The number of children residing in single‐father families in the United States quadrupled as a proportion of children's living arrangements during the past few decades of the 20th century. Research on single fathers also increased and changed in nature. This article is a review of the research on single fathers and their families from the 1970s until recently, focusing on modifications in methodology and theoretical underpinnings. In general, research on single‐father families evolved from qualitative studies focused on the well‐being of single fathers to quantitative studies focusing on child outcomes and within‐group variation among single fathers. Research also moved from descriptive studies to those testing gender and microstructural theories. This article also summarizes the main findings on single fathers and concludes with directions for future research.

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Research on collective action framing has tended to focus on inter-and intramovement interpretation of grievances, often assuming that hegemonic frames are taken for granted. The Persian Gulf conflict of 1990-1991 offers an empirical opportunity to extend the theoretical boundaries of social movement framing by incorporating, and identifying, the active framing strategies of dominant actors. From this vantage point, we can begin to see in what ways both dominant and oppositional discourses (and policy) are aided and constrained.

For single african american custodial fathers, parenting stress is exacerbated by the cultural expectation that Black fathers are "normally" absent and by the clustering of stresses that Black men are more likely to encounter. This sample of african american fathers have used a repertoire of problemfocused and cognitive coping strategies, including some that are frequently considered "culturally specific." Twenty Black single custodial fathers are interviewed and their narratives are analyzed for concepts and thematic categories related to stress and coping. Their narratives indicate that certain strategies are avoided because (a) these strategies are not available to them and (b) they desire to present themselves as independent and competent, thus resisting stereotypes and building a sense of efficacy.

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