The current study examines the links between reports of fathering and preadolescent adjustment across these four family types (step versus intact and Mexican American versus European American). The current study is guided by three hypotheses: (1) father acceptance, monitoring, consistent discipline, and involvement with their adolescent will be positively associated with positive adolescent adjustment, while father rejection will be negatively associated with positive adolescent adjustment but the links between rejection and adjustment will be stronger for EA than MA adolescents; (2) mothering will moderate the association between fathering and adolescent adjustment, with better adolescent adjustment expected when both parents are consistent in discipline, acceptance, monitoring, and interaction and poorer adolescent adjustment expected when both parents show rejection; and (3) adolescent gender will moderate the association between fathering and adolescent adjustment, with links between fathering behaviors and sons expected to be stronger than links between fathering behaviors and daughters. These last two hypotheses are assumed to be equally applicable to families regardless of family structure or ethnicity.
