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Development, Validation, and Confirmatory Factor Analysis
of the Father Hunger Scale
Paul B. Perrin, Jessica O. Baker, Amelie M. Romelus,
Kimberly D. Jones, and Martin Heesacker
University of Florida
Scholars have emphasized the importance of fathers in child development with regard
to academic performance, emotional expression, and psychological adjustment. This
study builds on that literature and describes the development of an empirically derived
measure of father hunger, the emotional and psychological longing that a person has for
a father who has been physically, emotionally, or psychologically distant. Study 1
employed 105 undergraduates who responded to 41 father-hunger items and 4 free-
response questions. Exploratory factor analysis yielded 1 primary factor with 11 items.
Study 2 employed 240 undergraduates whose responses supported the scale’s 1-factor
structure, convergent validity with other validated scales, and test–retest reliability
across 14 days. The Father Hunger Scale holds promise in advancing research on the
role of fathers throughout child and adult development, as well as on the causes,
correlates, and sequelae of unrequited father hunger.
Keywords: father hunger, fathering, child development
Since the inception of attachment theory (e.g.,
Bowlby, 1958, 1960) in the 1950s, psychologists
have studied the impact of a child’s relationship
with his or her primary caregiver, usually the
mother, on self-development. Many studies have
shown that insecure attachment styles are related
to a higher incidence of interpersonal and psycho-
logical problems (e.g., Collins, 1996; Diamond &
Fagundes, 2008; Scharfe, 2007), as well as to later
romantic attachment (Simpson, Collins, Tran, &
Haydon, 2007).
The attachment research has focused primar-
ily on a child’s relationship with the primary
caregiver, a term typically synonymous with
the mother or a “mother figure.” Perhaps
equally important, however, is the role of the
father or father figure in a child’s development.
Attachment research indeed has addressed the
father’s role in child development, although to a
lesser degree than the mother’s involvement.
The current study was conducted primarily to
amplify and help facilitate the study of fathering,
and to isolate the emotional bond between the
father or father figure and child. This topic is
therefore particularly suitable for viewing through
the lens of men and masculinity and clearly over-
laps with research on men’s gender role confor-
mity, men’s emotional expression toward their
children, and the psychology and behavior of men.
Research has uncovered the role of father
absence in the development of masculinity in
boys and femininity in girls (Herzog, 1995;
Kay, 1990; Meissner, 2005), in academic
achievement and performance (Jones, 2004), in
moral development (Hoffman, 1971; Parish,
1980), in the development of self-esteem and
individuality (Phares, 1999), in incarceration
rates (Blankenhorn, 1995), and in the develop-
ment of psychological disorders and distress
(Finley & Schwartz, 2007; Kenny & Schreiner,
2009; Lewis, 1992). This area of research
broadly and conclusively suggests the detriment
of a father’s absence to the development of both
girls and boys (Amato & Gilbreth, 1999; Biller,
1974; Dalton, 1986; Lamb, 1997; Phares, 1996,
1999; Radin, 1986; Sharpe, 1994). For example,
Popenoe (1996) found that adolescents who had
experienced father loss or absence were 2 times
as likely to drop out of school, 2.5 times as
Paul B. Perrin, Jessica O. Baker, Amelie M. Romelus,
Kimberly D. Jones, and Martin Heesacker, University of
Florida, Department of Psychology.
Correspondence concerning this article should be ad-
dressed to Martin Heesacker, University of Florida, Depart-
ment of Psychology, P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, Florida
32611-2250. E-mail: heesack@ufl.edu
Psychology of Men & Masculinity © 2009 American Psychological Association
2009, Vol. 10, No. 4, 314–327 1524-9220/09/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0017277
314
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