The \u201cabsent dad\u201d narrative is isolating and demoralizing for these fathers, who are doing their best in difficult circumstances, largely ignored and unsupported by social policies and programs. It has also blinded both researchers and policy makers to crucial benefits that such fathering offers in, for example, developing school readiness among children from disadvantaged backgrounds.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolicy \u2013 which focuses on fathers delivering child support rather than care \u2013 should recognize and promote the skills that dads can bring to disadvantaged families.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nOur studies, and those of other researchers, have identified two areas in which fathers from poorer families contribute significantly and often uniquely to school readiness in ways that are typically different from mothers\u2019 contributions: language development and emotional regulation. In both these important areas, young children from low-income families often lag behind their better-off peers.\u00a0 Policy \u2013 which often focuses on fathers delivering child support rather than care \u2013 should recognize and promote these skills that dads can bring to such families.<\/p>\n
<\/span>Dads stretch children\u2019s linguistic abilities<\/span><\/h2>\nTake language development. Several small-scale studies of low-income families by my team and others have shown that fathers talk to young children in linguistically challenging ways. We videotaped fathers interacting with their young children and measured the number and quality of words that they used. We found that they ask more \u201cwho, why, where and what\u201d questions than mothers do, thus linguistically challenging their children and promoting more sophisticated linguistic development and vocabulary.<\/p>\n
In contrast, mothers tend to use familiar language and ask fewer \u201cwh<\/em>– questions\u201d. Fathers\u2019 different approach is helpful, particularly for more disadvantaged children who are more likely to experience delays in language development. Researchers have had to revise their views of the challenging language that fathers often use. In the past, fathers have been berated as insensitive to children for not speaking to them at the correct developmental level. Now we have evidence that this type of talk is not insensitive but rather linguistically challenging. Mothers\u2019 parenting practices are not necessarily the gold standard.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/childandfamilyblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/32545461134_7278ca35bf_k.jpg\")
Photo: Adrian V. Floyd. Creative Commons.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n