The relationship among father's role identity, role belief, marital relationship, and father involvement in parenting

This study investigated the structural relationship between a father's role identity, role belief, marital relationship, and involvement in parenting and examined the mediating effect of a father's belief. A total of 151 fathers with preschoolers in Korea participated in this study. To investigate the hypothesized model, structural equation modeling was used. Data were analyzed with SPSS and AMOS programs. The results suggested that a father's role identity relates to his role belief and involvement in parenting. His role identity has a significant positive direct effect on his involvement in parenting and also an indirect effect on his involvement in parenting via his role belief. This study provides guidelines for developing programs and policies to promote fathers’ involvement in parenting.