Although mothers are widely acknowledged as the primary in-home sexual educators of children, fathers also play an important role in sexual socialization. Paternal involvement is linked to positive social and psychological outcomes; an increased father—daughter communication can delay sexual debut and decrease frequency of engagement in intercourse. This study examined late-adolescent females’ reports of their fathers’ contributions to their sexual socialization. Four open-ended questions were included in a larger study examining family influences of adolescent sexual risk. Daughters described how their fathers prepared them for sexuality and dating and how they could have done better. A thematic content analysis was conducted. Most daughters reported receiving little sexual information from their fathers but identified unique contributions that their fathers made or could have made to their sexual socialization. Future interventions should assist fathers to increase their comfort with sexual communication, to identify barriers, and to provide skill-building practice to promote abstinence and safer sex behaviors among their daughters.
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