Fathering a child is not enough. There is a greater role that involves being a consistent presence in your child's life. Additionally, fathers are vital to the emotional health of their children. Among other tasks, it is essential for fathers to take on the roles of disciplinarians and caretakers.
Several studies have revealed that fathers who are involved, supportive and affectionate greatly contribute to the superior social, language and cognitive development of their children. Furthermore, academic achievements, a sense of well-being and self-esteem are all positively impacted by responsible fatherhood.
Fathers' Influence
The primary relationship a child has with his or her father can impact all of the child's relationships, including those with spouses, lovers and friends. Those early models of interaction are the patterns that will be projected as different relationships are formed. Additionally, a child's concept of who he or she is and how he or she relates to others, has a lot to do with the quality of his or her paternal relationship.
Girls typically look for men who exhibit similar behaviors to their father. Therefore, a gentle, kind and loving father will influence the characteristics his daughter looks for in men. The historic and familial behavioral patterns they learn during childhood (good or bad) will make them believe they can handle certain behaviors in relationships.
Boys tend to model themselves after the behavior of their fathers. They typically seek the approval of their father in everything they do. They also copy behaviors they recognize as familiar. Therefore, if a father is dominating, abusive and controlling, those are the behavioral patterns their sons are highly likely to emulate. However, if a father is kind, loving, protective and supportive, boys will tend to emulate these positive traits.
As social animals, human beings learn by modeling the behavior of others. The patterns of behavior learned in the formative years are all children know. Those patterns ultimately affect the way the feel about themselves and their overall development. A child is susceptible to those early behavioral patterns and incorporates them in his or her social exchange repertoire.
The importance of a father should never be undermined. For better or worse, fathers play an instrumental role in the lives of their children that will last a lifetime. For this reason, there are organizations that are committed to strengthening urban communities by assisting fathers and their families in achieving stability and financial success. Recommended site for more info.
Promoting responsible fathering helps dads to recognize the importance of being present in the lives of their children. It is also important to share economic responsibilities, contribute to the healthy development of the child and cooperate with a child's mother when addressing the full needs of the family.
Children with loving and involved fathers are considerably more likely to excel in school, exhibit pro-social behavior and empathy and have healthy self-esteem. Additionally, responsible fatherhood helps to prevent high-risk behaviors like truancy, illegal drug use and other criminal activities. Essentially, children who have their fathers in their lives tend to be more successful and well-rounded.
