Father’s Day encourages us to think about how dads make a difference in children’s lives. The National Research Center on Hispanic Children & Families has been working to improve our understanding of Hispanic fathers—a group that has been understudied to date.

Our recent work finds that most Hispanic fathers are:

• immigrants
• Spanish-dominant speakers
• married or cohabiting
• employed (though few have more than a high school education)
• living with their children and partner (see figure)

Our work also finds that Hispanic fathers’ characteristics and experiences differ based on whether they are an immigrant or not. For example, U.S.-born Hispanic men are far more likely to become fathers as teens than immigrants, while immigrants are more likely to be married and have low incomes.

These different experiences can affect fathers’ abilities to contribute to their children’s lives and suggest that programs serving Latino fathers should consider their unique backgrounds, experiences, and service needs. Learn more about effective engagement of Hispanic fathers and families through the following resources:

• Developing Culturally Responsive Approaches to Serving Diverse Populations: A Resource Guide for Community-Based Organizations
• A Guide to Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood Programs for Hispanic Couples and Families
• Working with Latino Individuals, Couples, and Families: A Toolkit for Stakeholders
• Findings from the Hispanic Healthy Marriage Initiative: Grantee Implementation Evaluation, 2007-2013