Fathers/Fathering

The term ‘father’ is often used to describe a taken-for-granted biological relationship between a man and his child/children. However, the growing body of research on the topic of fathers and fatherhood shows that an assortment of father ‘types’ and relationships exist. These include ‘biological’ and ‘social’, ‘non-resident’, ‘absent’, ‘gay’, ‘adoptive’, ‘teenage’, and ‘stepfather’, each of whom may or may not reside with (their/other) children in a range of family configurations. The term ‘father’ implies a relationship (even though there may not be one), whereas fathering denotes an activity. The term ‘fatherhood’ is a socially constructed category, which, like motherhood, is shaped by and through a mixture of political, social, cultural, and historical antecedents and contemporary concerns. But it is also the case that ideals of ...