Father involvement in early child-rearing and behavioural outcomes in their pre-adolescent children
Published on Wednesday, 23 November 2016 Post
A study exploring the association between father involvement in children's early upbringing and behavioural outcomes in the pre-adolescent years has been published in the BMJ Open. The study by Charles Opondo, Maggie Redshaw, Emily Savage-McGlynn and Maria Quigley identified over 6,000 children in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) cohort who were reported to be living with both parents during infancy. The researchers found evidence that greater paternal involvement in the children's early months was associated with fewer signs of behavioural problems in the children's pre-teen years. Specifically, fathers' emotional response and confidence in their new role were most strongly associated with lower odds of behavioural problems when their children reached 9 and 11 years of age.
This study was funded by the Department for Health through the Policy Research Programme, and the data were provided by the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) at the University of Bristol.
