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Overall, the data suggest that the majority of children do have relationships with their biological father or some other father figure, and that fathers play a significant role in their child's adjustment. Although father involvement is still quantitatively much less than mother involvement, the "new father" of the late 20th century is more physically and emotionally involved with his children than in previous generations (Lamb, 1986; Thompson & Walker, 1989). Many questions exist, however, regarding the exact ways fathers influence their children. Numerous researchers have noted the importance of including fathers in clinical and nonclinical research (Long, 1997; Phares & Compas, 1992; Phares & Lum, 1997), as well as in child and family therapy (e.g., Hecker, 1991; Horton, 1984; LeCroy, 1987). One important future direction called for by researchers involves the investigation of fathers' direct interactions with their children (Phares & Compas, 1992).
Direct Behavioral Observation
Direct behavioral observation measures have been called the "hallmark" of
behavioral assessment (Ciminero, 1986) and have been used widely across content areas within the field of psychology (Foster & Cone, 1986; Bornstein, Bridgwater, Hickey, & Sweeney, 1980). Because observational methods reduce the need to rely solely on selfreport, they are an important research tool in the assessment of children with behavior problems (McMahon & Forehand, 1988). Not only do children have difficulty providing accurate self-report about socially undesirable or inappropriate behavior (Hartman & Wood, 1990), but concerns have also been raised about the accuracy of parental perceptions of children's disruptive behavior (Wahler & Sansbury, 1992). For these