Date Presented 03/26/20
Due to societal changes in the paternal role affecting family dynamic, it is imperative for OTs to explore and understand the role fathers have in relations with their child, especially in joint play. OTs are involved in supporting children’s development and can incorporate fathers in promoting joint play by assessing the type and quality of the support they provide to their child as well as its effect on the child’s behavior.
Primary Author and Speaker: Amiya Waldman-Levi
Additional Authors and Speakers: Laurette Olson
Contributing Authors: Shaindy Kohan, Maya Aronova, Rachel Ytshakov, Merav Stroh, Leora Rychik, Tzvi Malks, Hindy Katz, Samantha Apesa
PURPOSE: Family dynamic and parental role have changed in the past years, with fathers being actively involved in child rearing. However, the majority of literature of parent-child relationships has focused on the mother’s (e.g., Murray, Edmondson, Iles, & Ramchandani, 2018). Due to these societal changes in family dynamic, it is imperative for occupational therapists to explore and understand the role fathers have in relation with their child, especially during joint-play.
DESIGN: A mixed-methods design, cross sectional and grounded-theory utilized a convenient sampling method to recruit father-child dyads of typically developing children residing in a metropolitan area.
METHOD: Background questionnaire and criterion-referenced observations were used to analyze 15-minutes video-recordings of joint play at the home environment followed by a semi-structured interview. Observations included: Parent’s/Caregiver Support of Children’s Playfulness (PCSCP; Waldman-Levi & Bundy, 2016), The Test of Playfulness (ToP) and The Test of Environmental Supportiveness (TOES) (Skard & Bundy, 2008). Inter-raters agreement was above 87%. We purposely selected eleven father interviews for qualitative analysis.
RESULTS: 30 dyads were sampled, father’s age ranged from 25 to 44 years (M=31, sd=5.63), majority were Caucasian, married (92.9%) with college level of education (65.5%). Children’s age ranged from 2 to 5 years (M=2.84, sd=0.10) with more girls (62.1%) than boys (37.9%). Children were moderately playful (M=1.58, sd=.40) and father’s quality of supportive behavior was moderate (M=2.10, sd=.59). Overall father’s supportive behaviors during play significantly correlated with the caregiver support measure and with how playful the child was (r= .41-.66, p< 0.05). Three simple linear regression analyses were performed. The first model was significant and explained 20% of the variance (R2=.23, F(1,25)=7.50, p<.01), father supportive behaviour significantly predicted child’s playfulness (β= .48, t= 2.74, p<.01). The second general model was found significant and explained 28% of the variance (R2=.30, F(1,25)=10.88, p<.01), the amount of support fathers provided significantly predicted their child’s playfulness (β= .55, t=3.30, p<.01). The third model predicated child’s playfulness and explained 18% of the variance (R2=.21, F(1,25)=6.66, p<.05), father support of child’s continuous engagement in play significantly predicted child’s playfulness (β= .46, t=2.58, p<.05). Qualitative analysis: fathers reported that the joint play observed represented how they typically play with their child. The main themes that emerged were: father-child play, dad play history, and child play. It enabled the researchers to understand how fathers perceive joint play experience as well as what function it has in their own history and family life.
CONCLUSION: Children were indeed more playful when their fathers supported their engagement through exploration, modification of play activities, and transitioning during play. Findings confirm that the PCSCP is a valid and reliable instrument to assess parental support during joint play. Interviewing fathers about their play experiences with their child anchors quantified information in a meaningful context. Impact Statement: Occupational therapists are involved in supporting child’s development and can incorporate fathers in promoting joint play by assessing type and quality of the support they provide to their child with the effect on child’s behavior. Utilizing this perspective of parental involvement in joint play can enhance family centered services, with occupational therapists supporting families from disadvantage backgrounds, of children with special needs, as well as families raising typically developing children.
References
Cabrera, N.J., Karberg, E., Malin, J.L., & Aldoney, D. (2017). The magic of play: Low-income mothers’ and fathers’ playfulness and children’s emotional regulation and vocabulary skills. Infant Mental Health Journal, 38(5), 1-14.
Flouri, E., Midouhas, E., & Narayanan, M.K. (2016). The relationship between father involvement and child problem behavior in intact families: A 7-year cross-lagged study. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 44, 1011-1021.
Waldman-Levi, A. & Bundy, A. (2016). A Glimpse into co-occupations: Parent’s support of young children’s playfulness scale. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 32(3). http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0164212X.2015.1116420
Waldman-Levi, A., Grinion, S., & Olson, L. (accepted). Effects of maternal views and support on childhood development through joint play, The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy.
