Gottfried Spangler

Objective: This paper investigates how fathers' role beliefs relate to their involvement, sensitivity, and parenting stress. Background: Research has consistently shown that fathers play an important role in children's development across multiple dimensions, including their presence in children's lives or the quality of their interactions. However, less is known about how fathers' perceptions of their parenting role relate to the ways in which they engage in fathering. The current study focuses on fathers' role beliefs and how these are associated to different domains of parenting, that is, observed paternal sensitivity, paternal involvement, and parenting stress. Method: The sample consisted of 60 fathers and their preschool‐aged children. Fathers reported their beliefs of the fathers' role in the Role of the Father Questionnaire. Paternal involvement and parenting stress were also assessed using questionnaires. Paternal sensitivity was coded from behavioral observation during a semi‐structured father–child interaction. Results: The central finding shows that fathers' role beliefs were associated not only with self‐reports but also with observed paternal sensitivity. Regression analyses revealed fathers' role beliefs were linked to paternal sensitivity and parenting stress. Conclusion: Fathers who considered themselves to play a significant role in their child's development interacted more sensitively with their children and reported less parenting stress. Implications: Interventions aiming to foster paternal sensitivity should simultaneously target fathers' role beliefs, highlighting that their presence and availability matter for their child's development. Promoting paternal identification of being a sensitive father may be an important starting point to support child development in the longer term.

Zusammenfassung: Theoretischer Hintergrund: Traumatische Erlebnisse in der Kindheit sind ein Risikofaktor für postpartale Depressionen. Die Symptomatik kann sich auf die Interaktion mit dem Baby und auch auf die kindliche Entwicklung auswirken. Bisher gibt es wenige Interventionsprogramme, die sich spezifisch an depressive Mütter mit aversiven Kindheitserfahrungen richten. Fragestellung: Die vorliegende Studie untersucht, ob postpartal depressive Mütter mit aversiven Kindheitserfahrungen mehr Symptombelastung zeigen, mehr Stress in der Elternrolle erleben und in der feinfühligen Interaktion mit ihren Babys besonderen Herausforderungen gegenüberstehen. Weiterhin wird die Wirksamkeit einer multimodalen Behandlung in einer Mutter-Kind-Tagesklinik betrachtet. Methode: Die Stichprobe besteht aus 49 postpartal psychisch erkrankten Müttern, die gemeinsam mit ihren Babys tagesklinisch behandelt wurden und 34 Müttern einer gesunden Kontrollgruppe. Anhand des Childhood Trauma Questionnaire wurden aversive Kindheitserfahrungen erfasst. Die Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale sowie das Eltern-Belastungs-Inventar dienten der Erhebung der mütterlichen Belastung. Mütterliche Feinfühligkeit wurde mittels Videobeobachtung erhoben. Während des Klinikaufenthalts erhielten die Mütter eine multimodale Behandlung und nahmen kurz vor Entlassung an einem zweiten Erhebungszeitpunkt teil. Ergebnisse: Postpartal depressive Mütter mit und ohne aversive Kindheitserfahrungen berichteten deutlich mehr Symptom- und Stressbelastung als Mütter einer gesunden Kontrollgruppe. Dabei wiesen die Mütter mit aversiven Kindheitserfahrungen eine ausgeprägtere depressive Symptomatik auf als jene ohne. Zudem zeigen sie am meisten den negativen Affekt in der Interaktion mit ihrem Kind. Am Ende der Therapie berichteten sowohl die Mütter mit als auch ohne aversive Kindheitserfahrungen eine deutlich reduzierte Belastung und nähern sich im negativen Affekt im Verlauf zwischen den Gruppen an. Diskussion und Schlussfolgerung: Aversive Kindheitserlebnisse haben einen verstärkenden Effekt auf die Postpartale Depression hinsichtlich der Symptomatik. Dies zeigt sich auch am stärkeren negativen Affekt während der Interaktion mit dem Kind. Dennoch genesen die betroffenen Mütter genauso gut durch einer multimodalen, tagesklinischen Behandlung wie Mütter ohne aversive Kindheitserfahrungen. Ein langfristiges Ziel ist es, durch adäquate Behandlungsansätze, die auch feinfühliges Elternverhalten fördern eine transgenerationale Weitergabe von aversiven Kindheitserfahrungen zu unterbrechen.

Family risks are known to be detrimental to children's attachment development. This study investigated whether parental sensitivity plays different roles in early attachment development in the context of risk: Sensitivity was hypothesized to mediate risk effects on attachment, as well as a moderator that shapes the relation between risk and attachment. Multiple family risks, parental sensitivity (defined as responsivity and supportive presence), and children's attachment security of 197 infants and toddlers (M_age = 15.25 months) and their caregivers were assessed in a prospective study with a cohort‐sequential‐design in Germany. Caregivers' sensitivity served as a mediator of risk effects on attachment as well as a moderator that buffers adverse consequences of risk. Early sensitivity might be relevant in setting the stage for attachment development supporting resilience.

Growing up in high-risk environments is detrimental to children’s development of attachment security. Parenting behavior is hypothesized to be the mechanism through which risks exert their influence. However, risk influences can vary between individuals by gender. Aim of this study was to explore specific pathways of family risk on early attachment security and additionally examine the transmission via parenting behavior. The sample consisted of 197 children and their primary caregivers. Children’s age ranged between 10 and 21 months (M = 15.25, SD = 3.59). Data assessment included 21 distal and proximal family risk factors, children’s attachment security, and parental responsivity and supportive presence. Whereas distal risk factors had an adverse effect only on girls’ attachment security, proximal risks negatively affected only boys’ attachment security. Additionally, patterns of risk factors occurring in our sample were analyzed using an exploratory principal component analysis. Regardless of the child’s gender, a low socio-economic status was negatively related to attachment security of all children. Migration and crowding and a high emotional load of the primary caregiver both negatively predicted girls’ but not boys’ attachment security. However, the attachment security of boys was affected by a negative family climate. Most of the adverse risk effects on attachment security were mediated by parental responsivity and supportive presence so that the transmission of risk occurs through parenting behavior. Results revealed a different susceptibility of family risks for girls and boys. The consideration of a gender-sensitive approach in developmental psychopathology and interventions of developmental child welfare services is recommended.