by Anna Machin
SOURCES OF HELP AND SUPPORT
Fathering Organizations
The Fatherhood Institute
www.fatherhoodinstitute.org
A UK-based ‘think and do tank’. They carry out research, lobby for policy change, collate research findings and work with families and organizations.
Dads4Kids Fatherhood Foundation
www.dads4kids.org.au
An Australian-based organization that provides information, courses and support for dads.
The Fathering Project
www.thefatheringproject.org
An Australian-based organization whose aim is to inspire and equip fathers and father figures to engage with their kids.
Father & Child
www.fatherandchild.org.nz
New Zealand-based organization that provides information and support with the aim of empowering men to be the most effective and engaged dads they can be.
Platform for European Fathers
www.europeanfathers.wordpress.com
An umbrella organization comprising twenty-five organizations from sixteen European countries that aims to advance the interests of fathers in the European Parliament and promote involved fatherhood.
OxPIP: The Oxford Parent Infant Project
www.oxpip.org.uk
A UK-based organization that provides therapeutic services to help parents build healthy and loving relationships with their children.
NorPIP: The Northamptonshire Parent Infant Partnership
www.norpip.org.uk
A UK-based organization that provides therapeutic services to help parents build healthy and loving relationships with their children.
Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families
www.annafreud.org
A UK-based charity that focuses on children’s mental health. They run a national Parent Infant Project that provides therapeutic interventions for parents who may be struggling for various reasons or who are finding it hard to build healthy relationships with their children.
Families need Fathers
www.fnf.org.uk
A UK-based charity that supports all those affected by separation to maintain contact with children.
Kidz Need Dadz
www.kidzneeddadz.org.nz
A New Zealand-based organization that aims to support and educate dads about the importance of engaging with their children.
Family Included
www.familyincluded.com
A global organization that works to engage fathers in maternal and newborn health around the world.
Dad.Info
www.dad.info
Europe’s self-proclaimed largest advice and support website for dads.
Father a Nation
www.fatheranation.co.za
A South African-based organization that provides community programmes aimed at equipping men to be fathers.
Dads Group Inc.
www.dadsgroup.org
An Australian-based social networking site that puts local dads in contact with each other and encourages the formation of dad support groups.
Fatherhood Global
www.fatherhood.global
A website that brings together the results of research being carried out by fatherhood researchers around the world.
Dads House
www.dadshouse.org.uk
A UK-based organization that supports single, primary caring fathers.
Dads in the Picture
www.dadsinthepicture.co.za
A South African-based organization founded by fathers that supports and empowers dads to be more involved in their families.
Fathers Network Scotland
www.fathersnetwork.org.uk
A Scottish organization that carries out research and provides information, advice and events to support fathers from all walks of life.
National Childbirth Trust
www.nct.org.uk
A UK-based campaigning and educational charity that provides advice, support and training to new parents. Focuses explicitly on the first 1,000 days.
The Lions Barber Collective
www.thelionsbarbercollective.com
An international group of barbers who are trained to listen to and support men who are experiencing poor mental health, including postnatal depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress. Barbers who are involved in the collective display the collective’s logo in their window.
Podcasts and Blogs
The Average Father
www.theaveragefather.com
A podcast produced by Canadian Tony Morrow by dads, for dads and about fatherhood.
Brand new Father
www.bnfpodcast.com
Blog and podcast by a new dad relating his experiences as he begins his fathering journey.
The Poppin’ Bottles Dad Cast
www.poppinbottlesdadcast.com
Seventy-minute podcasts that give insight and advice about being a dad. Presented by two self-proclaimed Super Dads.
The Life of Dad Show
www.lifeofdad.com/podcasts/
Interviews with well-known fathers.
The Good Dad Project
www.gooddadproject.com/podcast/
Described as a movement and community of fathers, this podcast claims to break down the common challenges of being a father, making them easy to understand and making dads feel less alone.
Beardy Dads
www.beardydads.co.uk
Two UK-based dads who discuss topics that will interest fathers.
Modern Dads Podcast
Real-life stories about parenting and fatherhood from a group of New York-based fathers.
Simple Man’s Survival Guide Podcast
A humorous look at life from a middle-aged dad from the Midwest of America.
Dad’s Guide to Twins
www.dadsguidetotwins.com/category/podcast/
A podcast specifically for dads who are experiencing the unique demands of being a parent to multiples.
Geek Dad
www.geekdad.com
Fathering and technology. What more could you want?
Father Nation
www.fathernation.com
Interviews about the fathering experience, with advice on how to be a better dad.
The Dad Podcast
www.thedadpodcast.com
Hosted by stand-up comedian Justin Worsham. Entertaining and informative, with a regular guest spot for a family psychologist.
INDEX
A note about the index: The pages referenced in this index refer to the page numbers in the print edition. Clicking on a page number will take you to the ebook location that corresponds to the beginning of that page in the print edition. For a comprehensive list of locations of any word or phrase, use your reading system’s search function.
aboriginal people 83
Abraham, Eyal 123, 239
Aché people 54–6, 62, 105
Adam, Emma 191
addiction 37, 93, 133
adolescent children 111, 229–30
academic achievement 212–13
brain development 229–30, 243, 244
one-on-one time with 249
quality relationships with 212
self-esteem 213
social skills 213
supporting 212, 229, 230
adoption 58, 65–6
affiliation 161
Afro-American fathers 216–18, 220
agreeableness 26, 146, 149
Ainsworth, Mary 174
Aka tribe 102, 105–6, 165, 180, 208
alcoholism 133, 134
altricial young 7
amygdala 182, 230
animals
developmental stages 228
energy investment 226–7
great apes 5, 6, 7, 10, 14, 227
play 159
antenatal classes, male-only 95
antisocial behaviours 37, 93
genetic determination 132, 134
‘risk gene’ 1
33–4
anxieties about impending fatherhood 41–2, 48, 77, 88, 95
assisted fertility techniques 51, 58
see also donor insemination (DI)
attachment
antenatal as predictor of postnatal 37
anxious/ambivalent attachment 175, 176, 190, 247
avoidant behaviour 175, 176
bio-behavioural synchrony 25, 136, 140
brain chemistry 122
cross-generational influences 168–9
father–child 32, 35–6, 166–9, 171–2, 173, 174, 247–8
identity and 34
insecure 37
mother–child 29, 33, 173
parental relationship, effect of 35–6
prenatal 30–2, 166, 170
primary attachment figure 171, 243
The Risky Situation 175
secure attachment 168, 175, 230, 247
The Strange Situation 174–5
survival-related function 173
two-way 29, 166–7, 168
ultrasound scans and 30–2
see also bonding
attachment disorder 242
Atzil, Shir 181, 183
autism spectrum disorder 136, 242
Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) 251–2
barber chair chat 96
Basques 83
bath time 99
Bearder, Simon 16
behavioural development 37, 121, 242
see also social and cultural development
Belsky, Jay 146
beta-endorphin 95, 154, 157, 159–61, 162
release during play 159, 162–3, 165
Bigras, Marc 175–6
bio-behavioural synchrony 25, 136, 140, 141, 164, 180, 238–40, 241
biological phenomenon of fatherhood xi, 50, 51, 54, 56–7, 58, 131, 139
bipedalism 6, 7
birth
couvade rituals 74, 78, 83
father’s experiences of 71–101
father’s presence at 79, 81, 83–4, 85, 260, 261
NICE guidelines 260–1
traumatic 147
see also labour
body mass index (BMI) 251–2
bonding
bio-behavioural synchrony 25, 136
delay in 155–7, 166, 189
environmental factors 169
maternal 21
neurochemicals 22–5, 38, 47, 130, 157, 161, 162
post-birth 84, 87, 91–2, 153–77
pre-birth 21–48
two-stage process 157, 177
see also attachment
Bowlby, John 29
Bradford, Kay 198
brain 128–9
adolescent 229–30, 243
affiliative circuits 24
effect of caretaking behaviour on 139, 142, 230–1
hominin brain 3–4, 12
maternal 121–2
paternal brain changes 122–4, 126
post-birth development 8, 9, 139, 164, 191, 228, 243–4
receptors 135, 160
size 3–4, 6, 7, 8, 12
breastfeeding 8–9, 22, 24, 117, 155
Buchanan, Ann 209–10
caretaking activities, exclusive 94–5, 99, 158, 177
CD38 gene 136
celebrity dads 52, 114, 118
child development
developmental stages 228
father’s contribution to 225–54
see also adolescent children; behavioural development; linguistic development; social and cultural development; teaching and learning
child mental health, father’s impact on 37, 93, 244–5, 247–8, 248, 253
child mortality 109–10
chromatin 250
Chung, Alissa 137
Ciciolla, Lucia 212–13
Clowes, Lindsay 57
co-parenting 33, 34, 39, 46, 52, 58–9, 106, 113, 118, 166, 185, 189, 194
Coley, Rebekah 218–19
Condon, John 32–3, 37, 167–8, 173
conscientiousness 26, 146, 147, 149
controlling environments 143
cooperative behaviour 10–12, 173, 226
Corboz-Warnery, Antoinette 196
cortisol 77, 95, 191, 248–9
children and 191
negative impact of 191, 248–9
couvade 73–4
couvade syndrome 76–8
rituals 74, 78, 83
crying, response to 39, 127–8
cultural diversity of fatherhood 49–67, 102–3, 104, 105–6
Cummings, Mark 190, 198
Darwin, Charles 132
Darwin, Zoe 91
Dawkins, Richard 10
‘deadbeat dad’ 272
DeLisi, Matt 133
Dempsey, Deborah 63
depression
in children 247–8
see also postnatal depression
difficult behaviours
ability to cope with 142–3, 170
see also antisocial behaviours
direct parental care 112, 116
discipline 179
undermining attempts at 186
dispersed fatherhood 62
see also social fathers
DNA 250
domestic chores, fathers’ contribution to 266
donor insemination (DI)
disclosure 59–61, 62
donor selection 61–2
gay and lesbian couples 61–2, 63–4
heterosexual couples 59–63
dopamine 23–4, 95, 129, 130, 131, 135
bonding neurochemical 23, 38, 47
dopamine receptor gene (DRD2) 133–4
dopamine transporter gene (DAT1) 134
reward chemical 23, 129
Doyle, Otima 216
drug use 90, 133
Dunbar, Robin 161
Edward, Karen-Leigh 89
emotion regulation 143–4, 241, 248
empathy 27, 39, 77, 101, 130, 239, 240, 248
endorphins 129, 161
see also beta-endorphin
environmental risk 106
epigenesis 249–53
evolution of fatherhood 3–18, 110, 126, 225–6
brain size and 3–4, 6, 7, 8, 12
cooperative behaviour 11–12, 226
efficiency rule 11, 15, 180, 183, 225
hunting skills and 12–13
kin selection 14
‘mate guarding’ 15
protective role 15
teaching role 4, 13, 15
executive function 232, 233, 253
expectations and reality of fatherhood, gap between 90, 118, 120–1, 157
extraversion 26, 27, 47, 146
Family Foundations Intervention 199–200
Favez, Nicolas 196
Feinberg, Mark 199
Feldman, Ruth 24, 136, 140, 163, 238–9
Fivaz-Depeursinge, Elisabeth 195
Fleming, Alison 127–8
flexibility of fathering 54, 124, 125, 126, 182
Flouri, Eirini 209
fMRI scans 130, 181
Folger, Tor 64
Foster, Jenny 43
Frascarolo, France 196
Frith, Lucy 61
Galdiolo, Sarah 26, 27
Gaudino, James 109
gay parents 44–6, 58, 183
adopted children 65–6
co-parenting 46, 58–9
fathering identity 44–6
flexible role construction 45–6, 123
neural flexibility 123, 183
primary caretaker 46, 183
social and biological dads 63–4
genetics 132–3, 250
dose response 132–3, 134
genetic determinism 132
genetic inheritance of parenting 137–9, 144–5
imprinted genes 252–3
paternal genetics 133–4, 135
‘risk genes’ 132–4, 136
gestation periods 8, 9
Gettler, Lee 40
Giallo, Rebecca 94
Goodsell, Todd 171
Gordon, Ilanit 189
Gordon, Mellissa 212
Grace, Victoria 60
great apes 5, 6, 7, 10, 14, 227
grey and white matter 122, 231, 239, 240
Grossmann, Karin and Klaus 173–4
Habib, Cherine 34, 170
Hackett, Patrick 129
Han, Rachel 142
Harach, Lori 222
Hawkins, Alan 198
health
impact of fatherhood on 76
see also mental health, poor
healthcare professionals, treatment of fathers 78–82, 85–6, 259–60
Hendler, Talma 239
Hill, Kim 56
Homo ergaster 9–10, 11–12
Homo heidelbergensis 3–4, 12–13, 15
Hong, Ryan 148
hormones see beta-endorphin; cortisol; dopamine; oxytocin; testosterone
hunter-gatherers 102, 105, 107
hunting skills 4, 12–13, 106, 208
Hurtado, Magdalena 56
identity of ‘dad’
attachment relationships and 34, 35
father of DI children 61–2
formation 22, 72–3
gay fathers 44–6
imagining 35
social fathers 59
transformation 43, 44
independence 37, 174, 182, 233
indirect parental care 112, 116
infertility 58
infidelity 132
instinctual fathering 16, 17
interleukin-6 161, 162
‘involved father’ xii, 33–4, 82, 112, 257, 262
economic and cultural barriers to 267–8
see also co-parenting
Jayakody, Rukmalie 219, 220
Jenkins, Bill 109
Jeynes, William 210–11
joy of fatherhood 100
Junttila, Niina 90
Key, Cathy 14, 15
Kim, Pilyoung 122, 123
kin selection 10–11, 14
Kipsigis tribe 103, 208
Kok, Rianne 230
Kovan, Nikki 137
Kuczynski, Leon 222
labour
advocacy role during 86