Absent fathers are fuelling drug addiction, anti-social behaviour and crime among young people, says charity report
• Fatherless young people are 80.3% more likely to be involved in anti-social behaviour
• 76.4% more likely to take part in crime
• 69.1% more likely to use take drugs
Absentee fathers are driving high levels of addition, anti-social behaviour and crime, a new report has revealed.
Children growing up in fatherless families are turning to self-harm as well as criminal activity, fuelled by their sense of abandonment and lack of self-esteem.
Many of the youngsters interviewed for the Dad and Me report, which was commissioned by charity Addaction, said they had sought affirmation and affection from gang membership and turned to drugs to numb the pain.
The fatherless young people were found to be almost 70 per cent more likely to take drugs and 76 per cent more likely to turn to crime.
The report says: ‘ Young people are struggling to find a sense of purpose within their families, schools, and community , and believe that peers provide them with what they need.
‘The continuing desire to join a gang, engage in antisocial behaviour and risky lifestyles combined with the need to carry a weapon as a form of protection has become the norm for many.’
The fatherless children’s feelings of having a void in their lives, was found to make them more likely to aspire be better parents themselves.
But their aspirations might not come true, as they often lacked the essential parenting skills needed.