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Fathers tend to have different interaction styles than mothers. Father–infant interaction tends to be play-oriented. This is true of fathers in Western contexts as well as those in non-Western contexts, such as the Kadazan of Malaysia and Aka and Bofi of Central Africa

Gerard Fritz/Science Source

We know a great deal about the influence of mother–infant relationships on infant attachment and adjustment, but infants also develop attachments to their fathers (Lickenbrock & Braungart-Rieker, 2015). At birth, fathers interact with their newborns much like mothers do. They provide similar levels of care by cradling the newborn and performing tasks like diaper changing, bathing, and feeding the newborn (Combs-Orme & Renkert, 2009). This is true of fathers in Western contexts as well as those in non-Western contexts, such as the Kadazan of Malaysia and Aka and Bofi of Central Africa (Hewlett & MacFarlan, 2010; Tamis-LeMonda, Kahana-Kalman, & Yoshikawa, 2009; Ziarat Hossain, Roopnarine, Ismail, Hashmi, & Sombuling, 2007).

Early in an infant’s life, however, fathers and mothers develop different play and communicative styles. Fathers tend to be more stimulating while mothers are more soothing (Feldman, 2003; Grossmann et al., 2002). Father–infant play is more physical and play oriented compared with the social exchanges centered on mutual gaze and vocalization that is characteristic of mother–infant play (Feldman, 2003). Fathers tend to engage in more unpredictable rough-and-tumble play that is often met with more positive reactions and arousal from infants; when young children have a choice of an adult play partner, they tend to choose their fathers (Feldman, 2003; Lamb & Lewis, 2016).

Differences in mothers’ and fathers’ interaction styles appear in many cultures, including France, Switzerland, Italy, and India, as well as among White non-Hispanic, African American, and Hispanic American families in the United States (Best, House, Barnard, & Spicker, 1994; Roopnarine, Talukder, Jain, Joshi, & Srivastav, 1992; Zirat Hossain, Field, Pickens, Malphurs, & Del Valle, 1997). However, interaction styles differ more in some cultures than in others. For example, German, Swedish, and Israeli kibbutzim fathers, as well as fathers in the Aka ethnic group of Africa’s western Congo basin, are not more playful than mothers (Frodi, Lamb, Hwang, & Frodi, 1983; Hewlett, 2008; Hewlett et al., 1998; Sagi et al., 1985). Furthermore, across cultures, most of the differences between mothers and fathers are not large (Lamb & Lewis, 2016).

Father–child interaction is associated with social competence, independence, and cognitive development in children (Sethna et al., 2016). Rough-and-tumble play contributes to advances in emotional and behavioral regulation in children (Flanders, Leo, Paquette, Pihl, & Séguin, 2009). Fathers provide opportunities for babies to practice arousal management by providing high-intensity stimulation and excitement, like tickling, chasing, and laughing. Fathers who are sensitive, supportive, and appropriately challenging during play promote secure bonds with their children (Grossmann et al., 2002; Lickenbrock & Braungart-Rieker, 2015). When fathers are involved in the caregiving of their infants, their children are more likely to enjoy a warm relationship with their father as they grow older, carry out responsibilities, follow parents’ directions, and be well adjusted. Similar to findings with mothers, sensitive parenting on the part of fathers predicts secure attachments with their children through age 3 (Brown, Mangelsdorf, & Neff, 2012; Lucassen et al., 2011). The positive social, emotional, and cognitive effects of father–child interaction continue from infancy into childhood and adolescence (Sarkadi, Kristiansson, Oberklaid, & Bremberg, 2008).