A long time ago, way back in the 1950's, there was a cold, icy creature
known as the "fifties father." He rarely displayed affection, and he hid most
of his feelings behind the newspaper. Most of the child-rearing duties were
left to mom. We can kiss those days good-bye! In Western cultures there is an
increasing number of men who are extremely active in all stages of raising their
children. The old "fifties father" is now becoming the "nineties nanny."
These modern "superdads", as we call them, have to manage the tough job
of raising children and supporting them financially. Men have to fo this
without the help of a previous role model in a past generation to model
themselves after. Not having a role model makes being a superdad tougher than
being a single mom. It leads to the creation of a "superdad syndrome."
Superdad syndrome stems from the fact that boys growing up have very
little practice at homemaking. Boys who play with dolls are considered weirdos
while girls who play with dolls and participate in sports are trained for
anything. Men can do a great job raising their children and providing basic
needs, support, and love, but a man can never be a mother. A good example ...