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Chapter 3 (continued)
Father and Son (cont.)
Failure to Encourage Autonomy
Another problem that can occur in the father-son relationship is the father’s failure to encourage or allow his son’s autonomy. This can happen directly in at least two ways pointed out by Nicolosi. First, the father may give nurturance to the son but do so in a self-centered and controlling way that defeats the boy’s attempts at autonomy. Second, the father may be overprotective and dominating of the son, either pampering him or putting him in an inferior position.7(p33-34) Some fathers may see their sons as a sort of rival and so may feel a need to dominate them.7(p53-54) Also, those who performed the Bieber study observed in their individual clinical practices that some fathers of homosexuals responded with hostility any time their sons demonstrated “masculine” behavior. The researchers suggest that sons became anxious about showing masculine behavior and so concealed it with effeminacy.8(p116)
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