Paternal care of infants during maternal separations: associations with father-infant interaction at one year.

Observations of father-infant interaction in the home environment at age one year were compared for two groups of infants that in the months preceding the observations differed in the amount of experience they had with their fathers when the mother was outside the home. The sample consisted of 46 middle-class families, each with a first-born infant (23 males, 23 females). Estimates of the amount of experience the father had with the infant when the mother was outside the home were obtained from detailed maternal interviews that addressed all mother-infant separations. At one year, fathers who provided more extensive care in the absence of the mother showed a higher degree of breadth or variety in their patterns of engaging the infant and higher rates of behavior directed to the infant. These infants showed higher rates of responding to their fathers and more frequent instances of exploratory behavior. Distinctive patterns of differences were evident in the behavior of fathers and infants who had contrasting amounts of experience with each other in social contexts without the mother.

Depressed mood in new fathers: associations with parent-infant interaction.

In a sample of 37 middle-class families with firstborn 4-month-old infants, 52% of the fathers reported experiencing blues at some point after the birth of the baby. Observed behavior was found to differ between families in which the father reported eight or more days of blues (Group 2) as opposed to no blues (Group 1). Parents in Group 2 addressed fewer vocalizations to their babies. Group 2 fathers showed diminished proximity with their babies while their wives showed heightened proximity. Fathers in Group 2 engaged in less caregiving and touched their babies less than did their wives, while fathers in Group 1 engaged in more of this behavior than did their wives. Mothers and fathers in Group 2 were less likely to focus on the baby over other topics in their conversations with each other than the parents in Group 1. Few differences were found between the two groups on interview questions addressed to the fathers. However, those differences that were found, in addition to Group 2 fathers' descriptions of factors contributing to their blues, pointed to the spouse relationship as an area of concern.