Fathers and sons, fathers and daughters

In this contribution, the distinctive role of fathers for the development o f their children is highlighted. Historically, the body of the children, pa rticularly the gender of the children, was of great importance for fathers. Recent research on infants, children, and adolescents substantiated that f athers focus more on the gender of the child, compared to mothers. Qualitat ive differences in modelling the child's gender role were found. Fathers be havior towards sons is shaped by similarity ("the son as a mirror"), wherea s fathers interact with daughters in a way that work out differences and su pport feminity. A distinctive role of fathers is also observed in pathologi cal father-child relationships.