**Acknowledgements**

depending on the cultural context in which they are inserted, and these roles are multidimen‐ sional and complex. Furthermore, issues related to personality traits, relationship with wives and family, as well as the social environment must be considered in understanding parental

When dealing with the perception and conception of paternal behavior, the reviewed publi‐ cations indicate that fathers report being involved with their children, especially in leisure activities, and in imposing discipline. However, Goetz and Vieira (2008) found that children perceive the real father to be far from the ideal one regarding his functions of care and interaction, especially in cases where parents are separated. The authors point out that children's expectations towards their parents are a reflection of the culture in which they live. Hence, if the pattern in contemporary culture is related to a more involved and active father, then children will require these behaviors from fathers. Concerning the imposition of disci‐ pline, parents (mothers and fathers) seem to agree that fathers are important in the imposition of rules, limits and transmitting concepts on "what is right and what is wrong." Thus, fathers play an important role in relation to children's appropriate behavior in the social sphere (Goetz

In relation to adolescence, in this present review, researches have demonstrated that many teenage fathers report being satisfied and demonstrate responsibility for their children and partners. In terms of future studies, it is necessary to investigate more thoroughly teenagers' expectations and feelings, as well as their marital relationships and their relation with the baby

On the other hand, fathers of disabled or hospitalized children, despite the difficulties of having a sick child, are described as deeply involved with their children. However, they describe themselves as helping mothers in child care, while women are perceived to be primary caregivers. In addition, they refer to be responsible for the family economical support. These findings show that fathers, regardless of having healthy or sick children, still position them‐

Therefore, it seems that paternity has been increasingly attracting researchers' attention, possibly because the theme is of both scientific and social relevance. Paternal participation in the family context has been increasing and this greater involvement has repercussions in family dynamics and children's development. However, due to the complexity of the theme, much still has to be done in order to build a broader and more accurate perspective on the reality of

For instance, more studies are necessary to characterize the experiences of paternity in the context of children with disabilities, as well as possible implications of children with special needs, sex and birth order in the family organization. In addition, it is necessary to increase the amount of researches on fathers' perceptions regarding their roles. Another demand is related to the participation of fathers whose children belongs to different age groups, consid‐ ering that demands of children change over time, and the specificities of paternal involvement during childhood development. In relation to participants, future research should incorporate data from other generations of participants in order to investigate the intergenerational

selves in the traditional role of providers (Dessen & Lewis, 1998).

involvement (Turcotte & Gaudet, 2009).

56 Parenting in South American and African Contexts

(Levandowski & Piccinini, 2002, 2006).

& Vieira, 2008).

fathers in Brazil.

One special thanks goes to CNPq and CAPES for financial support via scholarship to the authors of the paper.
