Father/son relationship during the preschool years. An integrative review with special reference to recent Swedish findings.

Abstract

This review is an attempt to integrate Anglo-American and Swedish studies on father/son relationships. The puerperal period, infancy and early childhood are surveyed. Swedish studies do not support specific stereotyped bonding in the puerperal period. The review confirms the bidirectional nature of the father/son relationship. Thus, counteridentification, i.e. the father's identification with his son, and identification during the oedipal phase, i.e. the son's identification with his father, seem to be essential components in the father/son relationship. However, studies on parent-infant behaviour indicate that different parental roles exist early in infancy. Also, attachment studies point to the specificity of the father/son relationship before the oedipal phase. It is concluded that the major importance of the father/son relationship during the preschool years is to facilitate the son's masculine identification.