The Father Factor in Children’s Health

In a study of preschoolers, children whose fathers were responsible for at least 40 percent of childcare tasks had higher cognitive development scores and a greater sense of mastery of their environments than those children whose fathers were less involved.
Source:  Radin, N.  “Primary-Caregiving Fathers in Intact Families.”  In A.E. Gottfried & A.W. Gottfried (Eds.), Redefining Families:  Implications for Children’s Development.  New York:  Plenum Press, 1994:  55-97.

Fathers who had spent more time with their children without their mothers present during the first year of life (independent of maternal employment status) were found to exhibit greater variety in their interactions when their children were 12 months old, and their children showed more responsivity and exploration.
Source:  Pederson, F.A., J.T. Suwalsky, R.L., Cain, M.J. Zaslow, and B.A. Rabinovich.  “Paternal Care of Infants During Maternal Separations:  Associations with Father-Infant Interaction at One Year.”  Psychiatry 50 (1987):  193-205.

In a study of preschoolers, boys whose fathers offered praise and compliments scored higher on tests of cognitive development than boys whose fathers were cool and aloof.
Source:  Radin, N.  “The Influence of Fathers Upon Sons and Daughters and Implications for School Social Work.”  Social Work in Education 8 (1986):  77-91.

A study on parent-infant attachment found that fathers who were affectionate, spent time with their children, and overall had a positive attitude were more likely to have securely attached infants.
Source:  Cox, M.J., et al.  “Prediction of Infant-Father and Infant-Mother Attachment.”  Developmental Psychology 28 (1992):  474-483.

In a study of 75 toddlers it was found that children who were securely attached to their fathers were better problem solvers than children who were not attached to their fathers.  Children whose fathers spent a lot of time with them and who were sensitive to their needs were found to be better adapted than their peers whose fathers were not as involved and were less sensitive.
Source:  Esterbrooks, M. Ann and Wendy A. Goldberg.  “Toddler Development in the Family:  Impact of Father Involvement and Parenting Characteristics.”  Child Development 55 (1984):  740-752.

A study of Swedish infants found that those who were securely attached to their fathers were more sociable with strangers than their peers who were less attached to their parents.
Source:  Lamb, M.E., et al.  “Security of Mother- and Father-Infant Interaction Involving Play and Holding in Traditional and Nontraditional Swedish Families, Infant Behavior and Development.”  (1982):  355-367.  “The Development of Father-Infant Relationships.”  The Role of the Father in Child Development.  Ed. Michael E. Lamb.  New York:  Wiley, 1997.

“. . . six-month old babies whose fathers had been actively involved scored higher on the Bayley Test of Mental and Motor Development, and babies whose fathers were involved during the first eight weeks of life managed stress better during their school years.”
Source:  Pedersen, F.A., et al.  “Parent-Infant and Husband-Wife Interactions Observed at Five Months.”  The Father-Infant Relationship.  Ed. F. Pedersen.  New York, 1980.  65-91.

A study assessing the level of adaptation of one-year-olds found that, when left with a stranger, children whose fathers were highly involved were less likely to cry, worry, or disrupt play than other one-year-olds whose fathers were less involved.
Source:  Kotelchuk, M.  “The Infant’s Relationship to His Father:  Experimental Evidence.”  The Role of the Father in Child Development.  Ed. Michael E. Lamb.  2nd ed.  New York:  Wiley, 1981.

“Premature infants whose fathers spent more time playing with them had better cognitive outcomes at age 3.”
Source:  Yogman, M.W., D. Kindlon and F.J. Earls.  “Father Involvement and Cognitive Behavioral Outcomes of Premature Infants.”  Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychology 34 (1995):  58-66.