The Centrality of Faith in Fathers' Role Construction

The Faithful Father and the Axis Mundi Paradigm

Datos Bibliográficos

ID12412779
AutoresJason Seth Latshaw (University of Delaware, autor de correspondencia)
Año1998
Volumen7
Número1
Páginas53-70
Fecha de publicación1998-10-01
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaThe Journal of Men s Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1060-8265 • E-ISSN: 1933-0251
EditorialSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.3149/jms.0701.53
OpenAlexW2045310156
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas5
Referencias citadas8

This qualitative study, through a series of structured, open-ended interviews with four religious fathers, examines the relationship between centrality of faith and fathering role construction. The data is viewed in the context of Mircea Eliade's (19S9) Axis Mundi paradigm. Using grounded theory analysis, the study finds these men have three major interdependent ideals in their fathering roles: the perfect love of God, generativity of faith, and the spiritual authority of the servant. These ideals are defined by the meaning-generating Axis Mundi, the fixed point by which all other points are defined. The data support the concept that a religious person will attempt to conform behavior and attitudes to the values prescribed by the Axis Mundi. Because faith is the central, defining attribute of these men's identities, it serves as the standard by which all roles and behaviors are evaluated. The view facilitates objectivity in the discussion of faith and has implications for further examination of a wide variety of faiths and their corresponding moral systems. This study's findings have applications for intervention programs including, but not limited to, those dealing with father involvement

Centrality · Combinatorics · Epistemology · Faith · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Mathematics · Philosophy · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology