A meta-analysis of the relationship between father involvement and problem behaviour among preschool children
Early Child Development and Care
Report summary
How is positive and negative father involvement associated with preschool children's internalising and externalising problems?
Positive father involvement had small negative correlations with both internalising and externalising problem behaviour. Negative father involvement had a moderate positive correlation with internalising problems.
Key limitation: The pooled relationships were correlational
Researchers' conclusions
The findings support the relevance of both the quality and form of father involvement to preschool children's emotional and behavioural adjustment.
This is a plain-language summary of the researchers' conclusion. It is not advice for an individual family.
Read this conclusion within the population, research design and limitations described in this record.
How the report was produced
Important limitations
- The pooled relationships were correlational
- Effects varied across measures, cultures, and family structures
- Child behaviour can also influence parenting
- The study does not establish an exact amount of parenting time
Evidence context and debate
Open the sections below for the wider research context, points of agreement, and areas that remain contested.
Editorial interpretation of the wider topic
This section discusses the wider topic. Its statements are not all findings of this individual paper.
The reviews in this collection associate positive father involvement with developmental outcomes. They do not establish one required residential schedule.
The reviews use different definitions of involvement and different developmental outcomes. Check each record's design and sample before comparing findings.
Questions the wider evidence informs
- Examining direct engagement and parenting quality rather than presence alone.
- Keeping the outcome and population of each study explicit.
Limits of the wider evidence
- Prescribing a care percentage from an involvement study.
- Treating absence as proof that an individual child will experience harm.
- Ignoring safety or other family circumstances.
Why this question matters
Father-involvement research examines direct engagement, parenting quality and absence. These are different from the number of nights in a post-separation schedule.
Involvement, absence and residential time are different exposures. A finding about positive engagement cannot by itself identify the best post-separation schedule.
Where researchers agree and disagree
Positive involvement and parenting quality are relevant to children's development in these reviews.
The strength and direction of associations vary by measure and study. Family circumstances can contribute to the observed results.
Comparison with other research
Sarkadi and colleagues, 2008
The longitudinal review reported a generally positive pattern for father engagement across developmental outcomes.
McLanahan and colleagues, 2013
Stronger designs found smaller effects of father absence than conventional comparisons, with the most consistent evidence for social-emotional adjustment, school completion and adult mental health.
How the evidence developed later
Read the father-involvement guide to compare reviews of early learning, play and social-emotional development.
Read the paper and related research
This report
Jin Zhang, Yunyan Liu & Tianqiang Hu (2021). A meta-analysis of the relationship between father involvement and problem behaviour among preschool children. Early Child Development and Care, 191(11), 1802–1824. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2019.1679127
Use the original publication to verify a claim before relying on it. Read the source-checking limits and correction record.