Contemporary Issues: Critique of 'The Good Father' in Leisure

This essay presents a critical analysis of the article "The Good Father: Parental Expectations and Youth Sports," examining the changing expectations of parents, particularly fathers, in their children's sports activities. The analysis highlights the shift from patriarchal values to a neo-liberal perspective, emphasizing individualism and shared parental responsibility. While the article sheds light on the role of fathers and the influence of masculinity in youth sports, the critique points out limitations such as the lack of data on post-industrial wealthy families, a small sample size, and insufficient use of secondary data. The essay concludes that further research with larger sample sizes and comprehensive data is needed to develop a more holistic understanding of parental roles and their impact on children's sports involvement. Desklib offers a platform to explore similar essays and study resources for students.

Running head: THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The Critical analysis
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note

1THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Introduction
The aim of the article is to present a critical analysis of the given article: “The Good
Father: Parental Expectations and Youth Sports”. As mentions, the author, with the growing
generations, expectations of the people especially the parents have changed dramatically
(Coakley 2006). It is argued that family values have been changing with the change of
generations (Coakley 2006). This new generation is not based on the patriarchal values where the
father is the sole responsible person of the family; rather these values have been taken over by
the neo-liberalism perspective. This neo-liberal perspective focuses on values like individualism
and free market capitalism (Coakley 2006). The meaning of gender and role attached to it have
changed dramatically where it is not considered to be the sole responsibility of the father to take
care of the family rather the sense of shared responsibility have emerged in its place. It has been
put forward the author that the issue of child-rearing and their successful nourishment is not the
sole responsibility of the father and it is the shared responsibility of both the parents (Coakley
2006). Hence, it is considered to be the responsibility of both the parents to take care of the
children throughout the day.
Discussion
The central theme of the article is that the achievements of the children in sports activity
are given to the parents especially its contribution to the role of the father is enhanced since it is
considered to be the part of the general culture (Coakley 2006). This article develops the
argument by emphasizing the father in the development of the children’s sports activity.
According to the author, the role of the father has been largely ignored in the social science

2THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS
discussion even though there is evidence of previous research in this field (Coakley 2006). The
context is taken by the post-industrial societies of United States especially of the wealthy
families He develops the idea by reflecting on the issue of the connection between the changing
notion of "the good father" and its connectivity to the development of children’s growth in
achievement. It is also argued by the author that the traditional ideas of masculinity and the
cultural values attached to the gender-specific roles are experienced and expressed by the male
counterpart in terms of their children’s participation in sports (Coakley 2006). This is to note that
the character building activity of the children helps to provide their parents a sense of
responsibility. It is imperative to note that the masculinity and the male supremacy have gone
through multiple changes over time. The author goes on explaining that the emergence of women
movement and full-time employment of the female counterpart have changed the perception of
male and their role in society. This has led to the development of a different set of structural and
cultural expectations from the father. However, due to the lack of resources of the same, this area
remains a grey area since the dynamics of fathering have not been explored much.
Critical analysis
The article focuses on the nuances of fatherhood and their role in the decision making
within the boundary of the family which let them exercise their opportunity to spend time with
their family. However, it is to be noted that the research is limited in nature. There are areas
which have not been discussed with greater detail. For example, the issue of parental
commitment to the development of the youth sport is the area that has limited research. The
author has used hypotheses based on the general understanding of the issue which leads to the
problem of a generalized statement. Hence it could be argued that this area requires further

3THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS
research as a generalized statement requires validation by substantiating it with data and
instances. However, it is to be argued that the language and the terminology used in the article is
simple, lucid and easy to understand. There is enough clarity of thought in the argument, and it
has been developed in the most systematic manner. Moreover, the centrality of the article is the
idea of fatherhood and its related association with the development of the sports activity of their
children. It is significant to note that the author mentions generalized statement like “men and
especially fathers tend to spend more time with their sons and daughters and take active
participation in their sports activities” However, such generalized statements have not to be
substantiated by similar research on the role of the mothers for their children. A statement like
"increase in the number of women coaches and their participation in sports" requires better
analysis and data to support the argument. The prime limitation of the article remains the lack of
data on the post-industrial wealthy families of U. S. This limits the scope of further research.
The methodology used in the study for developing the knowledge-based is also limited to the
interviews and mailed questionnaire. While primary data collection like the interview of a
selected population is an important source of knowledge for the research: however the sample
size is too small to derive sufficient data. Hence any hasty generalization based on the limited
research is a sign of poor research. It is also to be noted that the author has not made proper use
of secondary data for conducting this research. Hence it can be concluded that that for further
development of the argument, there is a need to do primary research based on large sample size
and substantiate it with enough secondary research. Moreover, the data collected are old in
nature as it is received in 1996 which restricts the scope of the study in terms of availability of
current data. In terms of the application of the theory, the authors have applied the approach of
Bourdieu's theory of Habitus. This theory has helped to substantiate the argument and the

4THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS
generalization: however, there is a scope of further application of the concept. In terms of the
development of the discussion throughout the body is not cohesive. Author has mentioned
about the changing role of the father and the dilemma that their role in the family is not
developed. Hence it is to be concluded that the role of the mother in the growth of their children's
sports activity is not well developed. However, it is to be acknowledged that this article helps to
provide a holistic understanding of the issue of the role of the parents and their commitment in
the development of the sports activity of the children and the changing role of the father with the
changing perception of masculinity.
Conclusion
The paper aims to analyze and critic the idea of the good father and their contribution to
the development of sports activity of their children. This aimed at analyzing the same from the
perspective of the author and to find the probable issue of the changing role of the father and the
idea of masculinity attached to it. This review has been conducted by looking into the loopholes
and drawbacks of the study and it can be concluded from the article that there issues like this
requires further analysis to develop the argument in a holistic manner.

5THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS
References
Coakley, J., 2006. The good father: Parental expectations and youth sports. Leisure
Studies, 25(2), pp.153-163.