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Summary The role of the father 16 marker
A 16 marker on the role of the father | Based on the AQA A-Level Year 1 Text Book
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The role of the father 16 markerSchaffer and Emerson found that the majority of babies become attached to their mothers first, and
this happens at around seven months old. 3% of the time the father was the primary caregiver, and
27% of the time the father was the joint first attachment with the mother. 85% of babies usually
formed a secondary attachment with their father by the age of 18 months. This was indicated by the
way that babies cried when the fathers walked away, which was a sign of attachment.
Grossmann et al. carried out a longitudinal study looking at parents' relationships with their babies,
and the quality of their attachments. This found that the attachment with the father was much less
important than the attachment with the mother. This showed that fathers might have a less
important role in long-term emotional development. Grossmann et al. also found that the amount of
time fathers spent playing with their baby is more related to their attachment. This suggests that
fathers might have a different but equally important role with their babies; one more associated
with play and stimulation rather than emotional care. Research has shown that when fathers take
the role of being the main caregiver, they tend to display more motherly behaviours. Field filmed
four-month-old babies and found that primary caregiver fathers spent more time smiling, imitating
and holding their babies than secondary attachment fathers. These behaviours are linked to
interactional synchrony, which can cause a stronger attachment according to Isabella et al.'s study.
Smiling, imitating and holding babies are important in building an emotional attachment with a
baby. This means that the father can be a more emotional attachment figure, but they have to show
more responsive actions.
A strength is that the research can help parents find their roles. Mothers might feel more pressured
to stay at home and look after the baby whilst the fathers focus on work. However, this role might
not work for every family. Having the research means that parents can be flexible with their roles,
and fathers can stay at home while their mothers go back to work. This also reduces the anxiety of
fathers, as parenting decisions can be made easier.
A limitation is that there is some confusion over research questions. Some psychologists want to
understand what the role of fathers is as secondary attachment figures, whilst others are more
concerned about fathers as primary attachment figures. Fathers as secondary attachment figures
have seen fathers taking a different role to the mother, one of play and stimulation whilst the
mother takes on the caring role. However, fathers as primary attachment figures see fathers taking
on more maternal roles of caring. This means that psychologists can't all answer the same simple
question about the role of the father.
Another limitation is that there is conflicting evidence from different methodologies. Grossmann et
al. suggested that fathers have a role in the development and play. McCallum and Golomsbok found
that children without a father develop no differently from those with a father. This questions
whether fathers even need a role, and whether babies can survive fine without them.
However, a counterpoint is that the findings might not conflict. Fathers might typically take on
certain roles in two-parent households. However other families structure without having a father at
all. This means that while fathers might have a distinctive role, families can adapt and change to life
without a father.
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