Who Is a Good Father? a Scoping Review and Critical Examination of Fatherhood Theories

Background and Purpose: Since Michael Lamb’s seminal theory on father involvement in 1985, numerous fatherhood theories have been developed (e.g., Cabrera et al., 2014; Marsiglio et al., 2000; Palkovitz & Hall, 2018; Parke & Cookston, 2021; Paquette, 2004; Volling et al., 2019). These theories provide insights into archetypal fathers (i.e., who is a good father?), shaping fatherhood studies and sociocultural perceptions of fathers. The idea of a “good father” is likely shaped based on class, race, and other identities. For example, men with low income or fathers of color may be stereotyped as absent, uninvolved, or deficient and excluded from being a good father. However, synthesis of such on theoretical fathering literature is critically missing. This scoping review aimed to answer the research question: How do fatherhood theories portray good fathering, and who makes up the archetypal good father? Key contributions of this study include delineating how portrayals of archetypal fathering have evolved over time, and determining opportunities for scholars to diversify the meaning and representation of good fathering.

Methods: Guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Scoping Review Extension, we searched five databases (i.e., SocINDEX, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, Gender Studies Database, APA PsycINFO, Gender Watch) for literature. Articles were included if they met the following criteria: (1) peer-reviewed journal article; (2) primarily focused on theoretical and conceptual aspects of fathering or father involvement; (3) written in English; (4) published between 1960 and 2024; (5) geographically contextualized in countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Data extraction occurred iteratively, and a narrative synthesis approach was utilized to pool findings across identified studies.

Results: A total of 25 studies met inclusion criteria out of 184 studies screened. Publication years ranged from 1985-2022, and studies included a range of populations (e.g., fathers facing multisystem involvement, foster fathers, transnational fathers, grandfathers). Most studies did not attribute nationality, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or religion to identified fathers. The most common dimension of good fathering included engagement and interactions (e.g., caregiving, play) with children, and the second most common included father and father figure identity. Only three studies identified financial support as a central dimension. Two studies contradicted each other in whether good fathering should be conceptualized differently from good mothering, with the rest of the studies excluding gender-based values from conceptual frameworks.

Conclusion and Implications: Findings suggest that a “good father” is defined as one who engages in interactive activities with their children and possesses a strong sense of paternal identity, according to contemporary fatherhood theories. With a focus on intersectionality, future conceptual work on fathering should explicitly identify sociodemographic contexts of fathering and the extent to which gender-based values influence authors’ theories. Greater focus on diverse fathers in OECD countries is also needed, as well as critical examination of how race, class, religion, and gender-based values implicitly influence conceptual frameworks. Future fatherhood theories should also retain and recognize the importance of traditional fathering dimensions, such as financial provision and maternal support.