Trends in Academic Attention to Fathers, 1930-2006

Abstract

This systematic analysis of 1115 articles in five child development and family journals was conducted to: 1) examine whether academic attention to fathers has increased over time, and 2) describe temporal changes in content areas relevant to fathering and child development. Each article was coded for type of family structure, dimension of fatherhood, and type of child outcome. Percentages of articles per year were the dependent measures and analyses were conducted using regression curve-estimation techniques. Considered together, journals increased their father-relevant publications over time, but there was individual variation by journal. Content analyses showed increased attention to diverse types of fathers and to a wide range of areas of fathering and child outcomes. Both linear and non-linear trend lines fit these data. Results indicate that the “culture of fatherhood” is alive and well in academic journals, although the historical patterns of academic attention to fathers are often complex.