50: Fatherhood: the impact - BRIEFING
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BRIEFING
Lorraine Khan
50
Fatherhood: the impact
: of fathers on children's
mental health
Summary
There is growing awareness about the importance of intellect or masculinity. Fathers can create a high
mothers’ mental health and the impact they can have quality co-parenting alliance with their partners,
on their children’s mental health. However, less is including when fathers are not living with their
known about fatherhood and the impact fathers can children, and help their children to build positive,
have on their child’s mental health. This briefing paper trusting relationships.
explores the direct and indirect impact of fathers on
However, fathers have received little support to be
children’s mental health, from positive supervision
the best parents they can be, and the importance
and language development, to emotionally buffering
of fathers’ own mental health has been neglected.
mother and child against environmental stresses.
Chaotic or conflict-ridden family circumstances, work
From pregnancy to adolescence, fathers are a major pressures and stereotypes about masculinity can get in
influence on a child’s emotional and behavioural the way of being the best parent they can be.
health. The relationships a father builds within a family
This briefing specifically explores the role of fathers
are far more important to a child’s mental health than
and focuses on their positive potential to have an
traditionally valued paternal characteristics such as
impact on the wellbeing of their children.
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
The impact of fatherhood on Father's influence on child
children's mental health mental wellbeing
Assessing the impact of fathers on children’s Fathers exert influence on children’s
mental health is challenging. Fatherhood is development and mental health through both
not a clearly defined state and fathers’ roles their direct interactions with children, and
in western societies have been changing over through indirect influence (e.g. providing
time. Expectations of fatherhood can also instrumental or emotional support to their
be different according to different cultural partners). For instance, a father’s function
contexts. as a source of maternal emotional support
tends to enhance the quality of mother-child
There is, however, good evidence suggesting
relationships and in turn facilitates positive
that responsible and involved fathering starting
adjustment by children. Conversely, when
from the prenatal period and continuing
fathers are unsupportive and marital conflict is
into adolescence has positive effects on the
high, children may suffer (Cummings, Goeke-
wellbeing of children well into adulthood.
Morey & Raymond, 2004; Cummings & O’Reilly,
1997).
A good example of indirect influence starts
well before a child is born. It begins with a
What is fatherhood? father’s relationship with the child's mother and
includes active involvement during the prenatal
Traditionally, research has focused on very
period. Starting from conception, both parents
narrow conceptualisations of fatherhood
have a responsibility to provide a safe and
when considering the impact of fathers on
nurturing environment for the foetus. Stress
children’s mental health and development.
and lack of support can trigger or exacerbate
For example, studies focused on fathers’ roles
maternal mental illness that can have negative
as breadwinners, as gender role models, or
impacts on the evolving mental health of the
on their presence or absence in the family
unborn child. Fathers can therefore assist in
structure.
buffering mothers from environmental stresses
More recent research has recognised the and in sustaining a stable in utero environment
evolving nature of fatherhood and that fathers by providing emotional and physical support to
often assume a range of roles in their families the mother during her pregnancy. Post-birth,
which can include breadwinner, companion, a father can also ease the mother’s workload,
playmate, caregiver, spouse, protector, model, buffer the infant from overexposure to stress
moral guide and teacher. Fathers often differ during critical early months and provide
with respect to the relative importance they compensatory support to the infant should a
place on these diverse roles (Lamb, 2004). mother need to recover from maternal mental
illness (Gere, 2014).
2Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
Aspects of fatherhood and the quality of relationship that a father
associated with good child builds with his children, rather than being
mental health related to gender-specific characteristics
(Lamb, 2004). Evidence suggests that the
Involved fathers are considered to more individual characteristics of fathers (such as
effectively promote the mental health and their masculinity or their intellect) are much
wellbeing of children and young people. less important than the characteristics of the
Involved parenting comprises of three relationships they build with their children.
dimensions: Children who have secure, supportive,
• A father’s engagement with children and reciprocal and sensitive relationships with
families; their parents are much more likely to be well
• Their accessibility to their children; adjusted than children whose relationships are
less satisfying (Lamb, 2004).
• Their assumption of responsibility for their
children.
(Lamb, Pleck, Charnov & Levine, 1987)
Research also reveals more similarities than
Paternal communication
differences in the way that fathers and mothers There is good evidence that effective paternal
positively influence the mental health and communication with children is important for
wellbeing of their children. Evidence has a range of reasons from infancy right up until
consistently found that the following features adolescence and young adult years. During
are associated with positive child outcomes, infancy, fathers have been noted to have
regardless of whether the parent involved is a communication styles which are particularly
mother or a father: beneficial to child development. Research has
A warm child-parent relationship – warm, noted that fathers can often be less in-step with
nurturing relationships and closeness are communication patterns between a mother
important features of a father-child relationship and infant, and may therefore engage in more
and are protective features for children’s mental complex forms of communication with their
health. Warm paternal parenting has also offspring. Because these more complex forms
been shown to be positively associated with of speech place greater linguistic demands
improved child cognitive outcomes, during both on children, fathers are thought to serve as
primary and secondary school years (Bronte- an important bridge to the outside world (Ely,
Tinkew, Carrano, Horowitz & Kinukawa, 2008; Gleason, Narasimhan, & McCabe, 1995). Thus,
Fagan & Iglesias, 1999; Chen, Liu, & Li, 2000). fathers’ unique communicative styles teach
children about the linguistic and communicative
Sensitive parenting – this involves a parenting demands of social exchanges.
style that is empathetic to the needs of
children and which is neither too intrusive nor Furthermore, open, involved and interested
too distant. Sensitive fathering (responding, communication between fathers and children
talking, ‘scaffolding’, teaching and encouraging is noted to be beneficial to young people’s
children to learn) predicts children’s cognitive wellbeing right up until adolescence -
and linguistic achievements in the same way particularly for girls. Findings from the ongoing
that sensitive mothering does (Lamb, 2004). Health Behaviour in Schools survey indicated
that children whose fathers engaged in open
Effective parenting skills – The important and ongoing communication had better body
dimensions of fathers’ influence are those image satisfaction and (particularly for girls)
that have to do with parental characteristics higher levels of wellbeing (Brookes, 2014).
3Fathers are still largely not accessing parenting
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
Secure paternal attachment programmes; neither are they promoted
The establishment of a secure attachment with or delivered in father-friendly ways. Such
a caregiver is a fundamental building block for programmes are often run at times when fathers
good mental health. Studies suggest that an are least likely to be able to attend (Lamb,
independent attachment relationship between 2004). Some pilots have been completed in
the child and each parent is formed within the Scotland running proven programmes in male
first 18 months of the child's life (Gogineni and prisons with some positive early results.
Fallon, 2014). And fathers' caregiving and play
sensitivity are equally as important as maternal
sensitivity in determining toddlers' later Ongoing engaged fathering
security (Grossmann et al., 2002).
As children begin developing into late
An important developmental stage during childhood and adolescence, the mental
infancy is building resilience and moving away health benefits related to having an involved
from reliance on the primary caregiver as the and positive father influence become more
sole buffer against external environmental evident. For both boys and girls, engaged
stress. Studies suggest that secure infant- paternal care is associated with lower levels
father attachment and paternal play are of impulsivity and higher ratings of inhibitory
related to cognitive and social development control (Meece and Robinson, 2014). And in
encouraging active, autonomous, curious low socio-economic status families, a father's
and safe exploratory attitudes and behaviour, engagement has been shown to reduce the
rather than avoidance of new social situations frequency of behavioural problems in boys and
(Paquette et al., 2003). Research in the area psychological problems in young women, as
of developmental psychopathology suggests well as decreasing delinquency (Sarkadi et al.,
that if fathers are not involved, are not warm, 2008). Positive father-child relationships also
if they do not encourage the autonomy of the help with future interpersonal relationships.
child, and if they display anxiety, the children For example, the better the father-child bond,
themselves can be at risk of anxiety (Bogels the more an individual will use constructive
and Phare, 2008). As such, warm attachment conflict resolution (Tastan, 2013). And men who
relationships and play between children and experienced interactive fathers were more likely
their fathers can have a huge impact on self- to become interactive with their own infants
esteem, social competence and managing (Johnson, 2008). Fathers should be encouraged
adversity. to nurture their relationships with their children
throughout all stages of their childhood.
Authoritative parenting Paternal accessibility
Consistent boundary setting and positive It is not just the amount of time that a father
supervision promotes positive child mental spends with a child that is important in terms
health rather than authoritarian, controlling, of promoting their mental health. It is also the
harsh or, alternatively, lax parenting. Many quality of contact and the extent to which this
parenting programmes help parents develop contact reflects effective parenting approaches
effective parenting techniques to promote and contributes to a high quality and warm
children’s mental health and to help children attachment with a child (Amato & Rezac,
calm themselves in the face of frustrations 1994). Fathers should be informed of the vital
(NICE, 2013). importance of developing and nurturing secure
attachments with their children early in their
lives.
4later behavioural problems among children
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
Fathers as part of a wider
of depressed mothers. Furthermore, if a
family structure mother suffered from depression during
Family context and dynamics are often at least pre- and post-natal periods, it was the
as important to children’s mental health as the father’s depressed status within the same
individual relationships fathers forge with their period which became a predictor of the
children. Fathers’ influence on children’s mental child’s greater likelihood of experiencing
health must thus be viewed in the broader poor mental health (Lamb, 2004). Poor
familial context; positive paternal influences mental health during the perinatal period
are more likely to occur not only when there are is not uncommon among men. Therefore,
supportive father-child relationships but when we must be aware of the mental health of
the fathers’ relationships with their partners, fathers and provide early identification,
ex-partners and other children establish a support and treatment when indicated.
positive familial context. • Fathers have beneficial effects on their
Fathers can contribute to the wider complex children when they have supportive and
family system to support children’s mental nurturing relationships with them as
health: well as with their siblings; when they
are competent and feel fulfilled; and
• By establishing an effective high quality
when they are successful and supportive
co-parenting alliance. Co-parenting relates
partners. There is no single father’s role
to the behaviours a parent displays which
to which all fathers should aspire. Rather,
support or undermine the other parent,
a successful father, as defined in terms of
(whether they are present in the household
his children’s development, is one whose
or not) (Palkovitz et al., 2013). Positive
role performance matches the demands
co-parenting relationships enhance
and prescriptions of his socio-cultural and
parent-child relationships. However, poor
familial context.
co-parenting has been noted to contribute
to higher levels of anxiety in children in
infancy and early school years (McHale and The importance of family
Rasmussen, 1998).
structure for children’s
• Marital harmony and positive relationships mental health
between parents prove to be a resilience
factor for children, while negative There is good evidence that family structure
relationships (such as marital conflict and is an important influence on children’s mental
exposure to aggression) are seen as a health. For example, children from lone parent
risk (Fagan and Palkovitz, 2007) and are and divorced families have consistently poorer
consistently associated with poor child mental health than those living in married
adjustment. Marital discord has been noted families. This is concerning given the UK’s rising
to affect men and women in different ways, divorce rates. In the past, research has focused
with men tending to withdraw more from merely on the presence and absence of fathers
children in the face of marital disharmony. to explain these poorer outcomes. However,
This pattern of withdrawal carries with it more recent studies recognize the broader
knock-on risks to children’s mental health range of variables which may contribute to
and should be highlighted to fathers. these negative outcomes, including:
• High levels of family discord, conflict and
• Fathers have been noted in research to
exposure to displays of aggression (Amato,
fulfil a pivotal buffering or protective role
2000, 2005; Pryor & Rodgers, 2001);
within the family system when children are
faced with poor maternal mental health. For • The absence or discontinuation of a high
example, the presence of a non-depressed quality, supportive ongoing relationship
father was associated with lower rates of with fathers (Lamb, 2004);
5• Poorer socio-economic circumstances due There is good evidence from longitudinal
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
to lone parenting or family breakdown studies that paternal closeness and
(Lamb, 2004); involvement, more than maternal closeness and
• Higher levels of stress faced by the involvement, promote competence and protect
remaining caregiver which impacted both against psychological distress in adolescents
on the caregiver’s and child’s wellbeing and young adults. The effect of paternal
(Lamb, 2004); involvement is irrespective of high or low
maternal involvement, irrespective of divorce,
• Greater social isolation of the remaining
and appears to be irrespective of child gender.
caregiver and absence of a co-parent to
help out with core parenting tasks and There is very mixed evidence from studies
decision making (Lamb, 2004). focusing on paternal involvement or non-
Studies also noted that poorer outcomes could involvement of any differential effect on the
be mitigated in lone parent households or mental health of children of different genders.
where family breakdown had occurred if: The overall message from findings suggests
that there is equal benefit from paternal
• Non-resident fathers were encouraged and closeness and involvement for both female and
able to maintain a positive relationship with male offspring (Lamb, 2004). Positive effects
children (sometimes avoidance and low are also noted regardless of the age of the child.
motivation on the part of fathers prevented
ongoing contact, but sometimes this was
prevented by maternal gatekeeping); Impacts of negative paternal
• Non-resident fathers adopted ongoing behaviours on child wellbeing
responsibility for economically maintaining
Just as positive paternal interactions have
children, supporting them emotionally
benefits for the wellbeing of the child, so
and buffering them from economic or
negative interactions also carry with them
environmental stresses;
potential risks for children’s mental health.
• Parents attempted to minimise discord in
Fathers often don’t seek help for mental health
ongoing dealings concerning the children.
difficulties. This can be problematic in many
Following divorce, children consistently ways, as evidence shows that fathers with
do better when they are able to maintain better mental health can buffer children from
meaningful relationships with both parents the worst effects of a second parent suffering
unless the levels of safeguarding risk or inter- from mental illness. Fathers may also be more
parental conflict remain unusually high (Kelly, likely, through their own poor mental health
2000; Lamb, 2004). status, to undermine the future mental health of
their children. Furthermore, parental attitudes
In both intact and non-intact families, ongoing
to mental health and mental illness very much
father involvement and nurturing is positively
influence children’s attitudes towards seeking
associated with children’s intellectual
help (Khan, 2016). If a parent experiences a
development, social competence, internal
high level of stigma and avoids help seeking,
locus of control, ability to empathise and lower
children are also more likely to be affected
levels of young adult distress (e.g. Yongman,
by stigma and adopt avoidant strategies
Kindlon & Earls, 1995; Fagan & Iglesias, 1999).
preventing essential early help.
Interestingly, frequency of contact with the
father on its own did not contribute to young Longitudinal studies have also shown
adults' wellbeing, so it seems that the quality consistent associations between paternal
rather than quantity of father involvement is alcoholism and an increased risk of conduct
more important in supporting their wellbeing disorder and substance abuse in children,
(Bogels and Phare, 2008). with a possible higher risk in the sons than
in the daughters of affected fathers. Paternal
6alcoholism is also associated with an increased
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
risk of mood disorders and depressive
What men feel about
symptoms in adolescents (Chen and Weitzman, fatherhood
2005), academic underachievement, low self- Fathers generally express enjoyment with time
esteem and relationship-based difficulties. spent with children – even as children move
Given that substance misuse is often adopted into adolescence (Larson & Richards, 1994).
as a self-medication for poor mental health, it Fathers generally say they want to spend
is important that fathers model effective coping more time with their children (Lamb, 2004).
mechanisms for managing poor mental health Many men set their goals depending on their
rather than coping mechanisms which may own recollections of their own childhood,
increase familial/paternal distress and shame. choosing either to compensate for their fathers’
deficiencies or to emulate their own father
Paternal incarceration figure. Longitudinal studies of men in more
Every year, about 200,000 children have a chaotic and conflict-ridden family circumstances
parent who is in prison (Prison Reform Trust, who had split from partners indicated that they
2016). Wakefield and Wildeman’s (2014) also had high hopes for being a good father,
study provided compelling evidence that despite their later loss of contact with children.
parental imprisonment (particularly of fathers) These and other findings have indicated that
uniquely contributed to substantial increases in there is an important opportunity to build on
children’s behavioural problems. Furthermore, this early enthusiasm for fatherhood and to
girls with multiple health, safeguarding and nurture effective co-parenting and fatherhood
social vulnerabilities in the youth justice system skills during these preparatory and early years
who were also involved in gangs were six times of pregnancy and birth.
more likely than other female offenders to have
a parent who had been to prison (Khan, 2013). Barriers and facilitators to
effective fatherhood
Exposure to damaging behaviour through
contact with fathers • Fatherhood and its anticipation is a golden
opportunity to support positive parenting;
The majority of incidents of domestic violence
enthusiasm is high among men at this time.
and more damaging forms of abuse (such
as sexual abuse) are perpetrated by a small • Traditionally there have been fears about
minority of men and some by fathers. Domestic the compatibility between traditional
violence has been noted to affect both girls notions of masculinity and active
and boys while sexual abuse more frequently fatherhood (Haas, 1992; Lamb & Levine,
impacts girls. Ongoing unsupervised contact 1983; Russell & Hwang, this volume). This
with fathers who are unable to develop may now be changing with the evolution of
appropriate, safe and secure attachments with changing notions of masculinity in the UK.
their children is highly likely to be detrimental • Father involvement is affected by multiple
to children’s longer term mental health. interacting systems operating at different
Where an ongoing relationship with a father levels over the life course including:
is not desirable, a warm relationship with the • Psychological factors (motivation,
remaining resident caregiver can still help confidence in parenting, skills, self-
to promote children’s mental health. There confidence) - Men often cite lack of
is also evidence of the protective benefits self-confidence, skills and maternal
of building warm, positive attachments with disapproval of greater paternal
alternative adult role models who develop involvement as a barrier to getting more
trusting and good quality attachments, such involved in supportive child rearing
as grandparents, step-fathers, teachers, peer (Lamb, 2014);
mentors, and youth workers.
• Individual child characteristics (e.g.
temperament and gender);
7• Social support (relationships with In many cases, current parenting programmes
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
partners and extended family members, could easily be renamed ‘mothering
partner approval, validation and programmes’, as the involvement of fathers and
gatekeeping of increased paternal a focus on co-parenting is unusual. To address
involvement); this, parenting skills programmes should also
be made more widely available in employment
• Community and cultural influences
settings or scheduled at father-friendly times
(socio-economic opportunity, cultural
with benefits sold in gender-engaging ways.
ideologies);
There has been insufficient focus on the
• Institutional, legal and public policy
development and evaluation of fatherhood
practice (e.g. supportive and father-
programmes. This should be rectified with
friendly employment policies, welfare
longer term evaluation and follow up of
support, child support enforcement,
their impact on children’s mental health and
contact arrangements).
cognitive outcomes.
Barriers imposed by the workplace have
More broadly, there has been less research
traditionally ranked among the most important
focus on aspects of fatherhood which promote
reasons fathers give to explain their low
positive child and adolescent development and
paternal involvement (Lamb 2004). Although
mental health.
there have been some improvements (e.g.
increased paternity leave, flexible working), it For every family going through divorce, a post-
is unclear how much take-up there has been of divorce parenting plan supporting children’s
flexible working by fathers to support parenting emotional wellbeing should be developed
activities. It is also difficult to assess the focused on co-parenting and maximising
extent to which attitudes promoting positive children’s wellbeing. Post-divorce parenting
fatherhood exist in the workplace. Research programmes which help parents to minimise
indicates that for every free hour a parent has, negative impacts on children’s wellbeing should
fathers spend a smaller proportion of this free be accessible.
time with children than mothers (Lamb, 2004).
Fatherhood, parenting programmes/
Finally, in social policy, there has been more
information and father-friendly employment
focus on promoting ongoing economic provision
practices (e.g. leave policies, flexible working
for children by fathers than the policies
practices) should be encouraged in the
and opportunities which promote ongoing
workplace.
emotional involvement.
There should be greater focus on the mental
health of the entire family by primary and
Implications & recommendations specialist mental health providers. At present
there is a fragmented focus on either child
There is good evidence that initiatives aimed at or adult mental health. Parents with mental
maximizing self-confidence, motivation and the health difficulties should receive swift support
potential contributions of fathers should begin and be helped to consider the impact of their
at birth, when many fathers (even those at high conditions on the broader family unit. There
risk of family breakdown) are highly motivated should be more help specifically for children
to remain involved in their child’s life (Lamb, whose parents have a mental illness. There
2004). Fatherhood programmes should take needs to be more recognition of the protective
a preventive approach by providing services potential of fathers with good mental health
to new fathers well before they distance on the family when a mother experiences poor
themselves from their children (Tamis-LeMonda mental health. This is particularly important
& Cabrera, 1999, 2002). Policymakers and at high risk times such as during and after
practitioners should focus their efforts early on pregnancy. Maintaining good paternal mental
to strengthen fathers’ capabilities and support health at this time is essential as fathers can
stable couple relationships. make compensatory adjustments to mitigate
8any impact of maternal mental illness on child Many fathers struggle to make the most of
Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
mental health and development. their potential. Chaotic and conflict-ridden
family circumstances, work pressures and
Given that a father’s good mental health can be
stereotypes about masculinity can get in the
a protective factor for children’s mental health,
way for some. Most fathers want to do the best
therapeutic interventions should consider
for their children, but some end up distancing
more centrally paternal mental health assets
themselves from their families and, in the worst
in the family unit (Gere et al., 2013). Evidence
cases, cause harm.
suggests that at present fathers are largely
left out of child and adolescent therapeutic Yet with greater attention to the importance of
interventions when a child has diagnosable fatherhood and more support for fathers, we
mental health difficulties. could give many more children, whatever their
family background and circumstances, a better
and healthier start in life.
Conclusion
From the first spark of life, fathers can make
a difference to their children’s mental health.
From pregnancy and early years through to
adolescence, fathers are a major influence on
a child’s emotional and behavioural health.
Fathers, like mothers, can boost their child’s
mental health through warm and sensitive
parenting, good communication, boundary-
setting and positive supervision. The
relationships a father builds within a family
are far more important to a child’s mental
health than traditionally valued paternal
characteristics such as intellect or masculinity.
Fathers can create a high quality co-parenting
alliance with their partners, including when
fathers are not living with their children, and
help their children to build positive, trusting
relationships.
There is also evidence that fathers
can sometimes have a distinctive and
complementary role to mothers. For example
providing emotional and physical support
during pregnancy can buffer both mother and
baby against environmental stresses, with
major short- and long-term benefits. And the
ways fathers communicate and play with infants
may be more challenging and help them to
engage in more complex activity, acting as a
safe ‘bridge’ to the wider world.
Yet for too long, the role of fathers in their
children’s mental health has been ignored and
poorly understood. Fathers have received little
help and support to be the best parents they
can be. And the importance of fathers’ own
mental health has been neglected.
9Centre for Mental Health BRIEFING 50 Fatherhood
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Briefing 50: Fatherhood
Published February 2017
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