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DIVERSITY AND MEANING IN THE STUDY OF BLACK FATHERHOOD

Toward a New Paradigm

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 July 2016

Maria S. Johnson  and
Alford A. Young Jr.
Maria S. Johnson*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, University of Delaware
Alford A. Young Jr.
Affiliation:
Departments of SociologyandAfroamerican and African Studies, University of Michigan
*
*Corresponding author: Maria S. Johnson, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, University of Delaware, 311 Smith Hall, Newark, DE 19711. E-mail: johnmar@udel.edu
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Abstract

For the past several decades, numerous studies have focused on the so-called “crisis of Black fatherhood”—that is, the many ways in which Black fathers struggle to fulfill traditional paternal roles and duties. Given major shifts in both the structural conditions and cultural expectations of fatherhood in general over the past century, we argue that it is necessary to reestablish not only what Black fatherhood looks like today—in particular, the internal diversity and dynamism of this category—but also how Black men (as well as other members of Black families and communities) make sense of these changes and meaningfully negotiate their implications. We outline a two-pronged research agenda that: first, identifies gaps in the existing literature that limit our knowledge of the full range of Black fathering practices and experiences; and second, reclaims and repurposes “cultural analysis,” not to pathologize “what’s wrong with Black families and fathers,” but to shed much needed light on the ways in which Black fathers themselves process and make meaning of their roles and realities.

Keywords

Black MenFatherhoodCultureFamilyFather InvolvementBlack Families
Type
State of the Discipline
Information
Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race , Volume 13 , Issue 1 , Spring 2016 , pp. 5 - 23
Copyright
Copyright © Hutchins Center for African and African American Research 2016 

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