First, read this.
Key excerpt:
In my research into the lives of some 75 high-achieving, clearly independent women, I knew that I would find a powerful connection between them and the first men in their lives. Many other studies have confirmed it. What surprised me was how deep (and surprisingly traditional) the bond is, how powerful it remains throughout their lives, and how resilient it can be—even when a father has caused it grievous harm.
And this:
No matter how successful their careers, how happy their marriages, or how fulfilling their lives, women told me that their happiness passed through a filter of their fathers’ reactions. Many told me that they tried to remove the filter and—much to their surprise—failed.
We know that fathers play a key role in the development and choices of their daughters. But even for women whose fathers had been neglectful or abusive, I found a hunger for approval. They wanted a warm relationship with men who did not deserve any relationship at all.
Part of this need takes form early in life—when a father is a girl’s portal to the world of men. I call fathers a girl’s GPS—gender positioning system. It’s how women begin to orient themselves in a confusing and (especially of late) fluid landscape of gender expectations.
Question: Are girls’ reactions to their father hard-wired because of their necessary reliance on Heavenly Father? Do girls depend on male approval because they also depend on Heavenly Father’s approval and do they (unconsciously) expect men to partially fill that role on Earth?
Or is this entire article bunk?