The critical role of fathers in building healthy kids and families

Organization: Public Health Agency of Canada

Specific benefits to children from research of Positive Father Involvement (PFI).

Positive Father Involvement is important for children.

It improves their:

• social and emotional wellness
• academic achievement
• physical health
• adjustment to becoming parents themselves

Positively involved dads help their children with

Brain development

• Reduces behavioural problems
• Improves thinking and language abilities
• Improves ability to learn and school performance
• Fathers who are sensitive, calm and less anxious have infants who score higher in mental development

Healthy emotions

• Reduces depression in pre-adolescents and as kids age
• Reduces substance use in adolescents
• Improves independence in children

Relating to others

• The quality of the relationship between father and child is a factor in reducing challenging behaviours in early childhood, as well as later delinquency
• Positively involved fathers improve family relationships
• For adolescents living in vulnerable communities, positive relationships with fathers who are also school involved can reduce problems associated with poverty and social disadvantages

Physical health and development

• Improves overall health in children
• Reduces unintentional injuries risk in children
• Reduces risk of low birthweight
• Encourages healthy pregnancies
• Improves sleep in young children
• Increases breastfeeding rates

Sources

• Sethna V, Perry E, Domoney J, Iles J, Psychogiou L, Rowbotham, et al. Father-child interactions at 3 months and 24 months: contributions to children's cognitive
  development at 24 months. Infant Ment Health J. 2017 May;38(3):378-90. doi:10.1002/imhj.21642
• Zhang B, Zhao F, Ju C, Ma Y, et al. Paternal involvement as protective resource of adolescents' resilience: roles of male gender-role stereotype and sender. J Child Fam
  Stud. 2015 July;24(7):1955-65. DOI: 10.1007/s10826-014-9995-3
• Simonelli A, Parolin M, Sacchi C, De Palo F, Vieno A. The role of father involvement and marital satisfaction in the development of family interactive abilities: a multilevel
  approach. Front Psychol. 2016;7:1725. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01725
• Nepomnyaschy L, Donnelly L. Father involvement and childhood injuries. J Marriage Fam. 2015 June;77(3):628-46. DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12192
• St George J, Fletcher R, Freeman E, Paquette D, Dumont C. Father-child interactions and children's risk of injury. Early Child Dev Care. 2015 Sept;185(9):1409-21. DOI:
  10.1080/03004430.2014.1000888