Did you know that having an actively involved father can influence your adult life? Dr. Mark Trahan divulges new research about male confidence in being a parent, discusses challenges fathers face, and suggests steps fathers and mothers can take to create a father friendly family.

Mark Trahan, PhD, LCSW, is an assistant professor of Social Work at Texas State University. Dr. Trahan has spent the last fifteen years working with individuals, families, and couples as a therapist, researcher, and teacher. His areas of research interest include the role of fathering confidence in father engagement and the use of technology, specifically virtual reality, to assist in creating more confidence in men and fathers. Dr. Trahan is currently working on research projects with incarcerated men and returning combat soldiers, with future plans to use virtual reality for parenting and communication skills training. Dr. Trahan enjoys teaching and is passionately engaged in educating social work students. He loves spending time with his family, mountain biking, fly-fishing, and watching college football.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx