role of the father

• Traditionally, the role of the father in attachment has been limited, as they would go to work to provide resources for the family whilst the mother took care of the children.
• Psychologists disagree over the exact role of the father
• Some claim that men are simply not equipped to form an attachment and point to biological evidence which suggests that the hormone oestrogen underlies caring behaviour in women and the lack of oestrogen in men is why they are unable to form a close attachment.
• Other researchers argue that fathers do not take on a caregiver role, and instead provide a different role as a playmate
• Some researchers argue that fathers can demonstrate sensitive responsiveness and react to the needs of their children and thus can form a strong emotional tie/bond
• Evidence (Grossman’s longitudinal study) suggests a father’s role is one of play and stimulation rather than nurturing
• Evidence suggests that when fathers are the primary caregiver they adopt behaviours more typical of mothers. Field filmed 4 month old babies in face to face interaction with pcg fathers.
• Geiger (1996) found that fathers’ play interactions were more exciting in comparison to the mother’s. However, the mother’s play interactions were more affectionate and nurturing
• Hardy (1999) found that fathers were less able to detect low levels of infant distress, in comparison to mothers
• Belsky et al (2009) found that males who reported higher levels of marital intimacy also displayed a secure father-infant attachment, whereas males with lower levels of marital intimacy displayed insecure father-infant attachments