Published in the
Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, the long-term study, which was
conducted by Concordia University in Montreal, examined how fathers can
positively influence the development of their kids through hands-on parenting.

“Fathers make
important contributions in the development of their children’s behaviour and
intelligence,” says Erin Pougnet, a research student in the Concordia University
Department of Psychology and a member of the Centre for Research in Human
Development (CRDH).

“Compared with other
children with absentee dads, kids whose fathers were active parents in early and
middle childhood had fewer behaviour problems and higher intellectual abilities
as they grew older — even among socio-economically at-risk families.”

“Regardless of
whether fathers lived with their children, their ability to set appropriate
limits and structure their children’s behaviour positively influenced
problem-solving and decreased emotional problems, such as sadness, social
withdrawal and anxiety,” she said.

A total of 138
children and their parents took part in the study and were assessed by
researchers in three separate sessions.

Children were
evaluated between the ages of three- to five-years-old and again from nine to
13-years-old.

They completed
intelligence tests, while their mothers completed questionnaires on home
environment and couple conflict. All children were recruited as part of the
larger Concordia Longitudinal Risk Research Project, an intergenerational study
launched in 1976.

School teachers were
also recruited as observers of child behaviours outside homes. “Teachers were a
somewhat more independent source of information than mothers, fathers or
children themselves,” says Pougnet, “because a father’s absence can result in
home conflict, maternal distress and child distress.”

The study found girls
to be most affected by absentee dads, although the researchers caution that
paternal absence can foster other problems such as lack of support or
discipline.

“Girls whose fathers
were absent during their middle childhood had significantly higher levels of
emotional problems at school than girls whose fathers were present,” says
Pougnet.

“While our study
examined the important role dads play in the development of their children, kids
don’t necessarily do poorly without their fathers,” stresses co-author Lisa A.
Serbin, a professor in the Concordia Department of Psychology and a CRDH member.

“Mothers and other
caregivers are also important. No doubt fathers have a major impact, but there
are definitely many alternative ways to raise a healthy child. Some kids with no
contact with fathers, or with distant dads, do well intellectually and
emotionally.”

The findings,
however, should encourage governments to formulate policies that encourage
increased and positive forms of contact between children and their fathers.

“Initiatives such as
parental leave for men and parenting classes that emphasise the role of fathers
could help to maximize children’s development from early childhood to
preadolescence,” says Serbin.

This work was
supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences
and Humanities Research Council of Canada.