Fatherlessness
Thursday, June 18 2009
by Frank Stasio and Lindsay Thomas
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This Sunday, fathers around the country will open greeting cards and be treated to a day of relaxation. But, close to a quarter of American children live in a single-mother household and many of that number have never even known their biological fathers. Social research has shown that growing up without a dad can have an effect on a child's development, but the outcome isn't always negative. Famous fatherless figures include Barbara Streisand, Eric Clapton and Barack Obama. On today's program, host Frank Stasio explores fatherlessness with Tara Green, director of the African American Studies Program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and author of "A Fatherless Child: Autobiographical Perspectives of African American Men;" Ronald Rohner, director of the Rohner Center for the Study of Interpersonal Acceptance and Rejection; Jay Fagan, a professor of social work at Temple University; Melinda Morrill, a research assistant professor of economics at North Carolina State University; and Reverend Sandye Wilson, rector at the Episcopal Church of St. Andrew and Holy Communion in New Jersey.
