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Table 2 Proportion of Fathers Experiencing Barriers to Treatment by Level of Child Externalising Disorders

From: Optimising child outcomes from parenting interventions: fathers’ experiences, preferences and barriers to participation

 

Total

High EXT

Low EXT

 

Barrier

n

(%)

n

(%)

n

(%)

χ2

Practical

 Cost of service

196

(19.6)

80

(26.9)

117

(16.6)

14.15 *

 Work commitments

196

(19.6)

78

(26.3)

118

(16.8)

11.98

 No time to participate

149

(14.9)

50

(16.9)

99

(14.0)

1.34

 Programs/services not at convenient location

87

(8.7)

36

(12.1)

51

(7.2)

6.30

 Programs/services not at convenient time

84

(8.4)

34

(11.5)

49

(7.0)

5.61

 Long waiting lists

69

(6.9)

40

(13.5)

29

(4.1)

28.52 *

 Problems with transport

43

(4.3)

28

(9.5)

15

(2.1)

27.26 *

 No child care

39

(3.9)

24

(8.1)

14

(2.0)

21.35 *

Knowledge

 Not knowing whether the programs are effective

172

(17.2)

58

(19.5)

114

(16.2)

1.66

 Not knowing what the program is about

161

(16.1)

52

(17.6)

108

(15.3)

0.77

 I didn’t know about parenting programs before

160

(16.0)

46

(15.5)

114

(16.2)

0.07

 I don’t know where to go to participate in a parenting program

149

(14.9)

39

(13.2)

110

(15.6)

0.99

Attitudes and Beliefs

 I don’t feel like my child’s behaviour is a problem

396

(39.6)

51

(17.2)

345

(48.9)

88.21 *

 I don’t feel like I need help with my parenting

288

(28.8)

47

(15.8)

242

(34.3)

34.85 *

 I think my child’s problems require treatment of the child, not the parent

90

(9.0%)

48

(16.2)

42

(6.0)

26.81 *

 I don’t think programs are suitable for fathers

55

(5.5)

29

(9.8)

26

(3.7)

14.67 *

 I feel that it’s a mother’s role to parent the children

30

(3.0)

13

(4.4)

17

(2.4)

2.78

Other

 Worry about being judged

81

(8.1)

43

(14.5)

38

(5.4)

23.40 *

 I don’t feel comfortable asking for/receiving help with parenting or child issues

72

(7.2)

26

(8.8)

45

(6.4)

1.81

 Previous negative experience with mental health professionals

38

(3.8)

19

(6.4)

20

(2.8)

7.08

 Cultural/religious factors

32

(3.2)

23

(7.7)

10

(1.4)

26.25 *

 My partner attended without me and didn’t encourage me to participate

29

(2.9)

19

(6.4)

10

(1.4)

18.39 *

  1. High EXT fathers of children with high or very high levels of externalising disorders (conduct problems or hyperactivity), as indicated by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), low EXT fathers of children with close to average or slightly raised levels of externalising disorders, as indicated by the SDQ; N = 1001, df = 1 for all Chi Square comparisons by level of externalising disorders; *Bonferroni-corrected p value (p < .002); all data and analyses adjusted for sampling weights
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BMC Public Health

ISSN: 1471-2458

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