The association between 8 years of fathers’ psychological problems and children’s social and emotional wellbeing

The role of fathers has changed significantly in most developed societies over time. As mothers have increasingly engaged in work outside the home over the last 60 years, there has been heightened attention paid to the role of fathers, including in emotional socialisation for children. This study supports educators, parents, and practitioners in understanding the importance of addressing fathers’ psychological problems during the early years. 

Research background 

A large body of research has focused on the ways that parents’ own emotional regulation, particularly their psychological problems, are associated with children’s emotional development (Flynn et al., 2017; McDonald et al., 2018; Park et al., 2018). However, most of these studies focus on mothers alone, with the role of fathers and the impact of their psychological problems on children’s emotional development less frequently examined. My study addresses this gap by using a large population sample of fathers in Australia to investigate fathers’ psychological problems over time, and how that relates to children’s social-emotional development at 7-8 years old. 

To explore these issues, I have used the Longitudinal study of Australian Children investigate the following questions: 

1. What is the initial level and rate of change for fathers’ psychological problems in the period when children are aged from birth to 6–7 years? 
2. What are the associations among fathers’ socio-demographic factors and maternal postnatal mental health and the initial level and rate of change of fathers’ psychological problems? 
3. What are the associations between the initial level and rate of change of fathers’ psychological problems and children’s social-emotional outcomes at 8-9 years? 

The findings

The longitudinal patterns of the father’s psychological problem from birth to 6-7 years indicated that the postnatal period is a potentially vulnerable time for fathers in terms of psychological problems. While problems were higher at this time, they tended to resolve over time.

The results showed an association between the patterns of the father’s psychological problem from birth to 7 years and children’s social-emotional outcome at 8-9 years. When the father indicated a high level of psychological problems, it was significantly associated with elevated behaviour problems for children at 8-9 years old. This indicates the importance of paternal well-being in terms of the emotional socialisation of children across early childhood. These children are more likely to have low prosocial skills and a high level of externalising behaviour (put a brief description or externalising behaviour in here), problems at 8-9 years old.  

There was also an association between the socio-demographic factors (e.g. fathers’ age, fathers’ education status, fathers’ main language spoken at home, socioeconomic status and children’s gender) and mothers’ psychological problems from birth to 6-7 years. The data also revealed that fathers who spoke English as their first language exhibited higher levels of psychological problems during the postpartum period compared to fathers who spoke English as their second language. 

Also, a high level of mothers’ psychological problems was related to a high level of the fathers’ psychological problems during the first year of their children’s lives. However, socio-demographic factors and mothers’ psychological problems did not have any impact on the longitudinal patterns of fathers’ psychological problems from birth to 6-7 years. This indicates that an English-speaking father who has a partner who has a high level of psychological problems needs support from other family members and external practitioners to cope with their psychological distress during this postnatal period. 

Where to from here? 

This study highlights the nature of the postnatal period as a sensitive and vulnerable time for fathers. The birth of a child is likely to increase the complexity and responsibility of fathers’ roles within the family. Fathers may encounter new challenges, including financial responsibility, childcare demands, and caring for their partners (Nishigori et al., 2020). Prior studies suggest fathers may also experience low levels of parenting self-efficacy (explain that here), which is associated with psychological problems (Rominov et al., 2016).

The findings indicating high levels of fathers’ psychological problems were significantly linked to children’s poor social-emotional outcomes may be due to the influence their problems might have on their parenting behaviour. This, in turn, might limit fathers’ psychological resources for socialising their children.

Therefore, it is crucial to address any early signs of parents’ psychological distress promptly to ensure they are resolved quickly, thereby preventing harmful effects on children’s social-emotional development. Intervention programs should aim to support mothers’ psychological health during the early postnatal period to reduce the risk of fathers developing psychological problems early on. This is a vital objective for an early parenting intervention strategy.

Dr YooMi Byun is a lecturer in the School of Education, Faculty of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences and Education at the University of New England.