Abstract
ObjectiveIndividual differences in quality of father involvement in caregiving might in part be explained by fathers’ testosterone (T) levels. We examined the links between fathers’ (n = 32) salivary T levels, amount of time spent with their child (12–30 months of age), type of father-child interaction, and fathers’ sensitivity.MethodsDuring two home visits, video observations of father-child interactions were conducted to measure fathers’ sensitivity during a challenging and harmonious interaction. Fathers’ saliva was collected several times throughout the day on a working day and on the home visit days, including right before and after each father-child interaction.ResultsFathers’ T secretion throughout the day was lower on home visit days (i.e., days with a higher amount of time spent with their child) than on a working day. For both challenging and harmonious father-child interactions, mean T levels did not differ before and after father-child interactions. However, individual changes in fathers’ T levels during the father-child interactions did predict fathers’ sensitivity. Specifically, the more T increased during the challenging interaction, or decreased during the harmonious interaction, the more sensitive the father was during that interaction as well as during a subsequent interaction.ConclusionsParenting quality is most optimal when fathers’ T system reacts in the expected direction given the context of the father-child interaction, i.e., a T decrease during a harmonious interaction and a T increase during a challenging interaction. Our study underscores the importance of examining the interplay between biology, behavior, and caregiving context in fathers’ parenting.
Highlights
Father involvement in childcare is widely recognized as being beneficial to children’s social and emotional development (Lamb 2010)
We expected decreases in T to be related to higher sensitivity in all father-child interactions, the results indicated that the more T increased during the challenging interaction, or decreased during the harmonious interaction, the more sensitive the father was during that interaction
In line with our expectations, we found evidence that the more T decreased during the harmonious father-child interaction, the more sensitive fathers were during this interaction
Summary
Father involvement in childcare is widely recognized as being beneficial to children’s social and emotional development (Lamb 2010). Research shows that having children and investing more time in childcare is in general related to lower T in fathers (e.g., Berg and Wynne-Edwards 2001; Gettler et al 2011; Kuzawa et al 2009). It seems that lower T levels are associated with more sensitive, responsive, and nurturing behaviors (e.g., Kuo et al 2015; van Anders et al 2012; Weisman et al 2014). In the current study we examined the associations between fathers’ T levels and the quantity and quality of father involvement
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