Discuss the involvement of fathers as it relates to attachment security. How do mothers and fathers differ in their caregiving?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer: Fathers' sensitive caregiving predicts attachment security, though somewhat less strongly than mothers'. At the same time, interventions aimed at increasing parental sensitivity and attachment security, though successful with both mothers and fathers, appear more effective with fathers. As infancy progresses, mothers and fathers in many cultures tend to interact differently with their babies: Mothers devote more time to physical care and expressing affection, fathers to playful interaction. Also, mothers and fathers play differently. Mothers more often provide toys, talk to infants, and gently play conventional games like pat-a-cake and peekaboo. In contrast, fathers—especially with their infant sons—tend to engage in highly stimulating physical play with bursts of excitement and surprise that increase as play progresses. As long as fathers are also sensitive, this stimulating, startling play style helps babies regulate emotion in intensely arousing situations and may prepare them to venture confidently into active, unpredictable contexts, including novel physical environments and play with peers. Play is a vital context in which fathers build secure attachments.