How young are ‘young’ dads?
Young fathers are generally defined as males under the age of 24 or 25. Since teenage pregnancies usually involve 18- or 19-year-old females, most young fathers are in their early twenties (Dudley, 2007). Among these, many are developmentally immature (Robinson, 1990). Very much older male partners are a much discussed but rarely studied group. One study which examined births to 15¬17 year old girls in the US found only 8% with a partner five or more years older and few of those males obviously predatory (Duberstein et al, 1997). UK data suggest that 1:4 of the fathers of teenage mothers’ babies may be significantly older, but this is almost certainly a substantial overestimate, since the names of the youngest fathers are likely to be missing from their babies’ birth certificates. A US study found 42% of births to teenage mothers registered only in the mother’s name (Landry & Forrest, 1995). Adolescent fathers who are younger than their partners may be an under-reported population. Suc
