Fathers in Cultural Context

Fathers in Cultural Context, edited by David W. Shwalb, Barbara J. Shwalb, Michael E. Lamb. 2012, Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group, 448 pages.Fathers in Cultural Context is an edited book bringing together twenty-eight authors who write about fathers and fathering in fourteen different cultures. Most of the cultures covered are not surprising and are rather mainstream, including China, Japan, India, the Caribbean, some European countries and the U.S. Other cultures present a major draw-back of an edited book such as this- scope. Certain cultures covered are particularly complex, containing dozens of sub-cultures, languages, traditions, religions, and economic strata. The editors address this challenge in the introductory chapter and develop a basic outline for each chapter. This outline includes case or representative stories, cultural and contextual influences, a summary of existing research, social policy issues, and future directions, speculations, comparisons, and predictions.For example, in Chapter 2, the authors introduce readers to the influences of Confucian, Taoist, and Buddhist thought on traditional Chinese family life and fatherhood. They note that in recent years, significant social and economic changes, such as the family planning policy, have greatly influenced fatherhood. Their analysis includes an examination of differences between urban and rural populations, diverse ethnic groups, the impact of gender/employment policies, and changing family structure. The authors carefully take us through the scant but current research on fathers that is emerging in Mainland China- not just Taiwan. A primary conclusion in this chapter is that today's fathers may be more involved than those in previous generations. We find a similar conclusion in Chapter 3 on fathering in Japan.In Japan, however, we learn that rapid economic growth has been a primary challenge to fathers as they connect with their children. This chapter alerts us to recent policy shifts in which government and non-profit organizations have put forth extensive efforts to promote child rearing and fatherhood. Young Japanese fathers are seemingly more engaged than fathers in the 20* century, and the authors predict that this will continue.By contrast, Chapter 4 relates how fathers in India are very important figures, but research is particularly scarce, as much more attention has been given to women and mothers. Social policies related to the family are outdated relative to global trends, although several adaptations have been made in recent years. It appears that there has not been nearly as much ground-swell shift in increased father involvement in India - but that conclusion is somewhat hampered by the lack of a significant body of basic research. This chapter, it seems to us, was weaker, not because of author inattentiveness or writing quality, but because of the generally scattered research efforts about Indian fathers.We were pleased to see two strong chapters about Muslim fathers. The chapters on fathers in Bangladesh/Malaysia and fathers in the Arab world were very instructive and well written. Both mention the effects of globalization and economic growth and the changes that are occurring as traditional gender roles are reshaped within these communities. We were also very interested in Chapter 5's essay on the misinterpretations and general misunderstandings about fatherhood in Islam. Information on government initiatives related to fatherhood is not available in these cultures, but the authors suggest that social policies address the effects of male immigration. The author of Chapter 6 concludes with hope for the future despite the prevalence of negative contexts and trends. Our assessment of these two chapters is that they were among the strongest in the book. They were well-written, had a comfortable flow, and the topics covered were informative and useful.The challenge of scope mentioned above is particularly evident in Chapters 7 and 8 on black African fathers. …