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ABSTRACT
Few current researchers have examined how men's experiences with the normative developmental tasks of adulthood affect their parenting role. This study assessed the relationship between men's adult life experiences and their fathering orientations. Fathers (N = 177; aged 25–58 years) of first-born children, aged 4, 8, 12, and 16 years and residing in Manhattan, Kansas, completed mail surveys measuring childrearing practices, attitudes, role involvement, role satisfaction, and adult life experiences. The latter was assessed using the Men's Adult Life Experiences (M.A.L.E.) Inventory (De Luccie, Scheidt, & Davis, 1989), which tapped self-reported intensity of concerns across 11 developmental themes, such as relationships, time, health, sex, or death. Stepwise multiple regression analyses reliably demonstrated that fathers reporting high intensity of adult life concerns also exhibited less positive childrearing practices—higher levels of rejection, psychological control, and lax control—and lower levels of confidence in the parental role.