Involvement In Childrearing Research Articles

The Role of Fathers' Involvement in Parenting and Adolescent Social Harms: A Narrative Review

Background: In today's society, the issue of fatherhood and involvement in the upbringing of children has been emphasized. The study aimed to investigate the impact of fathers' involvement in parenting on the social victimization of adolescents. Methods: The present research utilized a narrative review methodology, with technical terms being explained at the beginning. Relevant sources were identified by conducting searches on reputable academic databases, including ISI Web of Knowledge, PubMed, Google Scholar, ProQuest, Ovid, Elsevier, SID, and Magiran, covering the period from 2000 to 2023. The search keywords encompassed various related themes, such as fatherhood, absent fathers, childrearing, adolescents, father involvement, engagement, social problems, and Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT). Compilation procedures were conducted according to the SANRA checklist. In the initial search, 162 articles were obtained. After removing duplicates and evaluating their titles and abstracts, 9 articles were selected for the review. Results: Based on the findings of this literature review, paternal involvement in child-rearing is shown to positively affect the intellectual, moral, and social development of adolescents. Conversely, the absence of a father figure has been linked to negative outcomes such as drug addiction, decreased academic performance in both school and university, anti-social attitudes, separation anxiety, aggression, feelings of insecurity, and negative thoughts in teenagers. Conclusion: The involvement of fathers in upbringing of their children fosters critical thinking and reinforces children's empowerment in making pivotal decisions, while simultaneously acting as a safeguard against social risks.

Representasi Father Involvement Dalam Film Stranger Things Season 2

The image of masculinity positioning fathers as central figures in earning a living has implications for the lack of paternal involvement in child-rearing, known as fatherlessness or daddy issues. This research uses the film “Stranger Things” (2017) to provide insights into how father involvement is represented. The study aims to understand how elements of father involvement are depicted in the film “Stranger Things” (2017). The research employs Roland Barthes’ semiotic analysis method, which examines the significance of denotation and connotation. The results show that aspects of father involvement represented in the film are divided into four indicators: (1) authoritarian attitude, (2) portrayal of feminist men, (3) role model for children, and (4) temperamental nature. Thus, it can be concluded that father’s involvement in child-rearing can open new windows into breaking the boundaries of the image of masculinity in societal reality.

아버지의 가족친화제도 이용 정도, 자녀 양육 참여, 일-가정 양립 갈등 간의 구조관계 분석

아버지의 가족친화제도 이용 정도, 자녀 양육 참여, 일-가정 양립 갈등 간의 구조관계 분석

Distinct patterns of grandparental involvement in childrearing and Chinese preschoolers' social-emotional development.

Grandparental involvement in childrearing has been associated with children's social-emotional development, yet findings are mixed. Grandparental involvement is a multidimensional concept that includes both quantity (i.e., the degree of grandparental involvement) and quality aspects (i.e., the quality of parent-grandparent coparenting and the quality of grandparenting practices). This study included both quantity and quality aspects to identify heterogeneous patterns of grandparental involvement and examined the associations between distinct patterns of grandparental involvement and children's social-emotional outcomes. Participants were 428 families with Chinese preschoolers (Mage = 53.75 months, SD = 10.32; 51.4% boys). Primary parental and grandparental caregivers completed the questionnaires. Four patterns of grandparental involvement emerged: the low-involvement mediocre-quality, the median, the high-involvement uneven-quality, and the high-involvement high-quality groups. Heterogeneous patterns of grandparental involvement exist and are differentially associated with children's social-emotional development. Children with grandparents in the high-involvement high-quality group demonstrated higher levels of social skills than those in the low-involvement mediocre-quality group and the high-involvement uneven-quality group. They also showed the lowest level of problem behaviors. This study highlights variations in grandparental involvement and helps to clarify previous inconsistent findings regarding the role of grandparental involvement in child development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Fathering, living arrangements, and child development in China

The impact on child development of paternal involvement in childrearing has received growing attention recently. Based on data from the 2010, 2014 and 2018 waves of the China Family Panel Studies, this study applies the propensity score matching (PSM) method to investigate the causal effects of being primarily raised by one’s father on children’s cognitive skills and psychological well-being in different family types. In migrant families, primarily fathered children are not disadvantaged compared to those primarily mothered, and boys even have better word test scores. For children living with both parents, our results indicate no significant differences in most respects between the cognitive skills and mental health of children primarily cared for by fathers and by mothers, except that children perform slightly worse in word-test scores when their fathers are their primary caregivers. However, coresidence with grandparents substantially mitigates the negative effect of primary paternal involvement in childcare on children’s language development. Our findings suggest that the role of father involvement in child development should be understood in more nuanced family contexts.

It takes a village: A multi-brain approach to studying multigenerational family communication

Grandparents play a critical role in child rearing across the globe. Yet, there is a shortage of neurobiological research examining the relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren. We employ multi-brain neurocomputational models to simulate how changes in neurophysiological processes in both development and healthy aging affect multigenerational inter-brain coupling – a neural marker that has been linked to a range of socio-emotional and cognitive outcomes. The simulations suggest that grandparent-child interactions may be paired with higher inter-brain coupling than parent-child interactions, raising the possibility that the former may be more advantageous under certain conditions. Critically, this enhancement of inter-brain coupling for grandparent-child interactions is more pronounced in tri-generational interactions that also include a parent, which may speak to findings that grandparent involvement in childrearing is most beneficial if the parent is also an active household member. Together, these findings underscore that a better understanding of the neurobiological basis of cross-generational interactions is vital, and that such knowledge can be helpful in guiding interventions that consider the whole family. We advocate for a community neuroscience approach in developmental social neuroscience to capture the diversity of child-caregiver relationships in real-world settings.

A cross-sectional study to identify the perception of children regarding paternal involvement in child rearing.

Child rearing is a generic term that refers to the upbringing of children by providing them with food, shelter, and clothing and encircled with socialization, shaping their personality, character, talents, cultural and moral values as well as their physical and emotional well-being. Research studies in India indicate that fathers are participating in children's lives in many ways, and are far from being uninvolved. This was a cross-sectional study conducted among school-going children aged between 11-15 years at a selected school, Mangaluru in January 2022. Ninety-six study participants were recruited using a disproportionate stratified random sampling technique. Data were collected using a self-structured four-point Likert scale under six domains. The obtained data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study results revealed that 84.6% had poor perception and 16.4% had good perception regarding paternal involvement in child-rearing. There was a significant association found between the educational status of the father and the type of family with perception score, at P < 0.05 level of significance. This study concluded that, even though fathers are more contributing, the children of the newer generation could not understand their father's involvement in their lives.

Association between gender role attitudes and social support from mothers and paternal involvement in childcare

Objective Paternal involvement in child-rearing is an action goal of Healthy Parents and Children 21 (Tier 2), and should be actively promoted. Clarifying the related factors may contribute to countermeasures for promoting paternal involvement in child-rearing. This study aimed to examine the association between fathers' gender role attitudes and social support from their spouses (i.e., the mothers of the children) and their involvement in child-rearing.Methods We obtained the data of fathers involved in childcare (aged 25-50 years; all full-time workers) through an internet research company. The paternal involvement in childcare scale (11 items, 4-point scale, e.g., "taking care of children," "cooking") was used as the dependent variable. The independent variables were gender role attitude ("Husbands should work outside the home and wives should take care of the home," 4-point scale) and social support from the mothers of the children (including appraisal, emotional, and instrumental support). The control variables were father's age, mother's employment status, number of children, the age of the youngest child, children going to nursery school or kindergarten, use of childcare services, self-evaluation of low economic status, work hours on weekdays, and marital relationship satisfaction.Results The data of 360 men were analyzed (mean age 36.8 years, standard deviation 5.6). The results of the multivariable regression analyses with interaction terms are as follows: gender role attitude was significantly associated with childcare (β=-0.103) and housework (β=-0.125); appraisal support was significantly associated with childcare (β=0.142) and housework (β=0.199); and the interaction between gender role attitude and instrumental support was significant (β=0.176), indicating that, in individuals with a high gender role attitude score, a higher level of instrumental support was related to a higher childcare score (β=0.242).Conclusions Fathers with egalitarian gender role attitudes and those who receive appraisal support from the other parent are more likely to participate in childcare. In addition, fathers with traditional gender role attitudes who receive instrumental support from the other parent may tend to participate in childcare.

How perceived maternal gatekeeping affects fathers: An 8-week study.

Maternal gatekeeping describes mothers' attempts to influence father involvement in child-rearing. While the effect of maternal gatekeeping on the father-child relationship has been explored, less is known about how fluctuations in the perception of maternal gatekeeping influences fathers' family outcomes and whether father's attachment might moderate these associations. Building on family systems theory, this study explores the within-person effect of negative maternal gatekeeping on father's weekly reports of romantic relationship quality and feelings of exclusion from the family and tests father attachment as a moderator of these associations. Two hundred seventy-seven Canadian and German fathers with children under the age of 6 took part in an 8-week online diary study. Data were analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling. During weeks when fathers perceived more maternal gatekeeping than was typical, they reported lower positive romantic relationship quality, higher negative romantic relationship quality, and felt more excluded from the family system. Avoidant attachment moderated the within-person effect of perceived maternal gatekeeping on negative romantic relationship quality, such that within-person increases in perceived maternal gatekeeping were more strongly linked with higher than-average negative romantic relationship quality among more avoidant fathers. Our findings shed new light on the within-person effects of perceived maternal gatekeeping on fathers' feelings regarding the family system. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Parenting in Cultural Perspective: A Systematic Review of Paternal Role Across Cultures

The paternal role has become one of the most topic discussions in parenting and has drawn researchers' intention worldwide. This research aimed to explore the existing literature relating to paternal roles across cultures, which analyzed 1) how the paternal roles in cultural perspectives have been researched; 2) what the parental values based on cultures mentioned in the literature are, and 3) what the topic discussed about the paternal role across culture is. The focus of the research was to find out the current trends of paternal roles across cultures from 2012 to 2022 derived from the Scopus database. The method used was a systematic review and followed PRISMA guidelines (the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis). The study revealed that most of the literature highlighted the significance of the fathers’ involvement in child-rearing in every culture (Indian, Japanese, Latino, Chinese, Indonesian, Norwegian, and Finland) and the improvement of paternal practices due to the adaptation of new cultures and the emergence of fathers' awareness to take part in their children's lives. It can be concluded that the paternal role in a collectivist culture still holds firm to the culture in parenting practices but has begun to experience a shift from the original position of breadwinner, protector, even disciplinarian and authoritarian, becoming the more involved father in child-rearing. While most fathers from individualist cultures had previously been involved in child care because they were supported by policies in their country of origin.

아버지 양육 참여 활성화 프로그램 개발을 위한 아버지의 양육 참여 관련 인식 및 요구도 연구

본 연구는 아버지들의 양육 참여 활성화 프로그램 개발을 위한 기초연구로 프로그램에 대한 아버지들의 인식과 요구를 양적연구와 질적연구 방법으로 살펴보았다. 양적연구는 학령기 자녀를 둔 아버지 50명과 영유아기 자녀를 둔 아버지 53명에게 배포된 설문지를 분석하였으며, 질적연구는 영유아기 자녀를 둔 아버지 5명과 학령기 자녀를 둔 아버지 5명을 대상으로 집단면담을 시행하였다. 연구결과, 대부분 아버지는 양육에 대해 어려움을 느끼고 있었고 이러한 어려움을 양가 부모님이나 기관, 인터넷에 의지하여 해결하려는 경향을 보였다. 이에 아버지들은 양육 참여 활성화 프로그램 개발을 위한 프로그램이 필요하다고 인식하였으며, 영유아기 아버지들은 자녀발달 특성에 따른 부모역할, 놀이 방법, 건강한 애착 형성 등의 내용을 포함하는 프로그램이 구성되기를 학령기 아버지들은 자녀와의 올바른 대화 방법 및 훈육, 자녀의 문제행동 예방 및 개선 등의 내용을 포함하는 프로그램이 구성되기를 원하였다. 프로그램 방식은 전문 강사에 의한 강연 및 심포지엄의 형태로 주 1회 1시간~2시간 정도 이루어지기를 희망하는 것으로 나타났다.

Transition to Motherhood of Mothers Receiving Continuity of Child-Rearing Support.

Clarifying the transition to motherhood based on the experience of mothers receiving continuity of child-rearing support is expected to promote the transition, and enhance nursing support. This study clarifies the transition process by which mothers recognize and adapt to new roles with continuity of child-rearing support in Japan. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 mothers who received continuity of child-rearing support. Directed content analysis based on Meleis’s Transition Theory was used to analyze the results and define a framework for analyzing the transition. A theoretical framework was identified based on the Transition Theory themes. Engagement in terms of proactive involvement in pregnancy, childbirth, and child-rearing was a transition property. Maintaining the mother’s well-being, building new relationships and connections, and reflecting on child-rearing in the community were transition conditions. For patterns of response, the process indicators comprised having a sense of connection with the community and reflecting on one’s child-rearing objectively. Increased readiness for child-rearing and identity re-shaping were outcome indicators. The results suggest that it is important to enhance mothers’ readiness for child-rearing for transition to motherhood, and to promote the reshaping of their identities through continuity of support from pregnancy to postpartum child-rearing.

Social isolation among mothers caring for Infants in Japan: findings from the Nationwide Survey of healthy parents and children 21

BackgroundChild-rearing isolation may increase the risk of child abuse and negatively affect child development owing to increased urbanization and a decline in family and community support systems.PurposeThis study aimed to identify the prevalence of child-rearing isolation and the related sociodemographic factors among mothers in Japan using data from the Final Survey of Healthy Parents and Children 21.ParticipantsMothers of young children attending their health checkups.MethodsMultivariate logistic regression models assessed the association between child-rearing isolation and socio-demographic variables. Data from 69,337 women were analyzed.ResultsMothers who experienced child-rearing isolation comprised 0.2% of all participants. Mothers who were 35 to 39 years old at childbirth (OR = 1.6, CI[1.0, 2.4], p = .036), were unemployed (OR = 1.7, CI[1.3, 2.4], p = .001), had experienced financial difficulty (OR = 1.8, CI[1.3, 2.5], p < .001), had husbands with limited participation in child-rearing (OR = 5.7, CI[4.2, 7.9], p < .001), lived in special wards in the Tokyo Metropolis (OR = 4.2, CI[2.2, 8.3], p < .001), had child abuse concerns (OR = 2.1, CI [1.5, 2.9], p < .001), and had no time to relax with their child (OR = 4.5, CI [3.1–6.7], p < .001) exhibited higher odds ratios for child-rearing isolation, compared to mothers who did not exhibit these characteristics.ConclusionsFindings showed the impact of urban living on maternal health and the influence of isolation on mothers’ anxiety about child-rearing and their potential for child maltreatment. The importance of fathers’ involvement in child-rearing in preventing maternal child-rearing isolation was highlighted.

Discourses between the Public and the Private: Transnational Families at the Crossroads

AbstractRaising a child is a challenging venture, regardless of where one lives in the world. Most children are raised in their families; however, many states have welfare services if the child’s well-being is at stake. Scandinavian countries follow a rather strict policy in placing the child’s individual rights above those of the family, and Norway has child welfare legislation that applies to all children in the country, regardless of their status, nationality or citizenship. This institutional structure has raised issues about how family life is negotiated in society. In this article, we analyze the ways in which language and culture are used to address expectations of (good) normal family life in both private and public discourses with implications for transnational families. We thus problematize the notion of the family as a private domain or space. Furthermore, by examining institutional involvement in child-rearing, we extend research on family language policy to contexts of foster care. We thereby raise the discussion to a societal level about private and public expectations towards family life in a late-modern society.

Infant negative affect moderates longitudinal associations between maternal gatekeeping and toddlers’ social–emotional difficulties

Maternal gatekeeping is characterized by the extent to which mothers engage in behaviors that ultimately serve to inhibit (i.e., gate close) or encourage (i.e., gate open) father involvement in childrearing. This study considered direct and indirect associations between observed and reported maternal gatekeeping and children’s social–emotional difficulties. Data come from a sample of 182 parents who transitioned to parenthood in 2008–2010 and their young children. Results of longitudinal path analyses indicated mothers’ perceptions of maternal gate closing at 3-months postpartum were associated with greater dysregulation (β = .21, 95% CI [.08, .35], p = .002) and externalizing (β = .25, 95% CI [.10, .41], p = .001) in 26-month-old toddlers. Observed maternal gate opening at 3-months postpartum predicted lower dysregulation (β = −.18, 95% CI [−.32, −.05], p = .008) in 26-month-old toddlers. Observed fathers’ parenting quality did not mediate associations between maternal gatekeeping and child social–emotional difficulties. However, a statistically significant interaction between infant negative affect and observed maternal gate opening emerged as a predictor of toddler dysregulation, such that the adjusted negative effect of observed maternal gate opening on toddler dysregulation was strongest when infant negative affect was low. Statistically significant interactions between fathers’ perceptions of gate closing and infant negative affect also emerged as predictors of toddler dysregulation and externalizing. Infants high in negative affect exposed to maternal gate closing were at the greatest risk for externalizing and dysregulation difficulties. Implications for maternal gatekeeping theory and research are discussed.

Rural Masculinities and Fathering: The Lived Experiences of Chinese Farmers

Little attention has been paid to the process of Chinese fathers in the countryside representing themselves as men while encountering rapid social changes. This qualitative study explored how rural Chinese men construct masculinities through stories about their fathering experiences. Fifteen farmers from southwest China were interviewed about their involvement in childrearing. The fathers were identified to have constructed configurations of masculinity fitting their social context, which were negotiated using various personal, interpersonal, and contextual resources. The participants presented themselves as family supporters, collaborative husbands, and strict but caring fathers who envisioned relying on their children near death. Gender inequalities were revealed, and participants legitimized these by emphasizing the instrumentality of such gender relations in childrearing and family development. Study limitations and implications for future research and practices related to rural Chinese fathers are discussed.

Roditeljski stilovi i uključenost očeva u odgoj

The active involvement of fathers in child-rearing affects the child’s overall growth and development, and the parenting style impacts the direction of the influence on individual aspects of a child’s life. In order to achieve gender equality in society, it is necessary to raise public awareness of the importance of a father’s gender role, a desirable parenting style, and his inclusion in all aspects of family life. The aim of the research is to determine the level of father involvement in child-rearing, as well as the dominant parenting style based on the children’s assessment. A total of 290 pupils from 10 elementary schools in Osijek-Baranja County participated in this research, all of whom were in grades 5-8. Sociodemographic data, the 2018 parent involvement questionnaire - URU18, and the parenting behavior questionnaire 29 - URP29 were used. The results are in line with research conducted so far, and they indicate the importance of a father’s education and a supportive parenting style aiming at his involvement in housework and child care. Father’s education significantly presupposes his involvement in housework, taking care of school-related duties and obligations, and participation in leisure activities. A supportive parenting style is a significant positive predictor of all forms of father involvement, i.e., housework, school-related duties and obligations, activities, child care, and counseling. The results of this research indicate the importance of raising parental awareness of the importance of the supportive parenting style and the fathers’ involvement in child-rearing.

Measuring maternal gatekeeping: a Rasch analysis of the Parental Regulation Inventory

ABSTRACT To understand factors that may influence father involvement, researchers have increasingly considered maternal gatekeeping, or the extent to which mothers might attempt to regulate (i.e. encourage, discourage) fathers’ involvement in childrearing. Although several theoretical models of maternal gatekeeping have been advanced in recent years, maternal gatekeeping measurement has lagged significantly behind developments in gatekeeping theory. Rasch analysis offers a useful framework for conducting item-level analyses to evaluate measurement validity and identify areas of improvement for measurement scales. In the present study, Rasch analysis techniques were implemented to (1) illustrate how modern psychometric methods can be applied to validate measures in family psychology and (2) examine the validity of the Parental Regulation Inventory, a commonly used maternal gatekeeping measure (PRI; Van Egeren [2000]. The Parental Regulation Inventory. Unpublished manuscript. Michigan State University). Results indicated that the PRI exhibited adequate construct validity; however, measurement could be improved by including additional items on the PRI subscales. In particular, Rasch analyses indicated floor effects on fathers’ reports of maternal gate closing, floor and ceiling effects on fathers’ reports of maternal gate opening, and floor and ceiling effects on fathers’ reports of maternal communication at 3- and 9- months postpartum. Recommendations for improving maternal gatekeeping measurement and implications for maternal gatekeeping theory are discussed.

아버지의 양육참여도, 어머니의 일·가정 양립과 유아의 성역할 고정관념의 관계

본 연구는 사회인구학적 변인에 따른 아버지의 양육참여도, 어머니의 일·가정 양립, 유아의 성역할 고정관념의 차이를 살펴보고 이 변인들 간의 관계를 탐색하고자 하였다. 이를 위해 S지역 유아교육기관에 다니는 맞벌이 가정유아 168명과 그들의 어머니를 대상으로 자료를 수집하였고, 일원변량분석과 위계적 회귀분석을 실시하였다. 연구결과는 다음과 같다. 첫째, 아버지의 양육참여도는 아버지의 연령이 36-40세인 집단이 41세 이상 집단에 비해 그리고 양육참여시간이 많을수록 높았고, 어머니의 일·가정 양립은 어머니의 근무시간이 짧을수록 잘 이루어졌다. 또한, 유아의 성역할 고정관념은 자녀출생순위가 셋째보다 첫째와 둘째 집단이, 가구월평균소득이 높을수록, 아버지의 양육참여시간이 많을수록 낮은 것으로 나타났다. 둘째, 아버지의 양육참여도 하위변인인 돌보기 및 지도 수준이 높을수록 유아의 성역할 고정관념이 낮은 것으로 나타났으나, 어머니의 일·가정 양립은 유아의 성역할 고정관념과 유의한 관계가 없었다. 이러한 연구결과는 유아기의 올바른 성역할 정체감 발달을 위해서 평등한 가정문화와 적극적인 아버지의 양육참여가 중요한 요인이라는 것을 시사하였다.

The experience of first-time Hong Kong Chinese fatherhood: A qualitative exploratory study.

The father's involvement in childrearing can positively influence health outcomes not only for the man himself but also for his partner and their children. However, the experience of first-time fatherhood is limited in Chinese communities. The aim of this study is to explore men's experience of first-time fatherhood and coping in Hong Kong. An exploratory qualitative design was used. A purposive sample of 44 first-time Chinese fathers who had participated in a couple-based cognitive-behavioral intervention for postnatal depression were recruited for telephone interviews at 1-3 months postpartum. Data were collected by a semistructured interview guide and analyzed using thematic analysis. The process involved in men's transition to first-time fatherhood reveals four major themes: changes in daily life, new paternal roles and responsibilities, availability of resources to enhance adaptation, and coping strategies. The findings have implications for health care professionals and policy-makers in the provision of comprehensive perinatal care and family-friendly policies to aid men's transition to first-time fatherhood in Chinese communities.