The Role Of The Father Flashcards
What is usually neglected when it comes to attachment
The role of the father
What is the definition of father in attachment research
Anyone who takes on the role of the main male caregiver and this doesn’t always have to be the biological father
Who are less likely to become the babies primary attachment figure
Fathers
How does schaffers and Emerson’s research link to attachment to fathers
75% of the babies studied formed an attachment with their fathers by 18 months as they would protest when their fathers walked away
Who conducted the research on the distinctive role for fathers
Grossmann et al 2002
What did grossman study
He studies babies attachments until they were teens and looked at both parents behaviour and relationships to the quality of their babies later attachments to other people
What type of study did grossman conduct
Longitudinal study
What did grossman find out about attachments with fathers in comparison to attachment with mothers in adolescence
Fathers attachment was less important compared to the mothers attachment however he also found that the quality of fathers play with babies was related to the quality of adolescence attachments
What was grossmans main conclusion from his study
His conclusion was that fathers have a different role for mothers , one that is more to do with the play and stimulation and less to do it emotional development
Who studied fathers as primary attachment figures
Tiffany Field 1978
Who studied fathers as primary attachment figures
Tiffany Field 1978
What was the procedure of Tiffany fields study
She filmed a 4 month old baby in face to face interactions with primary caregiver mothers, secondary caregiver fathers and primary caregiver fathers
What did Tiffany Field find from her study
PG fathers, like PG mothers, spent more time smiling, imitating and holding the babies more than the SG fathers
What did the findings of Tiffany fields study mean
It shows that fathers do have the potential to be the more emotion focused primary attachment figure and that they can provide the responsiveness required for a close emotional attachment but maybe only when given the role of a primary caregiver
What is the limitation (without counterpoint) of the research on the role of the father
There is a lack of clarity over the question that is being asked as the question “what is the role of the father” is a lot more complicated than it sounds. There’s a struggle in studying the different secondary father figures and primary father figures and this makes it difficult to offer a simple answer to the question as it depends on the specific role in question
What is a limitation (with counterpoint) of the research of the role of the father
There is conflicting evidence as the findings vary according to the methodology that is used. Grossmans study and McCallums and Golomboks study clash ans one says that that a father being a secondary attachment figure has a important t but different role for devolpment. the other says if that’s the case, single mother and lesbian parent families would turn out different but that’s nt the case as they turn out the same. This means that the question of if there are distinctive roles of fathers remains unanswered.
What is the counterpoint of the limitation that there is conflicting evidence for the research for the role of the father
They may not actualy be in conflict with each other. It could be that the father takes the distinctive roles in 2 parents straight families and single mothers or lesbian families Simple’s adapt to accommodate the role played by fathers
What is a strength of the research on the role of the father
There is real world application as the research into this can be used to offer advice to parents. Parents may struggle to make decisions on who should be th e primary caregiver. Mothers may fee pressured to take on this role and fathers may feel pressured into working rather than parenting. This research can help give reassuring advice to parents which means that parental anxiety about the role of the father can be relived
