2003). There were 64.7 million employed women

in the U.S. in 2004. Seventyfour

percent worked full time, while the remaining 26 percent

worked part time. (http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm) Given the plethora of evidence

documenting the benefits of involved fathers with their children, and the present rate of female

participation in the workforce, the custody imbalance between fathers and mothers seems

difficult to justify. This commission suggests that the Governor of New Hampshire issue a

proclamation declaring that both parents are equally important for their children.

The Importance of Fathers

Studies have conclusively shown that children who receive higher levels of attention and

interaction with their natural fathers are healthier and better psychologically adjusted than

children without fathers or with uninvolved fathers. Whether the outcome is cognitive

development, sexrole

development, or psychosocial

development, children are better off when

their relationship with their father is close and secure. (Lamb, M.E. The Father's Role: Applied

Perspectives. New York: J. Wiley, 1986)

Fathers who were affectionate, spent time with their children, and had a positive attitude

were more likely to have securely attached infants. (Cox, M.J., et.al. Prediction of InfantFather

and InfantMother

Attachment. Developmental Psychology 28 (1992): 474483.)

Children with involved fathers are more confident and less anxious when placed in

11

unfamiliar

settings, better able to deal with frustration, better able to adapt to changing

circumstances and breaks from their routine, and better able to gain a sense of independence and

an identity outside the mother/child relationship. Fatherchild

interaction has been shown to

promote a child's physical wellbeing,

perceptual abilities, and competency for relatedness with

others, even at a young age. (Krampe and Fairweather. Journal of Family Issues 14.4, December

1993: 572591)

Children whose fathers were highly involved in their schools were more likely to do well

academically, to participate in extracurricular activities, and to enjoy school, and were less likely

to have ever repeated a grade or been expelled compared to children whose fathers were less

involved in these schools. This effect held for both twoparent

and singleparent

households, and

was distinct and independent from the effect of mother involvement. (Source: Nord, Christine

Windquist. Students Do Better When Their Fathers Are Involved At School NCES 98121.

Washington, D.C.: US DOE, National Center for Education Statistics, 1998)

Father involvement correlates with fewer behavior problems exhibited by their children.

This finding holds after controlling for the level of maternal involvement. (Amato and Rivera.

Paternal Involvement and Children's Behavior Problems. Journal of Marriage and the Family 61

(1999):375384)

Fatherless children score lower on tests and have lower grade point averages. Family

scholar Barbara Dafoe Whitehead says, "Even after controlling for race, income and religion,

scholars find significant differences in educational attainment between children who grow up in

intact families and children who do not." Fatherless children are twice as likely to drop out of

school. (US Health & Human Services. National Center for Health Statistics. Survey on Child

Health. Washington, DC: GPO, 1993)

In a study of 75 toddlers it was found that children who were attached to their fathers were

better problemsolvers

than children who were not securely attached to their fathers. Children

whose fathers spent a lot of time with them and who were sensitive to their needs were found to

be better adapted than their peers whose fathers were not as involved. (Esterbrooks, M. Ann and

Wendy Goldberg. Toddler Development in the Family: Impact of Father Involvement and

Parenting Characteristics. Child Development 55 (1984): 740752)

On the 25th of October, 2005, we were informed that of the 80 dysfunctional youths

incarcerated at the New Hampshire Youth Development Center, 63 (or 79%) came from homes

absent their biological father.

It would be impossible to give a complete accounting of the importance of caring fathers

for children with this report. The serious student is simply encouraged to type "The Importance

of Fathers" in any internet search engine. (See also the fourth edition of the Father Facts Booklet

available at http://www.fatherhood.org; and the LCSSM report at

http://www.nh.gov/csm/publications.html)

12

Researchers

have discovered an undeniable connection between fatherlessness and a wide

variety of pathological disadvantages accruing to children, yet modern court decrees, social

policy, and even fathers themselves, reflect mindsets and attitudes that serve to disconnect natural

fathers from their children. This commission recommends that research on the father's role

in child development, some of which is listed in the bibliography herewith, be given the

widest possible publicity and attention.

This commission should be funded to enable the production of Public Service

Announcements and brochures designed to promote education and policies which would

bring fathers and children closer together pursuant to RSA 19I:

4."

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Men came forward during our public meetings to allege unfair treatment in family court

domestic violence proceedings, and to allege that unsubstantiated charges of domestic violence

were being improperly used as tools to place them at a distinct disadvantage in civil matters

before family court. This, and other testimony, led us to investigate the problem of domestic

violence (DV) in greater detail.

A Marital Master explained to the Task Force on Family Law that the word on the street

was that a woman can readily gain immediate possession of the children, home and other assets

by filing an "emergency" exparte

domestic violence petition, claiming to be in fear of her safety.

The accused may then have an immediate restraining order placed against him on a "temporary"

basis even though he may not have been given an immediate opportunity to be heard in his

defense. This procedure, commonly referred to as the "silver bullet" because of its efficiency and

effectiveness, is difficult to challenge and may represent a loophole in the family court system

that is being exploited. Temporary orders, it seems, have a way of evolving into permanency

because of the difficulty in proving perjury or one's own innocence, especially in those 50% of

cases where the parties are mutual contributors to the problem; and because of crowded dockets,

time and costs involved.

According to the NH Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence, New Hampshire

has seen anywhere from 4 to 7 thousand petitions for DV relief annually in recent years the

vast

majority being filed against men. It is not unusual, since judges are prone to err on the side of

caution, for DV exparte

petitions to be granted immediately on the justification that an

"emergency" exists. Court statistics on domestic violence have proved to be difficult to obtain,

but one report from the Administration Office of the Courts, a 1999 study funded by the State

Justice Institute, indicates that an overwhelming majority of such petitions are granted. In the

Salem and Littleton jurisdictions, 98% and 100% of exparte

DV petitions for restraint of the

defendant were immediately granted in 1999, according to the report. These orders are often

issued in the absence of the accused having an immediate opportunity to be heard in his defense.

13

In

an effort to better understand the domestic violence problem, this commission invited

Dr. Murray Straus, PhD, DV expert and cofounder

of the Family Research Lab at the University

of New Hampshire to speak to us. In brief, Dr. Straus told both the Men's Commission and the

Task Force on Family Law (TFFL) that most domestic violence education and advocate training

programs have unfairly referred to the perpetrator as "him" and the victim as "her" over the years,

which constitutes a gender bias. Much of the education and dialogue, furthermore, has

inappropriately discounted, dismissed, or denied the estimated onethird

to onehalf

of all

domestic violence victims who are male. Such stereotyping has had a negative impact on men's

status with their families, and devalues the problem of abused men and children. Dr. Straus

further indicated that female aggression rates equal

to or exceeding that of men should

be

treated equally serious if only as a matter of safety for women, and that men stay in abusive

relationships for many of the same reasons claimed by women. His presentation can be accessed

at http://www.nh.gov/csm/dv_straus.html. See also Professor Fiebert's collection of DV research

abstracts at http://www.csulb.edu/~mfiebert/assault.htm.

Efforts to get relief from the domestic violence problem have been unduly influenced by

special interests who have successfully sold the problem as solely a responsibility of males over

the years. The whole truth on this emotionallycharged

dichotomy isn't being fully revealed. It's

as if it didn't matter that there are male victims; and worse, that only males should be seen as

aggressive because female assaults are not viewed as a problem. That in any case, only women

shall get relief. The federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) provides one such example of

gender exclusiveness. As its title indicates, only women shall benefit from government

intervention. No one was allowed to testify on behalf of male victims at any legislative hearing

on VAWA enactment or renewal proceedings, so powerful is this bias against men.

Onesided

reporting comes in many forms and can have longlasting

effects. As long ago

as 1981, Straus, Gelles, and Steinmetz reported that 1.8 million women and 2.0 million men were

assaulted by their partner. From that data, halftruths

evolved like the one that appears on the

website of the American Judges Association: "Every 15 seconds a woman is battered somewhere

in the United States." (http://aja.ncsc.dni.us/domviol/page2.html) Nothing is ever published about

the "real surprise" (to quote the researchers); the even shorter time span (14 seconds) between

assaults by women on their partners, or the equal number of closed doors hiding the other half of

the story. (Straus, Gelles and Steinmetz, Behind Closed Doors: Violence in the American Family,

Anchor Books, 1981)

Judges and criminal justice professionals, who ordinarily can be trusted to be impartial

and unbiased arbiters of the truth, can be unwitting accomplices in the dissemination of DV halftruths

and exaggerations. In the annual report of the NH Domestic Violence Fatality Review

Committee (DVFRC), for example, the DV problem is introduced in the overview with the

statement: "between three and four million women are beaten by their husbands every year." Men

were likewise implicated in the abuse and murder of children. Yet there are no references about

the number of men or children assaulted or murdered by intimates in their overview. The DVFRC

is chaired and administered by judges, criminal justice professionals, and others, who should be

aware of the entire set of facts on such matters. A U.S. DOJ report, "Murder in Families," states

14

that

women were over half of the defendants (55%) in the murder of their offspring; and a "2003

Child Maltreatment" report showed that a child is twice as likely to be abused by its mother than

by its father: 40.8% of child abuse victims in 2003 were abused by mothers acting alone, while

18.8% of victims were abused by fathers acting alone.

(http://www.nhcustody.org/My_Homepage_Files/child_maltreatment.html and

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/mif.htm)

An organization called RADAR (Respecting Accuracy in Domestic Abuse Reporting) has

identified 12 serious flaws with present domestic violence policy:

· Abuses the truth. A recent VAWAfunded

report documented that 1.5% of women and

0.9% of men were physically or sexually assaulted by a partner in the previous year. The

report further notes that onefifth

of these men as

well as twofifths

of the women were

injured as a result of the assault. (Extent, Nature, and Consequences of Intimate

Partner Violence, http://www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles1/nij/181867.pdf , p. iiiiv)

· Blatantly discriminates against men. Most DV programs violate men’s constitutional right

to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. None of the billions of VAWA

dollars have been spent to help male victims of DV. Lee Newman, executive director of

SAFENH,

an experienced New Hampshire organization that provides services for DV

victims regardless of gender, and who outreaches to male victims, receives an estimated

12% of New Hampshire's crisis calls, but does not receive any state or federal funding.

· Takes children away from their fathers. VAWA laws and the courts unwittingly encourage

women to make questionable allegations of domestic violence on an "emergency" basis

while petitioning for divorce and custody of the children. In New Hampshire, a father

who has ever had a restraining order filed against him can easily be rendered ineligible for

shared parenting duties and responsibilities of his children. In written testimony to the

Child and Family Law Committee for HB351 (2003) hearings, a Marital Master states, in

part: "Unfortunately, requests for exparte

relief are based upon many circumstances,

some of which are made only for the purpose of obtaining an advantage in litigation."

· Blurs the distinction between violent crime and verbal arguments. The National Research

Council notes that "Rigorous inquiry into violence against women is precluded when

scholars fail to distinguish among what constitutes an act of violence, abuse, or

battering." (Advancing the Federal Research Agenda on Violence Against Women,

http://books.nap.edu/catalog/10849.html, p. 26)

· Allows uncritical use of restraining orders. Judges will typically issue restraining orders

based only on the word of the alleged victim, without allowing the accused an immediate

opportunity to present his or her side of the argument. And many state laws define

"violence" so broadly as to allow restraining orders to be issued on the flimsiest pretext.

In New Hampshire, the standard of evidence is "Upon a showing of immediate and

present danger of abuse,..." [RSA 173B:

4]. One judge told the Task Force on Family Law

(TFFL) that he was confident he could discern the truth at exparte

hearings in the

defendant's absence by the demeanor of the plaintiff and that he was well educated on the

problem of domestic violence. An attending prosecuting attorney, moreover, responded to

a question about the NH Constitution, [Article 15, which provides that "No subject shall

15

be

held to answer for any crime or offense until the same is formally described to

him...and to be fully heard in his defense"] by saying that Article 15 does not apply to

subjects in civil matters. He further provided exparte

justification by citing in re: Jason,

a supreme court decision that allowed exparte

testimony. (In re: Jason the court upheld

exparte

testimony on the trustworthiness of a policeman. It should be noted, however,

that unlike domestic violence or civil proceedings, the policeman in re: Jason had no

personal interest at stake in the outcome of the decision).

· Provides incentives for law enforcement agencies and prosecutors. Local authorities are

encouraged to implement policies for mandatory reporting, mandatory arrest, and "nodrop"

prosecutions. This Commission concurs with a Feminist Majority Foundation

report recommending that domestic violence programs should abandon such rigid and

unfair practices because they often end up harming families (Safety & Justice for All:

Examining the Relationship between the Women’s AntiViolence

Movement and the

Criminal Legal System. http://www.ms.foundation.org/userassets/

PDF/Program/safety_justice.pdf, pp. 1216)

· Federal laws preempt

existing state law enforcement programs. New Hampshire

currently has strong partner assault laws. The federal Violence of Crime Act already

addresses the issue of domestic violence. VAWA spends $1 billion a year to duplicate

existing programs.

· Politicizes the judiciary. VAWA provides funding for judicial education which in practice

can amount to prejudicedloaded

rants. In one training session in New Jersey, judges were

instructed: "Your job is not to become concerned about all the constitutional rights of the

man that you’re violating as you grant a restraining order. Throw him out on the street,

give him the clothes on his back and tell him, ‘See ya’ around.’"

(http://www.ejfi.org/DV/dv10.

htm)

· Funds ideologicallybased

treatment programs. The National Academy of Sciences

recently concluded that domestic violence programs are frequently "driven by ideology

and stakeholder interests rather than by plausible theories and scientific evidence of

cause." (Advancing the Federal Research Agenda on Violence Against Women,

http://books.nap.edu/catalog/10849.html, p. 6)

· VAWA represents an overreaching

of federal power and unwarranted government

interference into the personal relationships of intimate partners. The Supreme Court has

condemned parts of VAWA as representing federal intrusion into an area of law that falls

squarely within the domain of the states (United States v. Morrison, 2000).

(http://www.oyez.org/oyez/resource/case/1261/)

· Corrupts family violence research. Researchers often seek to bias the outcome of their

research by interviewing only women, by slanting the wording of questions, or by

selectively reporting research findings. Murray Straus, PhD, of the Family Research Lab

at UNH, told the Task Force on Family Law that domestic violence researchers are known

to leave out material facts about assaultive women in their reports. (The Controversy over

Domestic Violence by Women: A Methodological, Theoretical, and Sociology of Science

Analysis. http://www.menweb.org/straus21.htm)

During the June, 2005 meeting of the Commission, the following resolution was passed

16

regarding

VAWA: "The Commission on the Status of Men supports the renewal of the

Violence Against Women Act only if it is made genderneutral

in language, intent, and

application."

The September issue of Psychology of Women Quarterly published a special report on

Female Violence Against Intimate Partners, spotlighting the possibility that present DV policy

may be poorly conceived serving

to pour gasoline on fires that could be quenched with a more

reasonable approach. (Psychology of Women Quarterly, September 2005 http://www.blackwellsynergy.

com/toc/pwqu/29/3;jsessionid=caztNaNVav367wpbZy See also Appendix A for abstract

summaries of the articles.) The Commission supports and reaffirms conclusions reported by

these DV researchers:

1. Women are just as likely as men to engage in physical aggression towards their intimate

partners: "Directly relevant to the theme of this volume, the later research revealed that

males and females reported equally high levels of direct aggression in interaction with

romantic partners." (See Deborah South Richardson article)

2. DV is a problem in lesbian relationships, which refutes the "DV is how the patriarchy

maintains power and control over women" theory. (See article by Kimberly F. Balsam and

Dawn M. Szymanski)

3. DV is a complex social phenomenon which defies simplistic ideological explanations:

"These results indicate that women's physical aggression toward male partners cannot be

understood using a unitary explanation." (See the Nicola GrahamKevan

and John Archer

article)

This collection could be helpful in convincing lawmakers and family courts that women

can be equally aggressive as men; and that the removal of fathers in onesided

exparte

proceedings might prove to be little more than a counterproductive exercise in control and a

grievous miscarriage of justice.

CHILD SUPPORT

Problems with child support compliance persist for both male and female obligors. The

reasons are varied and obscure: Flagrant irresponsibility, insufficient earnings; resentment that

the system discourages the parent/child connection or

even alienates that connection; being

estranged from one's own children (or not being properly attached to begin with); incomebased

guidelines and the widespread concern that money supposedly destined for the children ends up

elsewhere; and feelings of misplaced responsibility. One disgruntled man expressed the latter by

saying he adequately provided for his children prior to an unwanted divorce, but being ordered to

support his children an

act of love he had been doing voluntarily for years compounded

by a

reduced role as "visitor" to his own children, was a crushing blow to his self esteem, initiative,

and sense of responsibility. His position was that if the courts could see their way clear to take

his children from where they were decently provided for to begin with, without just cause, then

the courts should be held responsible for the support of his children.

17

According

to the latest data from the NH Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE

form 157, 2004), compliance rates for all accounts and for all obligors, male and female, remain

mired around 65%. In other words, for every dollar obligor mothers and fathers were ordered to

pay, an average of 65 cents was actually received by the obligee a

rate that has remained

relatively constant over the years. Overall compliance rates have increased only slightly since the

enactment of the 1985 Family Support Act, a federal law requiring most states to establish OCSE

offices as a condition that qualified them to receive federal funding for social programs. In 1985,

before the days of "deadbeat" posters, license revocations, and jail sentences, the compliance

rates for all obligors with child support orders hovered around 60% for all accounts.

An increase of 5% in compliance rates over 20 years might be seen as statistically

insignificant when viewed in the light of the millions spent for enforcement programs and the

gradual increase of shared parenting arrangements and higher levels of father involvement.

Stanford Braver's research found that when a parent feels like a parent to his or her child (a

condition best facilitated by parental involvement and shared parenting), compliance rates can

exceed 90%. Should expensive OCSE enforcement programs be credited with the 5% increase in

compliance rates over 20 years? Or should the credit go, instead, to the courts' increased use of

shared parenting arrangements in custody actions and higher rates of father involvement? Further

study and more data is needed to answer these questions. (Braver, Sanford & O'Connell, Diane

Divorced Dads: Shattering the Myths, NY: Tarcher/Putnam, 1998. See also Appendix D A

Proposal to Estimate and Improve the Success of OCSE.)

While there has been a significant increase in the percent of cases having child support

orders because of OCSE initiatives, there has also been a corresponding increase in the number

of children born to unwed parents. (http://www.ncpa.org/pd/social/pd041801b.html)

Present policy may be sending the wrong message to both independentminded

women

who shun "oppressive" marriages in increasing numbers; and to men who are getting

inappropriate messages about their role as fathers. While there has been a steady increase in the

birthrate of children to adult single women over the past dozen years or more government

efforts to encourage father involvement, except to obtain social security numbers, is limited to

enforcement of support that could be garnered by encouraging parents to work together for their

children's needs. Marriage is seen as an oppressive risk to be avoided by growing numbers of

women (and men). Gloria Steinem expressed this philosophy best using simplistic terms:

"Women need men like fish need bicycles." Marriage, formerly held to be the best way to provide

for the needs of children, seems less attractive for women having at their disposal government

"family" support and enforcement services; and less attractive for men who wish to avoid the

50% odds of ending up as defendants in a divorce court that dispenses the gold mine, the

mineshaft and the children in unfair proportions.

A more meaningful measure of OCSE collections effectiveness might be seen in terms of

the absolute numbers of children in the system, and the total dollars collected per child. The NH

OCSE caseload totaled slightly more than 23,000 in 1989, while in 2004, the figure stood at

18

approximately

40,000 about

an 80% increase. In terms of absolute numbers, the problem of

improperly supported children is actually far greater than 5% compliance rate increases can

compensate for and

far greater than it might otherwise be under more traditional mating

conditions because

of a neardoubling

of the numbers of children in the system (who are not

properly attached to both of their natural parents). The measure of collections in terms of

inflationadjusted

dollars per child over the years could not be obtained as of this date, but if the

empirical evidence is any indication, the results will prove disappointing here, as well.

Braver formally rediscovered what we all should have known to begin with: Parents have

a natural inclination to support their children in a meaningful and caring way with the important

caveat that they feel like parents to their children that

they are involved with their children. The

millions spent on support enforcement might have been better spent on programs that encourage

mothers and fathers to be more careful about the way they bring children into the world, and to

encourage intimate involvement of both the mother and the father with their children when they

do. This Commission recommends that the state sponsor and promote educational

programs that teach young men and women about the need for children to have two caring

natural parents meaningfully involved in their lives, with an emphasis on the indispensable

role of the father in child development.

OCSE should consider modifying its policy of enforcing only the support portion of

family court decrees to include the parenting aspects of those decrees as well. And the state

should finance this Commission so that it may conduct a detailed study of the causes of the

child support arrearage problem.

THE TASK FORCE ON FAMILY LAW

A representative from the Commission on the Status of Men was assigned to a seat on the

Task Force on Family Law (TFFL) in September, 2003. A year earlier, the legislature had created

the Task Force effective May, 2002. Its duties included developing proposals for a nonadversarial

system for families undergoing a divorce and other family matters. The final report

can be accessed at http://www.nhbar.org/pdfs/FamLawTFRep04CL.pdf.

The TFFL made many valuable recommendations for such things as parenting plans,

modified court procedures, alternative dispute resolutions, and language changes in the law. It

appears that the TFFL might have made significant progress in neutralizing the winlose

atmosphere in family courts that otherwise worsens an already difficult scenario. If its

recommendations are followed, family courts may evolve into a winwin

system that facilitates

communication, compromise, and recognition that both parents are equally important for their

children.

For many disenfranchised male veterans of the family courts, however, it seems that most

of the problems they faced will remain unchanged. Of primary concern is the fear that the

19

suggested

improvements will be trumped by "manufactured acrimony" and "silver bullet"

restraining orders now being issued, literally, by the thousands many

on onesided

testimony.

Men are wondering, with considerable suspicion, how lawyers and other officers of the court,

many of whom have traditionally relied on adversarial proceedings and a winning reputation to

attract clients and income, will work in good faith to reduce the hostilities associated with

custody actions going forward.

Many men remain worried that a bias against them as parents will still exist in spite of

TFFL recommendations for mediation and parenting plans. They worry that women will still be

able to secure control of the children by reacting with hostility toward shared parenting

proposals, and then petitioning for "emergency" restraining orders to neutralize the possibility of

shared parenting. One member expressed such concerns best by saying: "I feel pain for the

fathers who lose their children in family court, but I'd fight like a wildcat to keep from losing

mine." That the TFFL purposefully avoided the topic of shared parenting rights and

responsibilities did nothing to alleviate these fears.

The VAWAfunded

NH Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence (CASDV)

provided testimony that was shown to be false (after the vote) about "joint custody being repealed

as unworkable" (in some states), and made the unsubstantiated charge that "80% of men who

seek shared parenting fit the profile of a batterer," which may have contributed to the TFFLs

refusal to look at or report on the benefits of equal custody for children, in spite of a legislative

intent to review such matters. It was also stated on numerous occasions during TFFL meetings

that shared parenting and mediation should not be considered “if the parents cannot get along”.

An attempt to redress the vacuum in the debate over shared parenting by way of a minority

expression for the TFFL report was rejected by a majority of TFFL members present. The TFFL

minutes twice reflect the fact that its report shall not include a minority expression. These

challenges, in addition to others rooted in gender bias against fathers, resulted in a senate

rejection of HB61 (2005), a bill that would have provided for continuing the TFFL.

Minority Expression

It is reported, with some disappointment, that the TFFL was in disagreement with the

following resolution passed by this Commission on September 29, 2004:

"The New Hampshire Commission on the Status of Men finds and declares that it should

be the public policy of this state that frequent and continuing contact between minor

children and both parents, if the parents have separated or dissolved their marriage, is

ordinarily beneficial to the children. This Commission also finds that it is in the public

interest as well as to children and families to encourage parents to share the rights and

responsibility of child rearing. This Commission recommends that a rebuttable

presumption of joint physical custody should be supported and encouraged."

The following minority expressions were also rejected by the TFFL. This Commission

feels that these items should be included in any dialogue over the best interests of children and

20

continuing

parentchild

relationships. The starting point in any child custody action should be

that both parents are equally important for their children until clear and convincing evidence

proves otherwise. (Historically, the starting point has been reversed: i.e, parents begin by fighting

for sole custody).

1. Parenting time should be "Maximized". The parties should anticipate, in a custody

action absent a parent's inability to maximize their parenting time, that those

administering or supervising domestic cases (i.e., family court) will make every effort to

maximize the time parents have with their children to avoid rendering either of the parties

a loser in the action, and to maximize the likelihood that children will have both natural

parents involved in a meaningful way. The highest and best form of maximized time,

while not always possible, is an equitable split in the time each parent has with the

children. Children want, love, and need two parents.

2. Child support guidelines should be based on child costs. This Commission recognizes

the contribution to acrimony inherent in New Hampshire's incomebased

child support

guidelines and recommends that child support guidelines be based on child costs not

on

the income of either parent; and that alimony, where necessary, be treated as a separate

line item.

3. Absent fault grounds, the financial burden of family breakdown should be shared

equally by the parties. Since a family that splits inherits a significant reduction in living

standards because of the need for dual accommodations, etc, the parties should be advised

that higher participation in the workplace by both parties may be required if living

standards are to be maintained.

4. Judges and prosecutors should attend educational conferences on domestic violence

structured to avoid the present gender bias that ignores or downplays domestic

violence by women against both men and children. Another serious source of

acrimony in domestic relations can be traced to domestic violence policy and education.

Much of the literature and protocols on DV have inaccurately introduced the problem as

the responsibility of males over the past dozen years, or more. Judges and prosecutors are

attending DV conferences, the agenda for which is being controlled by an unbalanced

view of the problem by leaving out critical information and perspectives about domestic

violence against men and children. This has resulted in thousands of men being unfairly

forced out of their homes annually on onesided

testimony in "emergency" civil

proceedings.

5. Properly trained Case Evaluators should screen each domestic violence case with the

goal of arriving at possible alternative solutions. According to Linda Mills, author of

Insult to Injury, many women regret losing control when the criminal justice system gets

involved. Present policy blurs the distinction between a common verbal disagreement and

a physical assault. Any possibility for reconciliation and counseling evaporates under

such conditions. Mills also states, as did Dr. Murray Straus who spoke to us, that in fully

half of all DV incidents, both parties are mutual contributors to the problem, and that in

many of these cases, neutral evaluation might influence a more meaningful outcome

through counseling, thirdparty

communications, and compromise. Dr. Straus further

stated that the issuance of restraining orders on onesided

testimony during the

21

restructuring

of the family is unwise.

6. Evidentiary standards and procedure should be reviewed and revised in domestic

violence cases. Testimony from involved interested parties should not be held as

trustworthy at socalled

"emergency" exparte hearings. Orders (temporary or permanent)

should not be issued against any defendant without first affording him or her immediate

opportunity to respond. Men, and fathers who care about the relationship with their

children, are being ordered from their homes and children, literally by the thousands, at

"emergency" DV hearings in which restraining orders are petitioned for by women with

secondary gain who claim to be in fear of physical harm. The testimony is often held as

trustworthy in the absence of the defendant, who is most often a man unaware of the

proceeding, and has no immediate opportunity to testify on his own behalf, or face his

accuser. Present policy is unfair, counterproductive, and inflammatory. RSA 173:B, and

any other chapter so written, should be modified by removing such sentences as, "Upon a

showing of immediate and present danger of abuse.... with or without notice to the

defendant," and replacing it with, "Upon a showing of clear and convincing evidence that

abuse has occurred, or is about to occur....no order should be issued without first hearing

from the defendant."

7. All Domestic Violence protocols and statesponsored

reports should be modified to

change references about male assault rates to include also the female assault rates.

The literature should portray the fact that domestic violence is a twoway

street.

PATERNITY FRAUD AND CERTIFICATES OF BIRTH

Paternity Fraud is a growing concern for men and children everywhere. It can spawn

considerable grief for the men who may or may not be emotionally attached to a child they later

discover was fathered by another; and possibly unsettling for children who may discover the false

nature of their paternity. Such problems can become grievously complicated as in the case of the

Auburn, Maine man who was denied parenting time by the state to a child on which DNA tests

proved was fathered by another man, yet was still ordered by the state to pay child support.

(http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/special/may/4_24special.htm, Auburn man ordered to pay

support for child that's not his, Portsmouth Herald, April 24, 2005.)

Paternity fraud is defined as the wrong man being named by the mother as the father of

her child for purposes of deceit. It is noteworthy that there is no such thing as "maternity fraud"

and that this is an issue that exclusively exists as a problem that men may face.

Paternity fraud is a growing problem for both men who should have a higher level of

confidence on the paternity of their children, and for the children who need a reliable history of

both parents for the maintenance of their physical and emotional health. The Blood Bank

Association, and Lee Newman, administrator of SafeNH,

report that just under 30% of paternity

tests proved negative for fathers who were fingered to be the sire of their girlfriend's child.

Carnell Smith, a paternity fraud expert who administers http://www.paternityfraud.com, reports

that slightly more than 30% of the cases he sampled proved negative. Smith strongly advises

22

young

men not to sign paternity statements until DNA testing proves positive for them.

(http://www.expertclick.com/search/outsideurl.cfm?groupID=6854)

This Commission has on its agenda, "Certificates of Birth." It will be exploring the

possibility of recommending changes in the birth certificate laws under RSA 5C:

11 that may

increase the likelihood of children knowing who their fathers are, of reducing the odds of

children not having their legitimate fathers named on their birth certificates, and to enhance the

possibility that natural fathers and children may be brought closer together.

EDUCATION

The status of boys and young men in education has been attracting increased attention by

education experts in recent years. This surprises many people, who may have heard that schools

"shortchange" girls and assumed that boys were doing just fine. In fact, while many people

became aware of the fact that girls were behind boys in math and science education, an even

wider gender gap remained hidden; that of reading and writing skills, where boys are the ones at

a stark disadvantage.

The low educational status of males is especially disturbing given how little has been

done to recognize and equip them to better succeed in their schooling. Gender inequities are

immediately seen from prekindergarten and continue though postsecondary education. As

educational success has become increasingly critical in an informationdriven

society, the

consequences of leaving males behind continue to worsen.

Early Childhood Education

The challenges that boys face in school can be traced back as early as prekindergarten. A

2005 Yale University report showed that nationally, boys are 4.5 times more likely than girls to be

expelled from prekindergarten programs. Also noteworthy in this study is the observation that

"The increased likelihood of boys to be expelled over girls was similar across all ethnicities,

except for AfricanAmericans,

where boys accounted for 91.4% of the expulsions."

(Prekindergarteners Left Behind: Expulsion Rates in State Prekindergarten Systems. Walter S.

Gilliam, PhD, Yale University Child Study Center. May 2005 Report.)

Reading Scores

Reading scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)

demonstrate that in New Hampshire, male students are significantly behind females in this

fundamental skill, and that this gap worsens over time. Using the most recent data (2005), we see

that the percentage gap between boys and girls who are below the Basic reading level jumps from

23

five

points in Grade 4 to ten points in Grade 8. The percentage of boys who are reading below the

Proficient level jumps from 65% to 69% between Grade 4 and Grade 8, while for girls this value

decreases by one percentage point (from 57% to 56%).

Table 1E: New Hampshire Grade 4 NAEP Reading Scores, 2005

Sex Below Basic Basic Proficient Advanced

Males 28% 37% 27% 7%

Females 23% 34% 32% 11%

Source: The Nation's Report Card, National Assessment of Educational Progress

24

Table

2E: New Hampshire Grade 8 NAEP Reading Scores, 2005

Sex Below Basic Basic Proficient Advanced

Males 25% 44% 29% 2%

Females 15% 41% 39% 5%

Source: The Nation's Report Card, National Assessment of Educational Progress

Mathematics Scores

The 2005 NAEP scores in Mathematics for New Hampshire students demonstrate that the

math gap between boys and girls is much smaller than the reading gap.

Table 3E: New Hampshire Grade 4 Mathematics Scores, 2005

Sex Below Basic Basic Proficient Advanced

Males 10% 41% 43% 7%

Females 12% 44% 38% 6%

Source: The Nation's Report Card, National Assessment of Educational Progress

25

Table

4E: New Hampshire Grade 8 Mathematics Scores, 2005

Sex Below Basic Basic Proficient Advanced

Males 23% 41% 29% 8%

Females 22% 45% 27% 5%

Source: The Nation's Report Card, National Assessment of Educational Progress

Teachers

Another trend many educators are concerned about is the disproportionately low number

of male teachers in public schools. The National Education Association reports that nationally, 1

in 5 public school teachers are men. In public elementary schools, this ratio is 1 in 9. The number

of male teachers has been dropping consistently since approximately 1981, when 33% of public

school teachers were men. (Status of the American Public School Teacher, National Education

Association 2001 Report.) In 2003, the NEA reported that "the number of male teachers now

stands at a 40year

low." (Male Teacher Fact Sheet, 2003. National Education Association.

http://www.nea.org/teachershortage/03malefactsheet.html) This Commission agrees with the

NEA's recommendations for increasing the number of male teachers:

· Raising teacher salaries. "States with the highest salaries tend to have the highest

proportion of male teachers."

· Focus recruitment efforts during high school. "Initiatives to identify prospective

teachers early in their academic careers have proved successful. Secondary school

surveys, career counseling, and college prep courses can help boost enrollment."

· Encourage current teachers to promote teaching as a career to their male students.

"NEA asked the nation's teachers to select, from a list of options, the principal reason

they originally decided to become a teacher. The influence of a teacher in elementary or

26

secondary

school was the 4th most frequently chosen reason (32 percent). Most notably,

teachers under 30 gave this reason with greater frequency than did teachers over 30 (39%

vs. 31%)."

(The above quotes are from: Male Teacher Fact Sheet, 2003. National Education Association.

http://www.nea.org/teachershortage/03malefactsheet.html)

Secondary Education

The New Hampshire Partnership for the Advancement of Postsecondary Education

Research (NH PAPER) surveyed high school seniors from 56 public and eight private high

schools in the state regarding their future plans after completing high school. The 2004 survey

found that young women (67%) were much more likely to plan to attend a 4year

college after

graduating than young men (55%). For students who did not plan to continue their education

after high school, 58% said that they had made this decision in the 11th or 12th grade (21% and

37%, respectively). Also noteworthy in this report is the finding that "female public high school

seniors reported significantly higher grade point averages in English, foreign languages, arts and

music, business studies and computer studies than did male public school seniors. Male public

school seniors did not report higher grade point averages than female seniors in any subject."

(Measuring Aspirations and Participation, 2004 Survey. New Hampshire Partnership for the

Advancement of Postsecondary Education Research. http://www.nhpaper.org)

Young men also do not make it through secondary education at the same rate as young

women. The U.S. Department of Education reports that in 2001 the high school dropout rate is

higher for men (12.2%) than women (9.3%). (5E) An even greater gender disparity exists when

looking at Hispanic men and women (31.6% vs. 22.1%). (Digest of Education Statistics, 2002.

U.S. Department of Education)

Postsecondary Education

Male students are a minority on college and university campuses in New Hampshire, as

well as nationally. Women began outnumbering men in postsecondary education by the mid1970s,

and this trend has continued to this day, where women make up approximately 60% of all

undergraduate students. The following data shows that this trend also exists at the University of

New Hampshire:

27

Table

5E: UNH, Durham Graduate

Students by Sex, 19992005

Semester Total Male Percent Male Female Percent Female

Fall 1999 1746 730 41.8% 1016 58.2%

Spring 2000 1734 717 41.3% 1017 58.7%

Fall 2000 2078 880 42.3% 1198 57.7%

Spring 2001 2020 859 42.5% 1161 57.5%

Fall 2001 2004 880 43.9% 1124 56.1%

Spring 2002 2009 871 43.4% 1138 56.6%

Fall 2002 2159 953 44.1% 1206 55.9%

Spring 2003 2134 904 42.4% 1230 57.6%

Fall 2003 2324 979 42.1% 1345 57.9%

Spring 2004 2310 937 40.6% 1373 59.4%

Fall 2004 2407 977 40.6% 1430 59.4%

Spring 2005 2368 958 40.5% 1410 59.5%

Source: University of New Hampshire Institutional Research

28

Table

6E: UNH, Durham Undergraduate

Students by Sex, 19992005

Semester Total Male Percent Male Female Percent Female

Fall 1999 9741 3911 40.1% 5830 59.9%

Spring 2000 9331 3730 40.0% 5601 60.0%

Fall 2000 9722 3937 40.5% 5785 59.5%

Spring 2001 9311 3747 40.2% 5564 59.8%

Fall 2001 9893 4074 41.2% 5819 58.8%

Spring 2002 9504 3875 40.8% 5629 59.2%

Fall 2002 10350 4348 42.0% 6002 58.0%

Spring 2003 10002 4184 41.8% 5818 58.2%

Fall 2003 10408 4375 42.0% 6033 58.0%

Spring 2004 10011 4164 41.6% 5847 58.4%

Fall 2004 10470 4456 42.6% 6014 57.4%

Spring 2005 10007 4208 42.1% 5799 57.9%

Source: University of New Hampshire Institutional Research

29

Table

7E: UNH, Durham Associate

Degree Students by Sex, 19992005

Semester Total Male Percent Male Female Percent Female

Fall 1999 478 265 55.4% 213 44.6%

Spring 2000 443 264 59.6% 179 40.4%

Fall 2000 517 308 59.6% 209 40.4%

Spring 2001 470 279 59.4% 191 40.6%

Fall 2001 507 285 56.2% 222 43.8%

Spring 2002 462 266 57.6% 196 42.4%

Fall 2002 517 306 59.2% 211 40.8%

Spring 2003 466 283 60.7% 183 39.3%

Fall 2003 529 300 56.7% 229 43.3%

Spring 2004 462 269 58.2% 193 41.8%

Fall 2004 472 265 56.1% 207 43.9%

Spring 2005 422 246 58.3% 176 41.7%

Source: University of New Hampshire Institutional Research

30

Education

Conclusions

The data presented in this report show that a serious educational problem exists for boys

and young men in New Hampshire. The ability to read and write well is one of the most

fundamental lifeskills,

and one that boys are disproportionately doing poorly at. This needs to be

remedied. When the fact that girls were lagging behind boys in the areas of math and science

education became wellknown,

many educational programs specifically targeted at girls in these

academic areas arose to help boost involvement and achievement. These programs were

extremely successful. Creating additional education programs tailored to the needs of boys

in the areas of reading and writing would be an obvious first step.

The reasons behind the low enrollment levels of young men in colleges and universities

are not well understood. Certainly, improving the overall academic achievement of boys earlier

on in education will increase the number of collegebound

secondary students. Resources such

as the NH PAPER survey should be expanded to cover an accurate sampling of all high

school students in the state, and focus on identifying the reasons why male students are

deciding to forgo higher education.

Finally, it is a recommendation of this Commission that awareness of the problems

boys face in our schools become a greater focus in the education community and the public.

Many educators see the problems that boys face on a daily basis, but do not have enough support

from the general public to take stronger actions to help correct these inequities.

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS

The Commission on the Status of Men recommends and suggests that:

· The State of New Hampshire take steps to reduce the disparity between the

investment in women’s health issues and men’s health issues, and to design

programs concentrating on addressing in a genderneutral

manner those conditions

and diseases with the highest incidence and the highest rates of morbidity and

mortality.

· The State of New Hampshire provide further directed study and proactive

intervention programs, including educational programs at the elementary school

level directed at bolstering the selfesteem

of boys and helping them develop

increased coping skills and new approaches to personal and interpersonal conflict,

coupled with increased prevention programs directed at those segments of our

society most likely to succeed in committing suicide.

· Educational programs be promoted that teach young men and women about the

need for children to have two caring natural parents meaningfully involved in their

lives, with an emphasis on the role of the father in child development.

31

·

The Office of Child Support Enforcement modify its policy of enforcing only the

financial support portion of family court decrees to include the parenting aspects of

those decrees, as well.

· Research on the father's role in child development be given the widest possible

publicity and attention.

· The Governor of New Hampshire issue a proclamation declaring that both natural

parents are equally important for their children.

· It should be the public policy of this state that frequent and continuing contact

between minor children and both parents, if the parents have separated or dissolved

their marriage, is ordinarily beneficial to the children. This commission also finds

that it is in the public interest as well as to children and families to encourage

parents to share the rights and responsibility of child rearing; and that a rebuttable

presumption of joint physical custody be supported and encouraged.

· Parenting time should be "maximized".

· Child support guidelines should be based on child costs.

· OCSE should consider modifying its policy of enforcing only the support portion of

family court decrees to include the parenting aspects of those decrees as well.

· Absent fault grounds, the financial burden of family breakdown should be shared by

the parties on an equal basis.

· Judges, prosecutors and other court personnel should attend educational

conferences on domestic violence (DV) structured to avoid the present gender bias

that ignores or discounts domestic violence by women against both men and

children.

· Properly trained Case Evaluators should screen each domestic violence case with the

goal of arriving at mutually agreeable solutions in an atmosphere of communication

and compromise.

· Evidentiary standards and procedure should be reviewed and revised in domestic

violence cases.

· Statesponsored

reports and protocols on domestic violence should be modified to

change references about male assault rates to include also the female assault rates.

· The number of male public school teachers should be increased by raising teacher

salaries, promoting male teacher recruitment in high schools, and encouraging

current teachers to take an active role in recruiting young men as teachers.

· Create additional education programs tailored to the needs of boys in the areas of

reading and writing.

· Resources such as the NH PAPER survey should be expanded to cover an accurate

sampling of all high school students in the state, and focus on identifying the reasons

why male students are deciding to forgo higher education.

· Awareness of the problems boys face in our schools should become a greater focus in

the education community and the public.

· Funding be provided this commission to finance an executive director, supplies,

32

telephone,

office and computer equipment; and to enable the production of

brochures and public service announcements designed to improve and promote

health, education and policies which would bring fathers and children closer

together pursuant to RSA 19I:

4.

33

APPENDIX

A

Summary Abstracts of Articles from the Fall issue of the Psychology of Women

FEMALE VIOLENCE AGAINST INTIMATE PARTNERS: AN INTRODUCTION Irene

Hanson Frieze

This special issue addresses some of the contradictions found in the research literature on

intimate partner violence. Much of this work is concerned with the problems of severely battered

women. However, other research indicates that women can be just as violent as their partners.

Articles in this issue begin to explore some of the ways that women express intimate partner

violence and argue that there is more than one type of partner violence. Motives and other

correlates of violence are examined and future research directions are outlined.

THE MYTH OF FEMALE PASSIVITY: THIRTY YEARS OF REVELATIONS ABOUT

FEMALE AGGRESSION Deborah

South Richardson

This article reviews an extensive program of research that has examined gender differences in

aggressive behavior. Early research in the aggression laboratory that was designed to explain why

females were non aggressive actually revealed that females did respond to provocation and that

they could not accurately be depicted as passive individuals. Subsequent studies that examined

both indirect and direct aggression revealed that women were at least as likely as men to employ

indirect aggressive strategies and that the nature of relationship is a better determinant of

aggressive action than gender. Directly relevant to the theme of this volume, the later research

revealed that males and females reported equally high levels of direct aggression in interaction

with romantic partners.

COURTSHIP BEHAVIORS, RELATIONSHIP VIOLENCE, AND BREAKUP PERSISTENCE

IN COLLEGE MEN AND WOMEN Stacey

L. Williams, Irene Hanson Frieze

This study assessed college men's (n= 85) and women's (n= 215) courtship persistence behaviors

(approach, surveillance, intimidation, mild aggression), which have been linked to stalking, and

examined their relations to initial courtship interest, relationship development, and future

violence and persistence, while also exploring the role of gender in these relations. Findings

showed individuals performed surveillance when initially more interested than the other.

Whereas approach behaviors were positively associated with relationship establishment,

surveillance and intimidation were negatively associated. As predicted, results showed continuity

in persistence and violence over the course of dating relationships. For both genders, courtship

mild aggression predicted relationship violence, and persistence behaviors predicted similar

persistence at breakup. Early behaviors may foreshadow violence and stalkingrelated

behaviors

in both men and women.

34

RELATIONSHIP

QUALITY AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN WOMEN'S SAMESEX

RELATIONSHIPS: THE ROLE OF MINORITY STRESS Kimberly

F. Balsam, Dawn M.

Szymanski

Despite a large body of literature addressing relationship quality and domestic violence in

women's samesex

relationships, few studies have empirically examined how stress specific to

living as a lesbian or bisexual woman might correlate with these relationship variables. Degree of

outness, internalized homophobia, lifetime and recent experiences of discrimination,

butch/femme identity, relationship quality, and lifetime and recent experiences of domestic

violence were assessed in a sample of 272 predominantly European American lesbian and

bisexual women. Lesbian and bisexual women were found to be comparable on most relationship

variables. In bivariate analyses, minority stress variables (internalized homophobia and

discrimination) were associated with lower relationship quality and both domestic violence

perpetration and victimization. Outness and butch/femme identity were largely unrelated to

relationship variables. Path analysis revealed that relationship quality fully mediated the

relationship between internalized homophobia and recent domestic violence.

INVESTIGATING THREE EXPLANATIONS OF WOMEN'S RELATIONSHIP

AGGRESSION Nicola

GrahamKevan

and John Archer

This study investigated explanations of women's partner aggression in a sample of 358 women.

Women completed measures of physical aggression, control, and fear. Three explanations of

women's partner aggression were explored: (a) that its use is associated with fear, (b) that it is

reciprocal, and (c) that it is coercive. Each explanation received partial support, with multivariate

analysis showing that collectively they explained significant proportions of the variance in

women's selfreported

use of physical aggression toward their male partners. These results

indicate that women's physical aggression toward male partners cannot be understood using a

unitary explanation.

INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE PERPETRATED BY COLLEGE WOMEN WITHIN THE

CONTEXT OF A HISTORY OF VICTIMIZATION Kelly

N. Graves, Stacy M. Sechrist,

Jacquelyn W. White1, and Matthew J. Paradise

Using a longitudinal design, the current study explored intimate partner violence perpetration

among 1,300 college women within the context of one's history of physical and sexual

victimization across 4 years of college. Structural equation modeling indicated that sexual

victimization does not predict concurrent use of women's intimate partner violence but does

predict subsequent use of women's intimate partner violence during the later years of college. In

contrast, physical victimization is associated positively with concurrent use of women's intimate

partner violence but is negatively associated with subsequent use of women's intimate partner

violence for women. Furthermore, the negative relationship of victimization to subsequent

perpetration primarily is due to those with high levels of victimization histories. The present

study provides the first model of intimate partner violence within the context of victimization

history using longitudinal data. The findings indicate that women's intimate partner violence

35

perpetration

is not contextfree,

but rather is influenced by their own physical and sexual

victimization histories.

PRECURSORS AND CORRELATES OF WOMEN'S VIOLENCE: CHILD ABUSE

TRAUMATIZATION, VICTIMIZATION OF WOMEN, AVOIDANCE COPING, AND

PSYCHOLOGICAL SYMPTOMS Tami

P. Sullivan, Katharine J. Meese, Suzanne C. Swan1,

Carolyn M. Mazure, and David L. Snow

Path modeling assessed (a) the influence of child abuse traumatization on women's use of

violence and their experiences of being victimized, (b) the association of these three variables to

depressive and post traumatic stress symptoms, and (c) the indirect pathways from women using

violence and their being victimized to psychological symptoms through avoidance coping.

Among 108 primarily African American women recruited from the community who used

violence with a male partner, women's use of violence, but not their experiences of being

victimized, was predicted by child abuse traumatization. Women's use of violence did not

directly or indirectly predict symptomatology. In contrast, child abuse traumatization and

women's experiences of being victimized were predictive of both depressive and post traumatic

stress symptoms, and being victimized also was related indirectly to depressive symptoms

through avoidance coping.

RELATIONSHIP VIOLENCE AMONG ADOLESCENT MOTHERS: FREQUENCY, DYADIC

NATURE, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR RELATIONSHIP DISSOLUTION AND MENTAL

HEALTH Stephanie

Milan and Jessica Lewis, Kathleen Ethier, Trace Kershaw and Jeannette R.

Ickovics

This article examines whether the frequency, dyadic nature, and potential implications of

relationship violence differ in parenting (n= 163) and nulliparous (i.e., never given birth; n= 165)

adolescent females from lowincome,

urban communities. We found the frequency and dyadic

nature of violence did not differ between parental status groups. Over half of the adolescents in

both groups reported relationship violence in the past year, with femaleenacted

violence more

common than maleenacted

violence. However, significant group differences emerged in the

relationship between violence and subsequent relationship dissolution and mental health. Higher

levels of femaleenacted

violence predicted relationship dissolution among nulliparous

adolescents but predicted increases in depression in parenting adolescents. Findings highlight the

need for violence prevention programs tailored specifically to the developmental and contextual

needs of adolescent mothers.

AN INVESTMENT MODEL ANALYSIS OF RELATIONSHIP STABILITY AMONG

WOMEN COURTMANDATED

TO VIOLENCE INTERVENTIONS Deborah

L. Rhatigan,

Todd M. Moore, Gregory L. Stuart

This investigation examined relationship stability among 60 women courtmandated

to violence

interventions by applying a general model (i.e., Rusbult's 1980 Investment Model) to predict

intentions to leave current relationships. As in past research, results showed that Investment

36

Model

predictions were supported such that courtmandated

women who reported lesser

relationship satisfaction, greater alternatives, and fewer investments in current relationships

endorsed lower levels of commitment and greater intentions to leave those relationships.

Secondary analyses showed that courtmandated

women's violence perpetration and experiences

of being victimized were minimally related to model factors or women's intentions to leave.

Taken together, results of this study provide additional evidence that general models should be

used to predict relationship termination decisions among women involved in violent

relationships, and violence experiences alone do not affect that decision.

A POSTMODERN APPROACH TO WOMEN'S USE OF VIOLENCE: DEVELOPING

MULTIPLE AND COMPLEX CONCEPTUALIZATIONS Maureen

C. McHugh, Nichole A.

Livingston, and Amy Ford

We review the research on intimate partner abuse and, in particular, the articles in this issue,

from within a feminist and postmodern framework. Research on women's use of violence is

reviewed in terms of how researchers have constructed and measured violence and have

conceptualized intimate partner violence (IPV) and gender. What and how we measure

determines what we find (McHugh & Cosgrove, 2005). We call for new conceptualizations of

intimate violence and for more complex constructions of gender. We offer a postmodern

perspective on gender and IPV arguing that interpersonal violence always involves gender, that

approach and method influence results, and that men and women use violence in both similar and

different ways.

37

APPENDIX

B

CHILDREN LIKELY TO BE BETTER ADJUSTED IN JOINT VS SOLE CUSTODY

ARRANGEMENTS IN MOST CASES, ACCORDING TO REVIEW OF RESEARCH

American Psychological Association

March 24, 2002

http://www.apa.org/releases/custody2.html

Living Situation Not As Influential As Time Spent With Parent

WASHINGTON Children

from divorced families who either live with both parents at different

times or spend certain amounts of time with each parent are better adjusted in most cases than

children who live and interact with just one parent, according to new research on custody

arrangements and children's adjustment.

Psychologist Robert Bauserman, Ph.D., of AIDS Administration/Department of Health and

Mental Hygiene in Baltimore, Maryland conducted a metaanalysis

of 33 studies between 1982 to

1999 that examined 1,846 solecustody

and 814 jointcustody

children. The studies compared

child adjustment in joint physical or joint legal custody with solecustody

settings and 251 intact

families. Joint custody was defined as either physical custody where

a child spends equal or

substantial amounts of time with both parents or shared legal custody where

a child lives with

primarily one parent but both parents are involved in all aspects of the child's life. This article

will appear in the March issue of the Journal of Family Psychology, published by the American

Psychological Association (APA).

Children in joint custody arrangements had less behavior and emotional problems, had higher

selfesteem,

better family relations and school performance than children in sole custody

arrangements. And these children were as welladjusted

as intact family children on the same

measures, said Bauserman, "probably because joint custody provides the child with an

opportunity to have ongoing contact with both parents."

These findings indicate that children do not actually need to be in a joint physical custody to

show better adjustment but just need to spend substantial time with both parents, especially with

their fathers, said Bauserman. Also, joint custody couples reported less conflict, possibly because

both parents could participate in their children's lives equally and not spend the time arguing over

childcare decisions. Unfortunately a perception exists that joint custody is more harmful because

it exposes children to ongoing parental conflict. In fact, the studies in this review found that solecustody

parents reported higher levels of conflict.

It is important to recognize that the results do not support joint custody in all situations. When

one parent is abusive or neglectful or has a serious mental or physical health problem, solecustody

with the other parent would clearly be preferable, said Bauserman. The judges, lawyers,

38

social

workers, psychologists and other professionals involved in divorce counseling and

litigation should be aware of these findings to make informed decisions of what environment is

best for a child in a custody situation.

Furthermore, to address the question of how much the parents' emotional health compared with

the custody arrangement influenced the children's adjustment, Bauserman explained that custody

arrangement seemed to have more influence. By statistically controlling for past parental conflict

(which indicates parental maladjustment), the joint custody children still were significantly better

adjusted. This result was also found in other studies cited in Bauserman's review. More primary

research is needed, said Bauserman, "on the past and current adjustment of joint custody and sole

custody parents before this question can be completely answered." Article:

"Child Adjustment in JointCustody

Versus SoleCustody

Arrangements: A MetaAnalytic

Review," Robert Bauserman, Ph.D., AIDS Administration/Department of Health and Mental

Hygiene; Journal of Family Psychology , Vol 16, No. 1.

Full text of the article is available from the APA Public Affairs Office or at

http://www.apaorg/journals/releases/fam16191.pdf

Robert Bauserman, PhD, can be reached by telephone at 4107674322

39

APPENDIX

C

Paternal Involvement and Children’s Health: A Longitudinal Study

Kathleen A. Foley, University of Pennsylvania and Frank F. Furstenberg, University of

Pennsylvania

CONCLUSIONS

Whereas previous studies have had difficultly demonstrating that fathers matter to the well being

of their children, our results provide strong evidence that fathers do, in fact, count for important

measures of physical and mental health. Both male and female children who felt close to a father

in adolescence were significantly more likely to report better physical and mental health

outcomes at age 27 net of their physical and mental health when they were teenagers. In addition,

we found that losing a close father relationship between early childhood and adolescence had

significant negative implications for both physical and mental health. Our lack of significant

findings for depression at age 27 in light of earlier positive findings at age 20 (Furstenberg and

Harris 1993) suggests that the beneficial effects of having a close father diminish over time for

depression.

The fact that we were able to demonstrate statistically significant benefits of father closeness on

several children’s physical and mental health in adulthood, despite our small sample, points to the

advantages of using longitudinal data. First, we include data on all types of fathers, including

surrogate, step and nonresidential

fathers as opposed to just biological fathers. Second, we asked

the children themselves to rate their relationship with their fathers rather than relying on mother

reports. Not only may mother’s reports be an inaccurate reflection of the child’s feelings, but they

may also be influenced by the mother’s own opinion of and relationship with the father. Thus,

future studies may benefit from asking children directly about their relationships with their

biological father and other father figures who may or may not be coresident

with the child.

Our inability to find a significant effect of paternal contact on children’s physical and mental

health should not be overlooked. While there is some evidence that more paternal involvement is

better than less involvement for mental health in adulthood, we found no evidence that resident

fathers mattered more than nonresident

fathers. Given the small percentage of low income inner

city children who have long term residential fathers (Coley 1999), this finding is good news. In

conjunction with our results showing the advantages of close paternal relationships, this finding

implies that close, loving fathers, whether they be residential or not, matter for their children’s

later well being.

While it is unwise to read too much into these rather preliminary results, it seems clear that one

way public policy can help inner city children is to assist fathers in staying involved with their

children throughout adolescence. Reporting on preliminary findings from the Fragile Families

Study, McLanahan (1999) suggests that public policy take advantage of the window of

opportunity present at the time of a child’s birth to keep enthusiastic fathers active in their

40

children’s

lives. The results of our study here second that notion.

APPENDIX D

A PROPOSAL TO ESTIMATE AND IMPROVE THE SUCCESS OF THE OFFICE OF CHILD

SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT

Reports sent to the public on the effectiveness of child support enforcement programs have

traditionally relied on two factors: (A) total dollars collected year to year, and (B) a ratio of

dollars collected divided by the dollars spent to administer and enforce collections (State of New

Hampshire Child Support Services, Performance Audit Report, 1995). These methods of analysis

may send a false sense of effectiveness because total caseloads and dollars ordered rise in tandem

with dollars collected, and the administrative ratio is difficult to interpret in terms of success (i.e,

how many child support dollars would still be collectible in the absence of any administrative

costs).

Factors A & B do not show the complete picture. NH Compliance rates consistently remain

mired at less than 65% for all accounts and all obligors, even as totals collected risehardly

significant when compared with rates that hovered at around 60% for all accounts way back in

1985, or the 90% compliance rates for involved parents (Braver, 1998). When viewed in terms of

absolute numbers of children involved, the poverty problem for children is even worse because a

5% increase in compliance cannot compensate for, say, an 80% increase in the numbers of

children in the system.

The key to the proper support of children, in both economic and overall wellnessas

S. Braver

reports in Divorced Dads: Shattering the Myths, 1998is

greater attention to the parental

involvement factor for both divorced and never married parents. But more data is needed, as

prescribed below, to better define the problem and the need:

I. An indepth

accounting of the listed items to have a better handle on success/failure of

enforcement programs:

a) Total amounts ordered yr to yr since 1986 for all accounts.

b) Total amounts collected yr to yr since 1986 for all accounts.

c) Percent total success rates yr to yr for all accounts in terms of both dollars collected and

obligors in full compliance.

d) Dollars collected in terms of dollars collected per child for all accounts yr to yr since

1986. (Nominal & inflation adjusted)

e) Total arrearages for all accounts accumulative yr to yr since 1986 and present overall

arrearage total.

f) An assessment on the extent to which support enforcement officers conducted

investigations and enforcement pertaining to visitation as prescribed by occupational job

description code 894517.

g) Total cases and total children yr to yr to discover the problem in terms of absolute

41

numbers

of children in the system.

h) Total dollars yr to yr that were charged off as noncollectable and overall total of

noncollectable dollars.

42

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