Neural plasticity in fathers of human infants
Open accessAbstract
Fathering plays an important role in infants' socioemotional and cognitive development. Previous studies have identified brain regions that are important for parenting behavior in human mothers. However, the neural basis of parenting in human fathers is largely unexplored. In the current longitudinal study, we investigated structural changes in fathers' brains during the first 4 months postpartum using voxel-based morphometry analysis. Biological fathers (n = 16) with full-term, healthy infants were scanned at 2-4 weeks postpartum (time 1) and at 12-16 weeks postpartum (time 2). Fathers exhibited increase in gray matter (GM) volume in several neural regions involved in parental motivation, including the hypothalamus, amygdala, striatum, and lateral prefrontal cortex. On the other hand, fathers exhibited decreases in GM volume in the orbitofrontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, and insula. The findings provide evidence for neural plasticity in fathers' brains. We also discuss the distinct patterns of associations among neural changes, postpartum mood symptoms, and parenting behaviors among fathers.
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Changes in fathers' grey matter volume in the postnatal period (between 2-4 weeks and 12-16 weeks after birth) have been seen.
“However, changes in fathers’ grey matter volume in the postnatal period (between 2–4 weeks and 12–16 weeks after birth) have been seen (Kim et al., 2014).”
From Birth of a Father: Fathering in the First 1,000 Days (2019) · cites this paper as Kim et al., 2014
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References 104 · Cited by 164
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- Bornstein MH Bornstein MH Parenting Infants Handbook of Parenting 2002 Vol. 1 3 43 Mahwah, N.J Erlbaum
- Feldman R Mother-newborn coding system manual 1998 Tel Aviv, Israel Bar-Ilan University University Press
- Authors
- Kim, P., Rigo, P., Mayes, L. C., Feldman, R., Leckman, J. F., & Swain, J. E.
- Affiliations
- University of Denver (US)
- Yale University (US)
- Bar-Ilan University (IL)
- University of Michigan (US)
- Corresponding author
- Kim, Pilyoung
- Venue
- Social Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2014-06-24
- Volume
- 9
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 522-535
- ISSN
- 1747-0919 (ISSN-L)
- 1747-0927
- PMC
- PMC4144350
- OpenAlex
- W1982135283
- Cited by
- 164
- References
- 104
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 24 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 19 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 4
- FWCI
- 19.23
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Social Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Padua Research Archive (University of Padova) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (UL1TR000433)
- National Institute of Mental Health (K05MH076273)
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (K05DA020091)
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Keywords
- fathering, neuroplasticity, postpartum period, gray matter volume, parental behavior, hypothalamus, amygdala, striatum, orbitofrontal cortex, infant development
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Brain, Depression, Fathers, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Longitudinal Studies, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Neuronal Plasticity, Organ Size, Time Factors, Parenting, Gray Matter
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