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Studies have found that the father is a child's preferred attachment figure in approximately 5–20% of cases. [1] [2] [3] Fathers and mothers may react differently to the same behaviour in an infant, and the infant may react to the parents' behaviour differently depending on which parent performs it.
For example, children raised with significant positive father involvement display greater empathy, higher self-esteem, increased curiosity, higher verbal skills, and higher scores of cognitive competence." [7] Increasingly, the responsible fatherhood movement has defined itself by focusing on the development of healthy father-child relationships.
Questions arise about how fathers have the ability to bond with children if they do not have the same kind of role that mothers do in the baby's development. The father of a child can develop the bond during the pregnancy of his partner, feeling attachment to the developing child. Research indicates that this may have some biological basis. [3]
Building on his research on parent-child relationships, Lamb has explored variations in father involvement and their effects on children's development. [8] This has included traditional and non-traditional families, single fathers, families in economic struggle, and those at risk regarding domestic violence .
Older parents also tend to occupy a higher socio-economic position and report feeling more devoted to their children and satisfied with their family. [43] On the other hand, the risk of the father dying before the child becomes an adult increases with paternal age. [43] To adjust for genetic liability, some studies compare full siblings.
Studies have shown that a lack of a father figure in a child's life can have severe negative psychological impacts upon a child's personality and psychology, [12] whereas positive father figures have a significant role in a child's development. [citation needed] Research found that there is a strong negative causal effect of father figure ...
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Other theories point to the importance of male role models and fathers in particular, for the development of children emotionally and cognitively, especially boys. [84] Even for fathers who may not be in the home, studies have shown that time spent with fathers has a positive relationship with psychological well-being including less depression ...