I don’t know if it can ever be said enough times how important dads are to daughters, but we can always use a reminder. This column got started when someone asked if a dad could spend too much time with his daughter. I doubt that’s very often the case.
• Girls learn how to relate to men by how they relate to their father. Dads also provide encouragement.
“His job is to be a safe male for her to experiment with her femininity … to learn she can be admired by a man without it boiling down to sex,” Erickson said. “Dad also tells her, for example, if she’s climbing a tree, to see how high she can climb.”
[From Dare to Ask: How much time should dads spend with their daughters? | Jacksonville.com]
I’d love to see more information on the link between women’s sense of self, security, and ability to create new relationships because of the role of fathers. Interestingly, the new season of the HBO show In Treatment features a woman who’s interpersonal relationships are hobbled because her relationship with her father is too strong, too cocooning.