Fathering and Child Outcomes
Chapter One
FATHERING:
A CHANGING PERSPECTIVE
INTRODUCTION
During the last 10 years attention has focused on fathers more than at any
time prior to the beginning of the twentieth century mainly because of the
rapid pace of family change (i.e. the decline in the traditional household
form of a single breadwinner and the growth of dual participant
households). The consequences, especially for children, of these changes
have long been the subject of research and debate. Subsequently, research
on fathering has both expanded considerably and matured scientifically as
it started to move away from exploring the consequences of 'father absence'
for children to understanding possible mechanisms of influence of fathering
in both father-present and father-absent families.
FATHERS AND THE 'MODERN' FAMILY:
THE CURRENT PICTURE
The role of fathers in developed countries has changed over time. In the
USA, Demos (1988) discussed how, during the colonial period, fathers were
the primary parent and had ultimate say in matters of the child; in the rare
case of divorce, the law awarded custody to the father, as mothers were
considered too emotional and too indulgent to raise children properly. The
... read full excerpt from Fathering and Child Outcomes ebook
