--- title: The Father Absence Crisis [Infographic] description: 24 million children in America grow up without their father at home. Share this infographic to ensure everyone understands the impact father absence. image: https://www.fatherhood.org/hubfs/hispanic-boy.png --- [Skip to main content](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/the-father-absence-crisis-infographic#main) - [![NFI mark](https://www.fatherhood.org/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI%20mark.svg)FATHERHOOD.ORG](https://www.fatherhood.org/) - [STORE.FATHERHOOD.ORG](https://store.fatherhood.org/) [![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=149&height=82&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=119&height=65&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=119&height=66&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=89&height=49&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ](https://www.fatherhood.org) - [How To Build Strong Families](https://www.fatherhood.org/build-strong-families) - [Why Father Inclusion Matters](https://www.fatherhood.org/why-father-inclusion-matters) - Show submenu for Get Involved Get Involved - [Fatherhood Programs](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/programs-and-resources) - [Train Your Staff](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/staff-training) - [State, County, and City Agency Services](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/collaborative-services) Open main navigation Close main navigation - Show submenu for Get Informed Get Informed - [How To Build Strong Families](https://www.fatherhood.org/build-strong-families) - [Why Father Inclusion Matters](https://www.fatherhood.org/why-father-inclusion-matters) - [Father Stats & Infographics](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistic) - Show submenu for Get Involved Get Involved - [Fatherhood Programs](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/programs-and-resources) - [Train Your Staff](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/staff-training) - [State, County, and City Agency Services](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/collaborative-services) - Show submenu for Get Started Get Started - [Find Your Stage of Father Inclusion](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-inclusion) - [How Father Friendly Is Your Organization?](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-friendly) - [Get In Touch](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) [Store](https://store.fatherhood.org/?hsLang=en) [Get In Touch](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) [Store](https://store.fatherhood.org/?hsLang=en) Show submenu for Get Started Get Started - [Fatherhood Data & Statistics](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistic) - [How Father Friendly is Your Organization?](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-friendly) - [Other Free Resources](https://www.fatherhood.org/nfi-free-resources) - [Talk With us to Get Started](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) National Fatherhood Initiative Blog / [Latest Articles](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood) [NFI-Specific Programs & Resources](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/topic/nfi-specific-programs-resources) # The Father Absence Crisis [Infographic] 5 min read ![Melissa Byers](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Images/melissa_circle_icon.png?width=100&height=100&name=melissa_circle_icon.png) [** Melissa Byers ** ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/author/melissa-byers) Melissa is the Chief Marketing Officer at National Fatherhood Initiative® (NFI). Melissa oversees the organization's marketing, communications, graphic design, and product fulfillment functions. There is a crisis in America. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 24 million children in America—one out of three—live without their biological dad in the home. Consequently, there is a “father factor” in nearly all of the societal issues facing America today. ![father involvement](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/hispanic-boy.png?width=452&name=hispanic-boy.png "father involvement") The good news is, **we can all help.** How? By focusing on creating generations of responsible, involved fathers. Whether you are with an organization that serves fathers and families, or you are a father yourself, **it's important to carry the message of the value of fathers to our nation.** To help you share this message, we created a simple yet powerful [infographic](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-396018955.pdf) outlining the father absence crisis in America, and how it's affecting our children. Won't you take this to heart and help promote responsible fatherhood? The children of our future will thank you. (You can find even more data and statistics [here](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistics-2016) in [Father Facts 7](https://store.fatherhood.org/just-released-father-facts-7-downloadable/).) **Research shows when a child grows up in a father-absent home, he or she is...** **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 4X more likely to live in poverty](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-294727649.png?width=73&name=file-294727649.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 4X more likely to live in poverty")****1) Four Times More Likely to Live in Poverty:  **Children in father-absent homes are almost four times more likely to be poor. (U.S. Census Bureau) **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more more likely to suffer emotional and behavioral problems](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-295426528.png?width=73&name=file-295426528.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more more likely to suffer emotional and behavioral problems")****2) More Likely to Suffer Emotional and Behavioral Problems: **Children of single mothers show higher levels of aggressive behavior than children born to married mothers. (Journal of Marriage and Family) **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 2X greater risk of infant mortality](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-294694639.png?width=73&name=file-294694639.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 2X greater risk of infant mortality")3) Two Times Greater Risk of Infant Mortality: **Infant mortality rates are nearly two times higher for infants of unmarried mothers than for married mothers. (National Center for Health Statistics) **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to go to prison](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-295428028.png?width=73&name=file-295428028.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to go to prison")4) More Likely to go to Prison: **One in five prison inmates had a father in prison. (Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs)** ** **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to commit a crime](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-295428068.png?width=73&name=file-295428068.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to commit a crime")5) More Likely to Commit Crime:** Study of juvenile offenders indicated that family structure significantly predicts delinquency. (Journal of Youth and Adolescence) ** ** **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 7X more likely to become pregnant as a teen](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-294694674.png?width=73&name=file-294694674.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 7X more likely to become pregnant as a teen")**6) Seven Times More Likely to Become Pregnant as a Teen: ****Teens without fathers are twice as likely to be involved in early sexual activity and seven times more likely to get pregnant as an adolescent. (Child Development Journal) ** ** **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to face abuse or neglect](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-294731989.png?width=73&name=file-294731989.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to face abuse or neglect") 7) More Likely to Face Abuse and Neglect: **Compared to children living with married biological parents, those whose single parent had a live-in partner had more than 8 times the rate of maltreatment overall, over 10 times the rate of abuse and more than 6 times the rate of neglect. (Child's Bureau) **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-295428158.png?width=73&name=file-295428158.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol")8) More Likely to Abuse Drugs and Alcohol: **Youth are more at risk of first substance use without a highly involved father. (Social Science Research). Adolescents whose fathers were drug abusers revealed that paternal smoking and drug use lead to strained father-child relationships. **![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 2X more likely to suffer obesity](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-296269311.png?width=73&name=file-296269311.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 2X more likely to suffer obesity") 9) Two Times More Likely to Suffer Obesity: **Obese children are more likely to live in father-absent homes than are non-obese children. (National Longitudinal Survey of Youth) ****![When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 2X more likely to drop out of high school](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-295426618.png?width=73&name=file-295426618.png "When child is raised in father-absent home, he or she is 2X more likely to drop out of high school")**10) Two Times More Likely to Drop Out of High School: **Students living in father-absent homes are twice as likely to repeat a grade in school (U.S. Department of Education); father involvement in schools is associated with the higher likelihood of their children getting mostly A's (U.S. Department of Education); and in the typical elementary school classroom of 20 students, 7 of them—over 33 percent—are growing up without their biological father in the home. (U.S. Census Bureau). **Click the infographic to enlarge, save, download, and print.** [![nationalfatherhoodinitiativefatherabsencecrisis](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-810422203.png?width=500&name=file-810422203.png "nationalfatherhoodinitiativefatherabsencecrisis")](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hub/135704/file-396018955.pdf) ***[![father involvement](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/FatherFacts7_500px-1.jpg?width=209&name=FatherFacts7_500px-1.jpg "father involvement") ](https://store.fatherhood.org/just-released-father-facts-7-downloadable/)*** **Visit our ****[Father Facts 7 Page](https://store.fatherhood.org/just-released-father-facts-7-downloadable/) to learn more and download a sample of the nation's most popular fatherhood research publication.** *** *** Date Published: 02/16/2017 Last Updated: 11/10/2021 ## Learn How to Build a Fatherhood Program That Works Download this free guide for a proven 7-step roadmap—from making the case and securing funding for your program, to launching and measuring real results! [Get The Guide Now!](https://www.fatherhood.org/starting-a-fatherhood-program) ![7-steps-starting-a-fatherhood_program](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Images/7-steps-starting-a-fatherhood_program.png?width=700&height=700&name=7-steps-starting-a-fatherhood_program.png) [ Previous ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/video-another-reason-why-dads-are-vital-to-child-well-being) [ Next ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/alliance-cohort-extended-deadline) ## Related Articles ### [Five Leadership Practices That Build Father-Inclusive Organizations Image created with GPT Image 2. Creating a father-inclusive organization doesn't happen through a new but isolated fatherhood program, staff training on how to include fathers, or ... Read More](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/five-leadership-practices-that-build-father-inclusive-organizations) ### [Beyond Graduation: Keeping Fathers Connected Image created with GPT Image 2. 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