Cited by 904Family Dynamics and RelationshipsAttachment and Relationship DynamicsChild and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development

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Theorizing the father–child relationship: mechanisms and developmental outcomes

Paquette, Daniel·2004·Human Development

DOI 10.1159/000078723

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Abstract

The aim of this article is to propose a theorization of the father-child relationship based on our current understanding of attachment, interactions between fathers and their young children, and human-specific adaptations. The comparison of mother-child and father-child interactions suggests that fathers play a particularly important role in the development of children’s openness to the world. Men seem to have a tendency to excite, surprise, and momentarily destabilize children; they also tend to encourage children to take risks, while at the same time ensuring the latter’s safety and security, thus permitting children to learn to be braver in unfamiliar situations, as well as to stand up for themselves. But this dynamic can only be effective in the context of an emotional bond between father and child; this relationship is termed the father-child activation relationship, in contrast to the mother-child attachment relationship aimed at calming and comforting children in times of stress. The activation relationship is developed primarily through physical play. It is postulated, in particular, that father-child rough-and-tumble play encourages obedience and the development of competition skills in children.

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10.2307%2F1131510 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.20.6.995 · DOI
10.2307%2F1132081 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.14.2.183 · DOI
10.2307%2F1129974 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0033-2909.126.1.55 · DOI
10.2307%2F1131010 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0033-2909.102.2.187 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.21.1.56 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.13.6.637 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0893-3200.2.2.164 · DOI
10.2307%2F1129839 · DOI · Paper page
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.15.3.256 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.23.5.705 · DOI · Paper page
10.1037%2F%2F0003-066X.44.2.329 · DOI · Paper page
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.24.6.802 · DOI · Paper page
10.2307%2F1132187 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.18.4.635 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0022-006X.64.1.8 · DOI
10.2307%2F1131191 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.20.3.492 · DOI
10.1037%2F%2F0012-1649.28.4.700 · DOI

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Background
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Weisberger, I., & Ziv, Y. (2023) · Children · doi:10.3390/children10071102 · Cited by 11
“While maternal closeness appears to be a strong predictor of child adjustment [44], Activation Relationship Theory (ART) [45] suggests that fathers may influence their children’s behavior through different means than mothers.”
Background
IVF-Conceiving Fathers' Experiences of Early Parenthood
Bracks-Zalloua, P., McMahon, C. A., & Gibson, F. L. (2011) · Journal of Relationships Research · doi:10.1375/jrr.2.1.1 · Cited by 7
“…of the father–child ‘play’ relationship has also been established empirically with evidence that fathers engage in more ‘rough and tumble’ play, and that this contributes positively to children’s openness to the world, ability to take risks and bravery in unfamiliar situations (Paquette, 2004).”
BackgroundInfluential
Neural Responses to Infant Emotions and Emotional Self-Awareness in Mothers and Fathers during Pregnancy
Trentini, C., Pagani, M., Lauriola, M., & Tambelli, R. (2020) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph17093314 · Cited by 9
Long-term association of parental warmth with depression and obesity: Mediation by conscientiousness.
Gerhardt, M., Feng, X., & Chan, M. H. (2021) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/hea0001061 · Cited by 7
“Previous work has focused primarily on mothers’ parenting, largely ignoring fathers (Paquette, 2004); the current study examined both maternal and paternal parenting.”
Background
Using a Hybrid Telehealth and Adaptive Aquatics Father Coaching Intervention for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Study
Flippin, M., & Clapham, E. D. (2021) · International Journal of Disability Development and Education · doi:10.1080/1034912x.2021.1961212 · Cited by 7
“In general, mothers’ interactions with young children tend to be structured around caretaking, whereas fathers’ interactions tend to be structured around play (Paquette, 2004; Paquette & Dumont, 2013).”
Background
Father‐child bonding among Japanese fathers of infants: A municipal‐based study at the time of the 4‐month child health checkup
Yoshida, K., Goto, A., Takebayashi, Y., Murakami, M., & Sasaki, M. (2021) · Infant Mental Health Journal · doi:10.1002/imhj.21940 · Cited by 7
Emotions in Play
Veiga, G., da Silva, B. M. S., Gibson, J. L., & Rieffe, C. J. (2022) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198855903.013.28 · Cited by 8
Mexican-origin youths’ language brokering for fathers and mothers: Daily experiences and youths’ diurnal cortisol slopes
Kim, S. Y., Wen, W., Chen, S., Yan, J., Song, J., Zhang, M., & Zeiders, K. H. (2022) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/cdev.13768 · Cited by 8
Father-Child and Mother–Child Relationships as Predictors of Injury-Risk Behaviors in Toddlers
Paquette, D., de Medeiros, J. M., Bigras, M., Bacro, F., Couture, S., Lemelin, J., Cyr, C. P., & Dubois‐Comtois, K. (2022) · Adversity and Resilience Science · doi:10.1007/s42844-022-00068-8 · Cited by 7
“The activation relationship theory was developed by Paquette (2004) to better understand the parental function of openness to the world.”
BackgroundSelf-citation
Parent-Child Cohesion and College Students’ Positive/Negative Affect: The Moderating Roles of Sympathetic Nervous System Activity and Parent-Child Separation Experience
Shangguan, M., Ao, C., & Zhao, J. (2023) · Journal of Youth and Adolescence · doi:10.1007/s10964-023-01768-9 · Cited by 7
Values across adolescence: a four-year longitudinal study. The predictive role of community violence and parental acceptance-rejection
Bacchini, D., Affuso, G., Aquilar, S., Dragone, M., & Esposito, C. (2023) · European Journal of Personality · doi:10.1177/08902070231167199 · Cited by 8
“In contrast, the mother-child attachment relationship is described as aiming to calm and comfort children in times of stress (Paquette, 2004).”
Background
Plus l’environnement se complexifie, plus l’adaptation des enfants nécessite l’engagement direct du père
Paquette, D. (2006) · Enfances Familles Générations · doi:10.7202/012533ar · Cited by 7
“1 Pour plus de détails, nous invitons le lecteur à consulter l'article de Paquette (2004a). et la socialisation des jeunes est essentiellement facilitée par la mère et les pairs.”
BackgroundSelf-citation
La promotion de l’engagement paternel, des archétypes à transformer, une pratique à construire
Forget1, G. (2009) · Reflets Revue d’intervention sociale et communautaire · doi:10.7202/029588ar · Cited by 7
Effects of bonding with parents and home culture on intercultural adaptations and the moderating role of genes
Phua, D. Y., Meaney, M. J., Khor, C. C., Lau, I. Y., & Hong, Y. (2017) · Behavioural Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2017.02.012 · Cited by 7
“Building on Bowlby’s idea of exploration system in he attachment theory, Paquette [49] theorized the father-child elationship as activation.”
Influential
Terrific Twos: Promoting Toddlers’ Competencies in the Context of Important Relationships
Brophy‐Herb, H. E., Bocknek, E. L., Choi, H. H., Senehi, N., & Douglas, S. N. (2018) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-03110-7_7 · Cited by 7
Effects of maternal and paternal postnatal depressive symptoms on infants’ parasympathetic regulation in low‐income, Mexican American families
Lin, B., Yeo, A. J., Luecken, L. J., & Roubinov, D. S. (2020) · Developmental Psychobiology · doi:10.1002/dev.22073 · Cited by 8
“Scholars have suggested that mothers and fathers engage with infants in ways that scaffold distinct yet complementary aspects of infants’ emotion regulatory development (Feldman, 2003; 2007; Paquette, 2004).”
Background
African American Fathers’ Mental Health & Child Well-Being: A Cultural Practices, Strengths-Based Perspective
Bocknek, E. L., Lewis, M. L., & Raveau, H. A. (2017) · Advances in race and ethnicity in education · doi:10.1108/s2051-231720170000005010 · Cited by 8
Fathers Don't Mother and Mothers Don't Father: What Social Science Research Indicates about the Distinctive Contributions of Mothers and Fathers to Children's DevelopmentPreprint
Erickson, J. J. (2014) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.2519862 · Cited by 7
“These unique characteristics have led researchers to describe a father’s relationship with his children as an “activation relationship” primarily developed through play (Paquette, 2004).”
Background
Fathers and Children’s Executive Function
Meuwissen, A. S. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-51027-5_25 · Cited by 7
Family interactions in toddlerhood influence social competence in preschool age: Accounting for genetic and prenatal influences
Ramos, A. M., Shewark, E. A., Reiss, D., Leve, L. D., Natsuaki, M. N., Shaw, D. S., Ganiban, J. M., & Neiderhiser, J. M. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.975086 · Cited by 10
“…finding that when fathers interact with their children, their synchrony of play is categorized by high peaks of intensity (e.g., overstimulation) without limit setting that could increase the child’s dysregulation (Feldman, 2003; Paquette, 2004; Meuwissen and Carlson, 2018; Karam and Degnan, 2021).”
Background
Dutch mothers’ and fathers’ differential attributions and parenting reactions to the misbehavior of sons and daughters.
Endendijk, J. J., Portengen, C. M., Verhoeven, M., & Huijding, J. (2023) · Psychology of Men & Masculinity · doi:10.1037/men0000434 · Cited by 6
The Associations Between Parental Playfulness, Parenting Styles, the Coparenting Relationship and Child Playfulness
Seal, H., Bureau, J., & Deneault, A. (2025) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs15070867 · Cited by 6
“Paquette (2004) also theorized that fathers tend to excite, surprise, and encourage children to take more risks, whereas mother–child relationships seem calmer and more comforting.”
Influential
Babaların Gözünden Anne Bekçiliği: Bir Ölçek Uyarlama Çalışması
Aktaş, G. A., & Aydın, A. (2020) · Opus uluslararası toplum araştırmaları dergisi · doi:10.26466/opus.724644 · Cited by 6
Enhancing fathers’ engagement in parenting programs: identifying preferred program attributes
Freeman, E. E. (2022) · Australian Psychologist · doi:10.1080/00050067.2022.2125283 · Cited by 6
“An effective method of addressing childhood behaviour problems is through parenting programs (Bernstein et al., 1996; Furlong et al., 2012; Paquette, 2004).”
Method
The Correlation Between Father Involvement and The Academic Achievement of Their Children: Meta-Analysis
Lazović, N., Krulj, J., Vidosavljević, S. T., & Marković, E. (2022) · International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science Engineering and Education · doi:10.23947/2334-8496-2022-10-3-53-60 · Cited by 11
Relationship between parental involvement and emotional well‐being in Chinese left‐behind children: A moderated mediation model
Chen, S., Gao, L., Lin, S., & Zhang, Y. (2023) · Family Relations · doi:10.1111/fare.12905 · Cited by 6
Associations between challenging parenting behavior and creative tendencies of children: the chain mediating roles of positive emotion and creative self-efficacy
Shi, D., Wang, Y., Jin, R., & Chu, L. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1255773 · Cited by 9
“Bandura pioneered the concept of self-eﬃcacy in 1977; subsequently, Tierney and Farmer (2002, 2004) further clariﬁed the concept of creative self-eﬃcacy, deﬁning it as the individual’s beliefs and expectations regarding their own creative performance in creative activities.”
Background
Elite Coaches’ Role in Athletes’ Retirement Transitions: A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis
Brown, C. J. (2024) · International Sport Coaching Journal · doi:10.1123/iscj.2023-0076 · Cited by 6
“This mirrors the father-child relationship in developmental terms in which it is the father’s role to encourage offspring to become open to the world and to facilitate ever increasing autonomy (Paquette, 2004).”
Background
Sintonie e dissintonie nei legami precoci: traiettorie di valutazione e considerazioni cliniche nei contesti ad alto rischio per lo sviluppo infantile
Folco, S. D., de Campora, G., & Zavattini, G. C. (2016) · MALTRATTAMENTO E ABUSO ALL INFANZIA · doi:10.3280/mal2016-002005 · Cited by 6
Envolvimento Paterno e Temperamento Infantil: Revisão Sistemática de Literatura
Schmitz, M. E. D. S., de Deus, M. D., Gouvêa, A. P., da Silva, S. B., & Vieira, M. L. (2020) · Interação em Psicologia · doi:10.5380/psi.v24i1.56257 · Cited by 6
“A figura paterna tem funções específicas na socialização e controle da agressividade na infância (Cia & Barham, 2009; Paquette, 2004a; 2004b; Silva & Piccinini, 2007).”
BackgroundInfluential
Effect of Social Exclusion on Social Maladjustment Among Chinese Adolescents: A Moderated Mediation Model of Group Identification and Parent–Child Cohesion
Zhang, Y., & Wang, K. (2020) · Journal of Interpersonal Violence · doi:10.1177/0886260520934444 · Cited by 6
“With the development of adolescents’ self-consciousness, fathers begin to regard their children as individuals and have more communication and interaction with them, which makes the role of father–child cohesion increasingly prominent (Lamb, 1986; Paquette, 2004).”
Background
The Role of Fathers and Their Young Children’s Social Development
Hennigar, A., Cabrera, N., & Chen, Y. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-51027-5_21 · Cited by 6
Stability of father- and mother-child synchrony in a playful setting from preschool to middle childhood: Associations with children's behavior problems
Bureau, J., Trepiak, P., Deneault, A., & Boulerice, K. (2021) · Early Childhood Research Quarterly · doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2021.04.009 · Cited by 6
Parent–child personality similarity and differential autonomy support toward siblings.
Vrolijk, P., Lissa, C. J. V., Branje, S., Meeus, W., & Keizer, R. (2022) · Journal of Family Psychology · doi:10.1037/fam0000955 · Cited by 7
Associations Between Paternal Play and Executive Function in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children
Blank, A., & Holt, R. F. (2022) · Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research · doi:10.1044/2022_jslhr-21-00661 · Cited by 6
Art Play with Daddy: Father-Child Play with Art Materials at Home
Yoo, J. (2022) · Early Childhood Education Journal · doi:10.1007/s10643-022-01411-5 · Cited by 6
“…in the labor force, studies show that—in all measures and across all countries—most mothers remain responsible for a significantly higher proportion of total household care and childcare (health and physical care) (Craig & Mullan, 2011; McMunn et al., 2017; Paquette, 2004; Raley et al., 2012).”
Influential
Do ideal fathers differ from ideal mothers? A study on sensitivity, challenging, and sensitive challenging parenting behavior
Iwanski, A., Mühling, L. E., & Zimmermann, P. (2022) · Psicologia · doi:10.17575/psicologia.1818 · Cited by 6
“, 2002; Zimmermann, 2017) and research on differences in caregiving by mothers and fathers (Majdandžić et al., 2016; Paquette, 2004) lead us to suggest that parenting ideals should be examined regarding three dimensions: (1) sensitivity, (2) challenging parenting behavior, which often is operationalized as insensitive…”
BackgroundResultInfluential
The association between family factors and child behaviour problems using dyadic data
Wang, Y., Pan, J., Zhang, X., & Yi, C. (2014) · Child Care Health and Development · doi:10.1111/cch.12211 · Cited by 6
“2003; Paquette 2004). Fathers’ physical involvement can have a positive effect on child behavioural and cognitive development (Amato & Rivera 1999; Shannon et al. 2002). Using a community sample, Brennan and colleagues (2002) found that paternal depression had an effect on adolescent externalizing problems as well as…”
Background
Within‐ and between‐individual variation in fathers’ emotional expressivity in Chinese families: Contributions of children’s emotional expressivity and fathers’ emotion‐related beliefs and perceptions
Li, D., & Li, X. (2019) · Social Development · doi:10.1111/sode.12368 · Cited by 6
Two's Company, Three's a Crowd? Maternal and Paternal Talk About Their Infant Differs in Associations With Wellbeing, Couple Relationship Quality, and Caregiving Sensitivity
Foley, S., Álvarez, C., McCarthy, J., & Hughes, C. H. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2020.578632 · Cited by 6

Authors: Paquette, D.
Affiliations: Université de Montréal (CA)
Corresponding author: Paquette, Daniel
ORCID: Paquette, Daniel
Venue: Human Development
Publisher: S. Karger AG
Published: 2004
Volume: 47
Issue: 4
Pages: 193-219
ISSN: 0018-716X (ISSN-L)
1423-0054
DOI: 10.1159/000078723
OpenAlex: W2030787081
Cited by: 904
References: 136
Citations by year: 2026: 60 · 2025: 70 · 2024: 50 · 2023: 53 · 2022: 66 · 2021: 81 · 2020: 66 · 2019: 54 · 2018: 44 · 2017: 47 · 2016: 35 · 2015: 39 · 2014: 41 · 2013: 31 · 2012: 50
FWCI: 18.04
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Licence: www.karger.com/Services/SiteLicenses (vor)
www.karger.com/Services/SiteLicenses (tdm)
Locations: Human Development (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
Keywords: father-child relationship, attachment, father-child interaction, maternal attachment, rough-and-tumble play, physical play, child development, openness to the world, risk-taking, affective bonds, obedience

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Theorizing the father–child relationship: mechanisms and developmental outcomes

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