role of the father
the role of the farther in child rearing
some researchers claim that men are not equipped to form an attachment bcs oxytocin, a hormone that triggers caring, is higher in women
and the lack of oestrogen prevents them from forming attachments
some argue that fathers do not take a caregiver role but act as a playmate
some say that fathers can show sensitive responsiveness and respond to the child needs + therefore form strong emotional bonds like a mother
changes in the last 100 years
traditionally, they played a minor, they would work + provide recourses whilst mothers took care of children however views have changes
the farther and multiple attachments
the farther in attachment research is any one who takes on the role of the main male caregiver
multiple attachments are attachments to 2 or more ppl, most babies form this once they have formed one strong attachment to their specific attachment
attachment to fathers- Schaffer and Emerson 1964
evidence suggests that fathers are much less likely to become an infants 1st attachment
in Schaffer + Emerson's stages of attachment research, they found that majority of babies become attached to to mothers 1st at 7 months. in only 3% of cases the farther was the 1st sole figure of attachment. in 27% of cases, the farther was the joint attachment figure w/ the mother
however most fathers do go on to become important attachment figures. 75% of babies formed attachments w/ their fathers at around 18 months
this was determined by babies protesting when their fathers walked away (separation anxiety)
distinctive role for fathers- Grossman 2002
Grossman carried out a longitudinal study where babies attachments were studied until they were into their teens
the researcher looked at both parents behaviour + its link to the quality of their child's later attachments w/ other ppl
he found that the quality of infant attachments w/ mothers was related to children's attachments in adolescence
this was not the case for farther- child attachments
this suggests that father attachments are less important than attachments to mothers
however. Grossman found that the quality of the fathers play + stimulation w/ babies related to the quality of adolescence attachments
this suggests that fathers have a different role from mothers in the contribution of a child early attachment- one that is more to do w/ play + stimulation + less to do w/ the mother + provide responsiveness needed in good attachments
fathers as primary attachment figures- Field 1978
Field filmed 4 month old babies in face-to-face interactions w/ PCG mothers + PCG fathers + secondary caregiver fathers
the PCG mothers+ fathers spent more time smiling, imitating + holding babies than secondary caregiver fathers
these behaviours are part of reciprocity and interactional synchrony which are fundamental in healthy attachments
this suggests that fathers are able to take on the caring, nurturing role that is usually associated w/ the mother + provide the responsiveness needed in good attachments
economic implications of research into the role of the farther
more fathers are staying at home + making less contributions to the economy + more mothers are going to work + making contributions to the economy
there are changing laws on paternity leave- it is now gov’ment funded so affects the economy + employers
gender pay gap may be reduced if parental roles are seen as equal
early attachment research e.g Bowlby suggests that father’s should provide economic support rather than emotional
evaluation
confusion over research question
a limitation of research into the role of the father is lack of clarity over the question being asked
‘’what is the role of the father’’ is a complex question in the context attachment.
some researchers want to understand role of fathers as secondary attachment figures, whereas others are more concerned w/ fathers as the primary attachment figure (Tiffany Field found that fathers can take this role). some researchers have found fathers behaving differently from mothers + having a distinct role
this makes it difficult to offer a simple answer to the ‘role of the father’- it depends on what specific issue is being discussed
conflicting evidence due to methods used
a limitation of research into the role of the father is that findings may vary according to the methods used
Grossman et al (longitudinal study) suggests that fathers as secondary attachments have an important + distinct role in children’s development involving play + stimulation
however, if fathers have a distinct + important role, then children growing up in single mother would be expected to turn out differently than those in 2 parent families. however, studies e.g McCallum + Golombok found that these children do not develop differently
this means that we still don’t fully know if fathers actually have a distinct role
counterpoint
however, this research may not be in conflict.
in 2 parent families, fathers typically take distinctive roles, but single mothers + lesbian parents simply adapt to the role played by fathers themselves (play w/ child them self)
this means that fathers do have a distinctive role but families can adapt to not having father
real world application
a strength of research into the role of the father is that it can be used to offer advice to parents
parents smtimes agonise over decisions like who should take the PCG role- this can even mean worrying abt whether to have children at all. mothers may feel pressured to stay at home due to stereotypical views of parents role. fathers may be pressured to focus on work rather than
parents smtimes agonise over decisions like who should take the PCG role- this can even mean worrying abt whether to have children at all. mothers may feel pressured to stay at home due to stereotypical views of parents role. fathers may be pressured to focus on work rather than parenting
father research can be used to offer reassuring advice to parents. e.g heterosexual parents can be informed that fathers can become the primary attachment figure. single mothers can be informed that no father does not affect a child's development
this means that parental anxiety can be reduced
fathers forming secure attachments in marriages
a strength is that fathers in intimate marriages can form secure attachments
males who reported higher levels of marital intimacy had secure infant attachments + those w/ lower intimacy has insecure father-infant attachments
this can inform parents of the importance of creating a secure, loving home for their children as it impact their development + attachment.
this suggests that males can form secure attachments w/ children but the extent of it is influenced by the relationship w/ the mother.