Effects of father absence on women's perception of "ideal" mate and father

Abstract

The father-absent group compromised 28 college women whose biological father had not lived at home after their 11th birthday. Controls were father-present college women. Both groups completed the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire twice: as ideal mate would, and as father would. Father-absent women differed significantly from controls in perceiving father as more guilt prone (Factor O) (p < .01), more tense (Factor Q4) (p < .05), and having less ego strength (Factor C) (p < .05). Compared with the control group, father-absent women viewed their ideal mate as lower in superego strength (Factor G) (p < .05) but higher in radicalism (Factor Q1) (p < .05). In sum, father-absent women seem to portray father and ideal mate as opposing personalities: the father as constricted (guilt prone, tense) and weak (lower ego strength), and the ideal mate as free (lower superego) and radical.