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Journal Article This editorial article discusses various reports published within the special issue of Early Child Development and Care entitled Emerging Topics on Father Attachment: Considerations in Theory, Context and Development, which includes several articles on children's attachment to fathers.
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Journal Article Sir Richard Bowlby, son of John Bowlby, has carried on his father's work by lecturing and writing on the topic of attachment theory. He has initiated and maintained international connections with researchers, practitioners and agencies in the field of child development, and has produced training videos to more widely disseminate information about attachment theory to professionals working with children and families. In this interview, conducted in London in February of 2009, Richard responded to questions regarding the father's role as an attachment figure, highlighting new theoretical…
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Journal Article This work aims to highlight the relevance of Stephenson's Q methodology (QM) for improving the assessment of child-father attachment relationships. We argue that reconceptualising the relationship can enhance the validity of assessment techniques and help in identifying the paternal behaviours that predict a secure child-father attachment pattern. To this end, we first review the inconclusive and sometimes contradictory findings about links among paternal behaviours, child-father security of attachment, and socio-emotional well-being. Second, the methodological challenges in assessing child-…
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Journal Article This study examined connections between fathering context (stress, social support, and fathers' internal working models), fathering dimensions, children's attachment to fathers, and children's social-emotional and academic outcomes within two culturally diverse samples in the USA and Taiwan. Participants included 274 fathers and their eight- to 11-year-old children. Fathers completed questionnaires regarding their close relationships, stress, social support, and children's academic achievement. Children completed measures of fathering dimensions, attachment, and standardised social-emotional…
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Journal Article This study examined: (1) the independence of children's attachments to mother and father; (2) the relationships between father and mother quality of attachment and children's social and cognitive self-competence, depression and loneliness; and (3) differences in those relationships by gender. Spanish translations of standardised and self-report measures of mother and father attachment quality, scholastic and social competence, depression and loneliness were administered to 860 middle-class children, aged 8-12 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Children's attachment security with mothers was only…
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Journal Article This study aimed at determining whether paternal parenting behaviours (attachment and positive affection) added significant information on children's psychosocial adjustment beyond that provided by maternal reports. Five hundred and fifty-two children (fourth through sixth graders) from a non-clinical sample completed a brief measure of perceived attachment security to their mother and father. Parents and teachers of the children filled out the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, which covers behavioural problems (i.e. emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity and peer…
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Journal Article Context It is well established that maternal prenatal and postpartum depression is prevalent and has negative personal, family, and child developmental outcomes. Paternal depression during this period may have similar characteristics, but data are based on an emerging and currently inconsistent literature.Objective To describe point estimates and variability in rates of paternal prenatal and postpartum depression over time and its association with maternal depression.Data Sources Studies that documented depression in fathers between the first trimester and the first postpartum year were…
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Journal Article We use longitudinal survey and qualitative information from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine how risk factors such as physical abuse, problematic substance use, and incarceration among unmarried fathers in the study are related to fathers' early involvement with their children. The survey results indicate that nearly half of fathers have at least one risk factor and that each risk is negatively associated with paternal involvement. The results also show that fathers with risk factors are less likely to have romantic relationships with mothers and that relationships…
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Journal Article In this article, we report on the experiences of men who are smokers in the context of new fatherhood and explore the intersections of stigma, masculinities, and contemporary fathering. The men in this ethnographic study reveal both internalised and externalised stigma and describe situations and feelings when they became aware of the stigmatising qualities of smoking as new fathers. Fathers, expectant and new, are beginning to experience the focus of a punitive gaze previously reserved for expectant and new mothers. This gaze is gendered, and fathers who smoke are viewed as disrupting their…
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Journal Article This exploratory study reports on the reasons for entering the role and stigma experiences of 207 stay-at-home fathers (SAHFs). Overall, economic, pragmatic reasons and strong parenting values were the most common reasons guiding the decision to become a SAHF. Approximately half of the fathers experienced a stigma-based incident based on their SAHF status. Reasons participants reported for experiencing stigma including lack of familiarity with the role, religious beliefs, opposing attitudes about gender roles, and ignorance. Men who experienced a stigma-based incident reported lower levels of…
