Factors Related to Father Involvement in Early Chillhood Care

Abstract

This study aimed to prove what factors influence fathers' involvement in early childhood care. The design of this research was cross-sectional. The population was fathers having the child aged from one month to six years in Bukittinggi. The samples comprised 92 respondents selected through purposive sampling. The independent variables were age at first becoming a father, father's occupation, mother's occupation, father-mother relationship, number of children, father's willingness to be involved, place of residence, and caregiver assistance, while the dependent variable was father's involvement. Data collection used a questionnaire, and the data were analyzed using Spearman's Rho with < 0.05. The results showed that the number of children (OR = 11,449, 95%CI = 3,596-36,444) influenced the father's involvement in early childhood care with a probability value of 46.7%. The age of first fatherhood, father's occupation, mother's occupation, number of children, place of residence, and help of caregivers determine the father's involvement in raising the children. The novelty of this research is that health workers need to develop education for families in early childhood care. It is recommended to increase the father's involvement in childcare by increasing the first age of becoming a father to the age of more than 27 years, increasing the willingness of fathers to be involved in childcare, and choosing a place to live separately from parents or in-laws.