Raising Black Males From a Black Father’s Perspective

Father and Son Perspectives of Fatherhood

Hebert, Pagnani, and Hammond (2009) conducted a study using biographical analysis to explore paternal influence on high-achieving, gifted males. The participants consisted of men from multiple ethnicities who were influenced by the positive relationship experienced with their fathers. Criteria for participation included men who displayed evidence of giftedness in contributions to their professional domains, had national prominence, and had autobiographies or biographies written about them. The researchers reported common themes among the father–son dyads of these successful, high-achieving males to include the fathers providing guidance, encouragement, support, inspiration, maintaining high expectations, and demonstrating a strong work ethic.

Morman and Floyd (2006) have examined what it means to be a good father. They took a grounded theory approach and interviewed both fathers and sons regarding “good fathering.” Through an open-ended questionnaire, the researchers asked, “What does being a ‘good father’ mean to you?” (p. 120). The open-ended responses were coded through an iterative approach and condensed to 20 categories. The top five responses from fathers included expressing love, being a role model, available, a teacher, and provider. The sons’ top five categories included expressing love, support, involvement, availability, and being a role model.

Parenting Black Sons

Maton et al. (1998) intentionally sought to forfeit the deficit focus in research on Black males and examine this population from a strength perspective. They conducted a qualitative study on 60 high-achieving Black males and their parents in an effort to investigate parenting and contextual factors that contribute to outstanding academic achievement in this population. The themes that emerged from their investigation included the parents maintaining a persistent and determined academic engagement that began in preschool and persisted throughout their educational career. The parents and sons commented that there were very high expectations, a continued focus on the importance of education, and continued involvement and advocacy regarding school and educational placements. Another theme that emerged included strict discipline and limit setting. Participants shared that in a society where juvenile pranks by a Black male can be easily construed as criminal behavior, it is vital to vehemently instill in them the difference between right and wrong. A third theme that emerged included the presence of love, support, communication, and modeling. Fathers were described as positive role models who worked hard daily to support their family financially and were simultaneously available to help with homework and attend sports practices. They provided time, unconditional love, and open, honest communication (Greif, Hrabowski, & Maton, 1998). The fathers remarked that they spoke with their sons as opposed to lecturing them. The final theme that emerged from the study by Maton, Hrabowski, and Greif included a sense of connectedness to the community and to community resources. Extended family members, extracurricular activities, peers, and teachers were seen as influential in the son’s academic development. The fathers in the study acknowledged to their sons that they would encounter additional challenges because they are both Black and male, but the fathers encouraged their sons to not allow stereotypes or bias to deter them from achievement (Greif et al., 1998). The fathers drew on their own achievement despite the odds, pride in African American history and achievements, and their faith, as strength to overcome the barriers that stand before Black men; they encouraged their sons to do the same.

Theoretical Framework

Parents have a powerful impact on who children are and who they will become (Bettelheim, 1987). Researchers continually suggest that children are greatly influenced by the behaviors, attitudes, and parenting styles of their caregivers (Barth, 2009; Mathew, Wang, Bellamy, & Copeland, 2005; Sanders & Turner, 2005). In order to adequately understand a parent’s style, it is vital to understand the parent and the influences that have shaped the parent’s development. Ogbu (1981) advocated that to understand the parenting norms of particular groups, it is vital to understand the ideas regarding success among a particular culture. Parenting practices are molded toward shaping children into that culture’s definition of a successful adult. Ogbu contended that “certain populations possess unique instrumental competencies that meet their societal needs, and they adapt their child-rearing techniques to inculcate these needs” (p. 417). In his cultural ecological model, he asserted that child rearing is a culturally organized formula that is shared by the parents, family, and other institutions or settings in which the child interacts. He further contended that to understand child-rearing practices of a given culture, it is vital to understand the theories of success within that cultural group. These ideas of success inform and guide child-rearing practices. Children who develop certain ideas regarding success become adults who maintain these ideas and eventually pass them on to their children (Ogbu, 1981).

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the perceptions of what current Black fathers learned from their parents, family, and society about education, male roles, and success. We further explored how these experiences and beliefs influenced the fathers’ parenting constructs and child-rearing practices. We asked Black fathers who were raising young Black males to describe what they believe were keys to successful outcomes in Black male development. Phenomenology was the research method chosen in an effort to understand the meaning and essence of Black male development as perceived by the Black fathers in this study. The specific research questions included: (a) How do childhood messages and experiences with parents, family, and society influence Black male development in the area of education, male roles, and success? and (b) What do fathers of young sons, based on their own experience, knowledge, and insight, believe that it takes to raise a successful Black male in America today?

Researcher as Instrument

Kline (2008) described the importance of qualitative researchers describing their role as instruments in research studies as it relates to their experiences with the phenomenon, their personal beliefs and biases concerning the phenomenon, and their relationship to the research approach. The first author is a Black female who has experience with Black male development as a sister, cousin, friend, and mother. Through these experiences, she has learned that the experience of being a Black male in America is unique and their development is a delicate process. She completed an epoche prior to beginning the research study where she began the process of journaling her thoughts in relation to the phenomenon that ended at the conclusion of the study (Moustakis, 1994). The second author is a White female with two daughters. She brings a unique perspective as an outsider to Black families. The third author is a Black male father with three daughters. While he has no sons, his experience as a father inspired his interest in this study and provided him with an insider viewpoint. To control for potential bias, he discussed his experiences as father with the coauthors of this study and journaled how he was impacted by the findings, so that his thoughts did not interfere with the findings from the participants. All three authors have experience with qualitative research.

Trustworthiness

The trustworthiness of the data was established by utilizing verbatim interview transcripts for data analysis (Miles & Huberman, 1994). Triangulated methods of data collection included audiotaped interviews, written interview responses, and participant observation, which also helped establish credibility (Maxwell, 2005). Interviews were conducted until saturation was reached and the themes were continually repeated with no new themes emerging (Creswell, 2007). Following saturation, two additional interviews were conducted to verify that saturation was achieved. To further validate the results of our study, we member checked with two research participants to ensure that the data reported adequately represented the themes that were expressed (Miles & Huberman, 1994).

Interview Questions

The interview questions were created in an effort to answer the research questions. Herndon and Moore (2002) emphasized the significant role that the values and practices of family members play in forming Black children’s ideas regarding education. The first interview question was formed in relation to this idea: (a) What messages did you get about education and academic success growing up? Parents typically replicate the parenting styles that they experienced as children (Bavolek, 2000)). This phenomena helped guide the second interview question: (b) What messages did you get about what it means to be a good son and father? Ogbu (1981) stressed the significance of understanding a culture’s ideas regarding success when investigating parenting practices in a given culture. Parenting practices are geared toward molding children into that culture’s definition of a successful adult. In accordance with this framework, the last four interview questions emerged: (c) What messages did you get about what it means to be a successful Black male in America? (d) What particular childhood experiences represent the messages that you were given? (e) How do you think those messages influenced who you are today? and (f) Based on your own experience, knowledge, and insight, what do you believe it takes to raise a successful Black male in America today?

Each participant answered each of the above questions; however, the questions were not asked in the same order. Due to the emergent qualities of the interviews, the six grand tour questions were asked at different times in each of the interviews. Additional questions were asked based on the participants’ answers to previous questions.

Participants

Purposeful and criterion sampling (Onwuegbuzie & Collins, 2007) was utilized in the selection of seven Black males to explore their perceptions of what they learned from their parents, family, and society about education, male roles, and success. The criteria necessary for inclusion in the study was that each participant was a (a) Black male (b) over 21 years of age, and (c) lived in the same home with a biological son. Participants had an average age of 34.1 years. Each participant was a high school graduate; additionally, one participant had 2 years of college, two participants had bachelor’s degrees, and one participant had a master’s degree. Also, each participant resided with the mother of his children. Five of the seven participants grew up in homes with their mother, father, and siblings; and the other two participants grew up with their mothers and siblings, and they had fathers who were active in their lives. Finally, five of the participants were married, two participants were never married, and the participants had from one to five children.

Data Collection

The purpose of the study was to describe the perceptions of what current Black fathers learned from their parents, family, and society about education, male roles, and success. After receiving institutional review board approval, each participant provided his informed consent following a discussion of the purpose and goals of the study. Pseudonyms were created to protect the identity and confidentiality of each participant. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, and participated in a 30-min audiotaped interview with the first author of the study. Following the completion of the interviews, the interviews were transcribed and verified for accuracy. Participants took part in member checking interviews that focused on verifying the accuracy of the themes and the selected quotes. The participants agreed that the results reflected their shared experiences.

Data Analysis

A phenomenological research design using the Stevick–Colaizzi–Keen Method of data analysis was utilized to understand the phenomenon of Black male development from the participants’ perspectives (Moustakis, 1994). Data analysis was conducted by the first author and was reviewed by the third author. The first step in the data analysis process included interview transcription. Following transcription, the transcripts were read repeatedly, and each statement that significantly described the meaning and experience of Black male development was extracted, related, and clustered into themes (Moustakis, 1994). Using verbatim examples, the significant statements were combined, creating a description of the textures of the experience for each participant. Then from the textural–structural description of each participant, a composite textural–structural description was created that captured the meaning and essence of the experience of the phenomenon of Black male development that represented the group as a whole (Moustakis, 1994). The result of the data analysis process was the identification of six themes and a description of the essence of the participants’ experiences.

Fathers Are Role Models

Six of the seven participants noted that their mothers did most of the daily child rearing, but when discussing the influences on who they became each participant discussed what they learned from their fathers. The lessons from their fathers echoed in their minds throughout their development, Kevin recalled, “It was hard for any other message to come because the message that I got from my dad was astounding.” The “lessons” came from what their fathers told them. Mathew recalled, “My dad just always taught me to think differently about certain things” and Randall noted, “He [my father] would always preach on … how to conduct yourself.” John recalled that his father, “always told me the right thing. Everything that he would tell me would come to pass. And he was always nice. He wouldn’t yell at me or curse at me or anything.”

The most significant lessons came not only from what their fathers told them but from what they saw their fathers do. Terrence remembered “my dad wasn’t a strong voice; I wish he would have been a stronger voice, but he wasn’t.” Terrence longed for his father’s guidance, but later realized that “he didn’t really instill a lot into me verbally. But now when I look at it, it was actions that were speaking louder than his words.” The participants recalled learning so much from just observing their fathers.

The two participants who did not grow up in the same home with their fathers agreed that “[If my dad lived with me] it would have been more structured. There would have been more consistency … and I probably would have made better choices,” but all participants valued the lessons that their fathers taught them. Gregory said,

Basically you have to be a good father because your kids are going to look up to you. You have to do what’s right … you want them to follow the same footsteps that you’re in and even become something better than what you are.

The participants’ fathers were their role models. They valued their current role as father largely due to what their fathers gave them.

It Takes a Village!

As the participants reflected on their childhood, five of the seven participants recalled the influence that church, aunts, uncles, and grandparents had on their development. Randall remembered, “We were a close family. We always had aunts and uncles and growing up Catholic, the priest would eat at our house on Sundays.” Terrence recalled,

James said, “Grandfather, I think that was the person that I idolized the most in part because I was around him most growing up.” Mathew remembered:

Extended family members added richness and perspective to the participants. Kevin remembered what he learned in church, “the involvement in the congregation played a huge role in my development … learning bible stories, scripture quoting … speaking at different events … that played a huge role in preparing me to do different things in the world.” Church, aunts, uncles, and grandparents gave these developing males additional role models and a broader, more solid foundation.

Critical Juncture

A juncture is a point of time, “especially one made critical or important by a concurrence of circumstances,” or a point of time in which “a decision must be made” (juncture, n.d.). Many of the participants described a time in their development where they had to make a decision on which way their lives would go. Mathew said, “I guess I started to shift like around 15, 16, 17.” For some this involved experimenting with alcohol and marijuana, for others it involved criminal activity, or hanging around people who participated in criminal activity. Mathew described the experience when he said,

Kevin recalled a time where he felt desperate financially and was around negative peer influences:

For all the participants, there eventually came a time when they realized, as James expressed,

It was at this critical juncture that they recognized “I did have choices,” and, like Gregory, they resolved that “I’m gone try to keep myself on the right track to be here for my kids … Because without me being here that will impact them in a difficult way.”

Exposure

All participants viewed being exposed to different experiences that were outside of the neighborhood and outside of the norm as a huge contributor to healthy development. These concepts included family trips, extracurricular activities, and parents’ work environments. James remembered,

John stressed the importance of seeing, “the nicer side of life, nice vacations, and educational experiences.” Mathew emphasized the importance of

Three of the seven participants wished their parents would have done more as far as exposing them to extracurricular activities. James recalled,

John summed it up when he said,

Education Was Mandatory

For four of the seven participants, their parents valued education to the point where, like Kevin said, “it was mandatory … mainly my daddy. My daddy instilled in us the value of education. It was one of those kinds of homes where you don’t bring home below a B.” He always said, “If you want to do well in life you have to get a good job, if you want to get a good job, you have to get a good education.”

Role models really influenced the participants’ view of education. James recalled, “I think with the fact that my father and his three sisters … they all finished college, my mother finished college … you know … so there was a mold there … Then my mother was a school teacher, so she was heavy on education.” For Kevin,

Two of the seven participants’ parents exhibited their value for education by graduating from college, and those participants grew up with the same values and obtained a college degree. Three of the seven participants’ parents valued education but did not graduate from college, and neither did the participants. Another two of the seven, like Terrence, wished their parents would have valued education.

I wish somebody would have stressed education. I wish I would have had a strong person that really knew the value of education because I think I had the smarts to be further along in life. I’m trying to do it now because I understand, but had I had that person there to nurture than I could have been a lot further than I am today.

Some participants were raised in families with role models who were college educated and that same value of education was passed to them. Other participants acquired a value for education through later life experiences. Gregory encapsulates the participants’ experiences with education, “education is basically what everybody needs. Anywhere you go, a lot of people are going to look at … you know … where your education skills are at. That’s what I believe.”

Essential Ingredients

The culminating interview question asked participants to describe what they believed it took to raise a successful Black male in America today. Common essential ingredients included the themes discussed: being a role model, extended family support, church, exposure, extracurricular activities, and a strong emphasis on education. The only additional factor that was common among the participants included an emphasis on having a friendship with their sons. This was one aspect that many of the participants felt that they did not have with their fathers growing up. Kevin recalled,

John believed that it is important to “be their best friend. Make sure they can talk to you about anything … at whatever age … from a young age.” Mathew shared, “I know your parents role is not to be your friend … as some people say … I want to be on more of a friend level with my kids rather than always trying to be an authority.” Randall summed it up when he stated,

Limitations, Implications, and Directions for Future Research

There were several limitations to this study. First, participants were limited to Black fathers, over 21 years old who live with a biological son. Black mothers were not included in this exploratory study and should be included in future studies. The mother’s role with the father should also be explored since this role could be supportive, indifferent, or augmentative. Second, the study did not include fathers who do not live with their sons, which would be another perspective for future research. Additionally, there were no fathers with daughters only, or fathers from other ethnic groups. Finally, this study took place in one geographic location, and results may be specific to this location.

The results of this study allowed the researchers to identify several implications for counselors and therapists including the importance of educating Black fathers on the significance of their role. Many times parents are unaware of how their relationship or lack of relationship with their children makes an indelible imprint on their children’s hearts and minds. Divorcing parents or single mothers should also be informed of the significance of cultivating the father son relationship. Counselors and therapists should help educate parents that young Black men need positive role models, the love and support of extended family members and support systems, exposure to experiences beyond their immediate environment, extracurricular activities, and a persistent emphasis and parental involvement in education. Parents should be knowledgeable of the critical juncture that young men experience in emerging adulthood and be supportive and involved in the lives of their sons during this significant time. Counselors and therapists can play a significant role in fostering flourishing environments for healthy Black male development through parenting education and family support and counseling.

Understanding the developmental needs of Black male children is critical to effective parenting and teaching. Future research efforts can focus on how teacher’s perceptions affect the healthy development of young Black men during the critical juncture in their lives. Participants mentioned how their teacher’s attitude served as a protective measure during this critical juncture or a harmful measure due to a feeling that the teachers “singled [them] out and expected [them] to fail … to be bad.” Other research efforts could focus on Hispanic male development or other populations that experience challenges in the academic and criminal justice arena. It is crucial to understand the influences that affect the healthy development of various populations in our society in an effort to encourage healthy development in all American children.