Wade F. Horn

The number of single-parent families rose from 8 million in 1960 to 24 million in 1995. Wade F. Horn maintains in the following viewpoint that this increase in fatherless families has caused widespread violence, pregnancy, and drug abuse among teenagers. Fathers are an essential part of a child’s successful upbringing, the author contends. Horn is a clinical child psychologist, a faculty member at Georgetown University’s Public Policy Institute, and president of the National Fatherhood Initiative.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Horn, what are the two mechanisms by which parents socialize children"

2. In the author’s view, why are fathers important"

3. What does Horn cite as the consequences of fatherlessness"

In 1960, the total number of children living in fatherless families was fewer than eight million. Today, that total...