The literature within Counseling Psychology on the experiences of African American men is sparse but developing. This study was proposed to fill a void in counseling psychology and support the use of culturally specific considerations for working with African American families. This research specifically set out to understand African American mens perception of what it means to be a father by examining their experiences and psychological well-being. It was the hope of this researcher to understand how these factors may possibly impact African American mens own involvement in their childrens lives. This sample included 145 self-identified African American or Black men recruited via online announcements, churches, community agencies, and universities. The results support a relationship between attachment and self-esteem, contextual variables and the perception of parenting, as well as ethnic identity and the perception of parenting. Specifically, results of this study indicated that ethnic identity would be effective in predicting the perception of parenting in African American men. The results of the self-esteem multiple regression analysis indicated that attachment, specifically father parental attachment did significantly impact self-esteem. The analyses for this regression model did not yield significant results for amount of education, income, age, and make up of family of origin. However, having children did significantly impact perception of parenting. However self-esteem nor previous parental attachment significantly predicted the perception of parenting in African American men. Results were also provided for the comparison of means for the men who had children and the men who did not have children as well as the men who grew up with fathers or father figures in their home versus the men who did not. Men who reported residing with a father or father figure while growing up indicated having a higher mean in father parental attachment than men who reported not having a father in the home. Men who had children reported a higher mean in their perception of parenting then men who do not have children. The present study employed a systems framework to determine the direct and indirect effects of relational influences and the perception of parenting. This study offers the support of and barriers to counseling African American men as it examines individual, family, and contextual environments that may influence therapeutic progress and relationships. Implications for working with African American populations are discussed, as well as recommendations for future research. INDEX WORDS: