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Fathers and Very Young Children: A Developmental Systems Perspective

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Handbook of Fathers and Child Development

Abstract

We set the stage for an in-depth examination of fathers’ involvement in child development from the prenatal years to preschool, a period of human development for the early organization of neurobiological brain networks, hormonal, emotional, and behavioral regulatory systems, and the systemic embodiment of experiences into the child’s mental models of self, others, and self-other relationships. Within the framework of dynamic systems concepts and a heuristic model of father involvement, we examine concepts of father’s role in child development, fathers and family systems, Cabrera’s model for organizing research with fathers, and policy issues related to fathers as caregivers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA

    Hiram E. Fitzgerald

  2. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany

    Kai von Klitzing

  3. Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Natasha J. Cabrera

  4. Graduate Program in Educational Psychology, Centro Universitário FIEO, Osasco, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Júlia Scarano de Mendonça

  5. Division of Mental Health, Grorud DPS, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway

    Thomas Skjøthaug

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  5. Thomas Skjøthaug
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA

    Hiram E. Fitzgerald

  2. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Sachsen, Germany

    Kai von Klitzing

  3. University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Natasha J. Cabrera

  4. Graduate Program in Educational Psychology, Centro Universitário FIEO, Osasco, São Paulo, Brazil

    Júlia Scarano de Mendonça

  5. Division of Mental Health, Akershus University Hospital HF, Lørenskog, Norway

    Thomas Skjøthaug

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Fitzgerald, H.E., von Klitzing, K., Cabrera, N.J., de Mendonça, J.S., Skjøthaug, T. (2020). Fathers and Very Young Children: A Developmental Systems Perspective. In: Fitzgerald, H.E., von Klitzing, K., Cabrera, N.J., Scarano de Mendonça, J., Skjøthaug, T. (eds) Handbook of Fathers and Child Development. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-51027-5_2

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