Väter im Abseits

National and international studies indicate that the proportion of fathers who have no contact with their children after a divorce or separation is relatively high. The search for the causes and backgrounds is currently taking place more in the media than in a scientific context in the German-speaking world, manifesting as a highly polarized discourse blaming either the mothers who prevent contact or the fathers who abandon their children. The aim of this study from Austria is to provide a nuanced contribution to the complexity of the motives and motivations that lead to this individual drama. Additionally, on a socio-political level, the prevailing societal gender images are reflected upon and analyzed, as well as how gender policy regarding fathers is conceptualized.