The relationship between fathers’ involvement in infant care and infant attachment levels

BACKGROUND: Increasing recognition of the father's role in early childhood development has led to growing interest in how father involvement in infant care influences the quality of paternal-infant attachment. AIMS: This study aimed to determine the association between fathers' involvement in infant care and paternal-infant attachment levels. METHODS: This descriptive study involved 255 fathers, utilizing the "Descriptive Information Form," the "Paternal-Infant Attachment Scale," and the "Fathers' Involvement in Infant Care Questionnaire" for data collection. Data analysis included the use of number and percentage distributions, mean and standard deviation calculations, t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and post hoc analysis. Additionally, Pearson correlation and linear regression analyses were conducted for a comprehensive examination of the obtained data. Institutional permission and ethics committee approval were obtained to conduct the study. RESULTS: In this study, elevated levels of father and mother education, a consistent income, shorter marital duration, excellent spousal relationship status, fewer children, and increased time spent with infants were associated with heightened father involvement in infant care and higher paternal-infant attachment scores. A positive correlation was observed between fathers' involvement in infant care and paternal-infant attachment. Furthermore, regression analysis results show that as fathers' involvement in infant care increases, their attachment with their infant also strengthens. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified a positive correlation between fathers' engagement in infant care and the level of attachment between fathers and infants. To strengthen the paternal-infant attachment, fathers should be encouraged to involvement in infant care.