Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Fathers in Child Psychotherapy

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Handbook of Fathers and Child Development

Abstract

Psychotherapy refers to the professional treatment of mental disorders with psychological means. Psychotherapists can call on scientifically proven forms of treatment and use targeted methods such as talking, craftwork, and/or playing (especially in the case of children). In the treatment of adults, therapists usually meet with the patient in a two-person setting. Conversely, parents and family members play a crucial role in the treatment of children and adolescents. In the clinical literature especially on the treatment of infants, there has been much focus on the mother-child relationship. While the role of the father in child psychotherapy typically remains opaque in the empirical outcome research, a rich clinical literature on the topic offers many intriguing hypotheses. Thus, empirical research supports that fathers may exert an important influence on child mental health and (to a lesser extent) on outcomes of child psychotherapy, but how they do so in the case of child psychotherapy still largely remains the remit of the clinician. This chapter aims to address both of these levels by drawing on developmental research that stresses the importance of fathers and the father-child relationship. Based on this new knowledge, this chapter elaborates a three-tiered model of father involvement in child therapy, building on the relatively unique part fathers are thought to play in (1) activating the child and promoting self-other differentiation,  (2) facilitating triadic competence, and (3) influencing the emerging transference via the representational level.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 229.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 299.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 299.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Abelson, R. P. (1985). A variance explanation paradox: When a little is a lot. Psychological Bulletin, 97(1), 129–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ainsworth, M. D. S., Blehar, M. C., Waters, E., & Wall, S. (1978). Patterns of attachment: A psychological study of the strange situation. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Andreas, A., White, L. O., Sierau, S., Perren, S., von Klitzing, K., & Klein, A. M. (2018). Like mother like daughter, like father like son? Intergenerational transmission of internalizing symptoms at early school age: A longitudinal study. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 27, 985–995. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-017-1103-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bagner, D. M., & Eyberg, S. M. (2003). Father involvement in Parent training: When does it matter? Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 32(4), 599–605. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15374424JCCP3204_13

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., van Ijzendoorn, M. H., & Juffer, F. (2003). Less is more: Meta-analyses of sensitivity and attachment interventions in early childhood. Psychological Bulletin, 129(2), 195–215.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baradon, T. (2019a). Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy. Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Baradon, T. (2019b). Working with the triad. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (pp. 85–93). Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Barrett, P., Games, N., Fisak, B., Stallard, P., & Phillips, L. (2019). The treatment of anxiety disorders in preschool-aged children. In B. Fisak & P. M. Barrett (Eds.), Anxiety in preschool children: Assessment, treatment, and prevention (p. 99). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barrows, P. (2004). Fathers and families: Locating the ghost in the nursery. Infant Mental Health Journal, 25(5), 408–423. https://doi.org/10.1002/imhj.20016

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bevington, D. (2019). A journey into fatherhood: The art of failing gracefully. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (pp. 1–13). Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bögels, S. M., & Phares, V. (2008). Fathers’ role in the etiology, prevention and treatment of child anxiety: A review and new model. Clinical Psychology Review, 28(4), 539–558. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2007.07.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bögels, S. M., & Siqueland, L. (2006). Family cognitive behavioral therapy for children and adolescents with clinical anxiety disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 45(2), 134–141. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.chi.0000190467.01072.ee

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bögels, S. M., & van Melick, M. (2004). The relationship between child-report, parent self-report, and partner report of perceived parental rearing behaviors and anxiety in children and parents. Personality and Individual Differences, 37(8), 1583–1596. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2004.02.014

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bretherton, I. (2005). In pursuit of the internal working model construct and its relevance to attachment relationships. In K. Grossmann, K. Grossmann, & E. Waters (Eds.), Attachment from infancy to adulthood: The major longitudinal studies (pp. 13–47). New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bretherton, I., & Page, T. F. (2004). Shared or conflicting working models? Relationships in postdivorce families seen through the eyes of mothers and their preschool children. Development and Psychopathology, 16(03), 551–575.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bürgin, D. (1998). Vater als Person und Vater als Prinzip. In D. Bürgin (Ed.), Triangulierung–Der Übergang zur Elternschaft (pp. 179–214). Stuttgart, Germany: Schattauer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carnes, A., Matthewson, M., & Boer, O. (2019). The contribution of parents in childhood anxiety treatment: A meta-analytic review. Clinical Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1111/cp.12179

  • Chacko, A., Fabiano, G. A., Doctoroff, G. L., & Fortson, B. (2018). Engaging fathers in effective parenting for preschool children using shared book reading: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 47(1), 79–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2016.1266648

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clyman, R. B. (2003). Portrayals in maltreated children’s play narratives: Representations or emotion regulation. In R. N. Emde, D. P. Wolf, & D. Oppenheim (Eds.), Revealing the inner worlds of young children. The MacArthur story stem battery and parent-child narratives (pp. 201–221). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Corboz-Warnery, A., Fivaz-Depeursinge, E., Bettens, C. G., & Favez, N. (1993). Systemic analysis of father-mother-baby interactions: The Lausanne triadic play. Infant Mental Health Journal, 14(4), 298–316. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0355

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cowan, C. P., & Cowan, P. A. (2019a). Enhancing parenting effectiveness, Fathers’ involvement, couple relationship quality, and Children’s development: Breaking down silos in family policy making and service delivery. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 11(1), 92–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cowan, P. A., & Cowan, C. P. (2019b). Introduction: Bringing dads back into the family. Attachment & Human Development, 21(5), 419–425. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2019.1582594

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cowan, P. A., Cowan, C. P., Pruett, M. K., & Pruett, K. D. (2018). Supporting father involvement: A father inclusive couples group approach to parenting interventions. In H. Steele & M. Steele (Eds.), Handbook of attachment-based interventions (pp. 466–491). New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crawford, A. M., & Manassis, K. (2001). Familial predictors of treatment outcome in childhood anxiety disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 40(10), 1182–1189. https://doi.org/10.1097/00004583-200110000-00012

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davids, M. F. (2002). Fathers in the internal world: from boy to man to father. In S. Budd (Series Ed.) & J. Trowell & A. Etchegoyen (Vol. Eds.), New library of psychoanalysis. The importance of fathers - a psychoanalytic re-evaluation. Hove: Brunner-Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eyberg, S. M., Boggs, S. R., & Algina, J. (1995). Parent-child interaction therapy: A psychosocial model for the treatment of young children with conduct problem behavior and their families. Psychopharmacology Bulletin, 31(1), 83–91.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fabiano, G. A. (2007). Father participation in behavioral parent training for ADHD: Review and recommendations for increasing inclusion and engagement. Journal of Family Psychology, 21(4), 683–693. https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-3200.21.4.683

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Favez, N., Lopes, F., Bernard, M., Frascarolo, F., Lavanchy Scaiola, C., Corboz-Warnery, A., et al. (2012). The development of family Alliance from pregnancy to toddlerhood and child outcomes at 5 years. Family Process, 51(4), 542–556. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.2012.01419.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fearon, R. P., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., Van Ijzendoorn, M. H., Lapsley, A.-M., & Roisman, G. I. (2010). The significance of insecure attachment and disorganization in the development of Children’s externalizing behavior: A meta-analytic study. Child Development, 81(2), 435–456. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2009.01405.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Feldman, R. (2003). Infant–mother and infant–father synchrony: The coregulation of positive arousal. Infant Mental Health Journal, 24(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1002/imhj.10041

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flanders, J. L., Leo, V., Paquette, D., Pihl, R. O., & Séguin, J. R. (2009). Rough-and-tumble play and the regulation of aggression: An observational study of father–child play dyads. Aggressive Behavior, 35(4), 285–295. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.20309

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flanders, J. L., Simard, M., Paquette, D., Parent, S., Vitaro, F., Pihl, R. O., et al. (2010). Rough-and-tumble play and the development of physical aggression and emotion regulation: A five-year follow-up study. Journal of Family Violence, 25(4), 357–367. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-009-9297-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher, R., StGeorge, J., & Freeman, E. (2013). Rough and tumble play quality: Theoretical foundations for a new measure of father–child interaction. Early Child Development and Care, 183(6), 746–759. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2012.723439

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fonagy, P., Gergely, G., Jurist, E. L., & Target, M. (2002). Affect regulation, mentalization, and the development of the self. London: Karnac.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fonagy, P., & Target, M. (1995). Understanding the violent patient: The use of the body and the role of the father. The International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 76(3), 487–501.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frank, T. J., Keown, L. J., & Sanders, M. R. (2015). Enhancing father engagement and Interparental teamwork in an evidence-based parenting intervention: A randomized-controlled trial of outcomes and processes. Behavior Therapy, 46(6), 749–763. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2015.05.008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Göttken, T., & von Klitzing, K. (2014). Manual for short-term psychoanalytic child therapy (PaCT). London: Karnac Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Göttken, T., White, L. O., Klein, A. M., & von Klitzing, K. (2014). Short-term psychoanalytic child therapy for anxious children: A pilot study. Psychotherapy, 51(1), 148–158. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036026

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green, A. (2004). Thirdness and psychoanalytic concepts. The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 73, 99–135.

    Google Scholar 

  • Groh, A. M., Fearon, R. P., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., van Ijzendoorn, M. H., Steele, R. D., & Roisman, G. I. (2014). The significance of attachment security for children’s social competence with peers: A meta-analytic study. Attachment & Human Development, 16(2), 103–136. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2014.883636

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Groh, A. M., Roisman, G. I., van Ijzendoorn, M. H., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., & Fearon, R. P. (2012). The significance of insecure and disorganized attachment for children’s internalizing symptoms: A meta-analytic study. Child Development, 83(2), 591–610. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2011.01711.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grossmann, K., Grossmann, K. E., Fremmer-Bombik, E., Kindler, H., Scheuerer-Englisch, H., & Zimmermann, P. (2002). The uniqueness of the child–father attachment relationship: fathers’ sensitive and challenging play as a pivotal variable in a 16-year longitudinal study. Social Development, 11(3), 301–337. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9507.00202

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helfenbaum-Kun, E. D., & Ortiz, C. (2007). Parent-training groups for fathers of head start children: A pilot study of their feasibility and impact on child behavior and intra-familial relationships. Child & Family Behavior Therapy, 29(2), 47–64. https://doi.org/10.1300/J019v29n02_04

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herzog, J. M. (1991/1998). Early interaction and representation: The father’s role in early and later triads, the father as expediter from dyad to triad. [initially presented as a paper in Basel, Switzerland in 1991]. In D. Bürgin (Ed.), Triangulierung–Der Übergang zur Elternschaft (pp. 162–178). Stuttgart, Germany: Schattauer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Høglend, P. (2014). Exploration of the patient-therapist relationship in psychotherapy. American Journal of Psychiatry, 171(10), 1056–1066. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2014.14010121

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, S. C., Dweck, C. S., & Chen, F. S. (2007). Evidence for infants’ internal working models of attachment. Psychological Science, 18, 501–502. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01929.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, A. (2019). When working therapeutically with a baby’s father is not possible. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (pp. 50–63). Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Joyce, A. (2019). “The door in the back of my head”: A father’s failure to mourn the deaths of his parents. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (pp. 28–38). Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Karberg, E., Cabrera, N. J., Malin, J., & Kuhns, C. (2019). Longitudinal contributions of maternal and paternal intrusive behaviors to children’s sociability and sustained attention at prekindergarten. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 84(1), 79–93.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kazdin, A. E. (2007). Mediators and mechanisms of change in psychotherapy research. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 3(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.clinpsy.3.022806.091432

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kernberg, P. F., Weiner, A. S., & Bardenstein, K. (2000). Personality disorders in children and adolescents. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kerns, K. A., Mathews, B. L., Koehn, A. J., Williams, C. T., & Siener-Ciesla, S. (2015). Assessing both safe haven and secure base support in parent–child relationships. Attachment & Human Development, 17(4), 337–353. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2015.1042487

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, M. E. (1975). Fathers: Forgotten contributors to child development. Human Development, 18(4), 245–266. Retrieved from https://www.karger.com/DOI/10.1159/000271493. https://doi.org/10.1159/000271493

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, M. E. (2010). How do fathers influence children’s development? Let me count the ways. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (5th ed., pp. 1–26). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leaper, C., Anderson, K. J., & Sanders, P. (1998). Moderators of gender effects on parents’ talk to their children: A meta-analysis. Developmental Psychology, 34(1), 3–27. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.34.1.3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liber, J. M., van Widenfelt, B. M., Goedhart, A. W., Utens, E. M. W. J., van der Leeden, A. J. M., Markus, M. T., et al. (2008). Parenting and parental anxiety and depression as predictors of treatment outcome for childhood anxiety disorders: Has the role of fathers been underestimated? Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 37(4), 747–758. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374410802359692

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lieberman, A. F., Ghosh Ippen, C., & Van Horn, P. (2015). “Don’t hit my mommy!”: A manual for child-parent psychotherapy with young children exposed to violence and other trauma. Washington, DC: Zero to Three.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lucassen, N., Tharner, A., Van IJzendoorn, M. H., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., Volling, B. L., Verhulst, F. C., et al. (2011). The association between paternal sensitivity and infant–father attachment security: A meta-analysis of three decades of research. Journal of Family Psychology, 25(6), 986.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lundahl, B. W., Tollefson, D., Risser, H., & Lovejoy, M. C. (2007). A meta-analysis of father involvement in parent training. Research on Social Work Practice, 18(2), 97–106. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731507309828

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mahler, M. S., & Gosliner, B. J. (1955). On symbiotic child psychosis. The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child, 10(1), 195–212. https://doi.org/10.1080/00797308.1955.11822556

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Main, M., Kaplan, N., & Cassidy, J. (1985). Security in infancy, childhood, and adulthood: A move to the level of representation. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 50(1/2), 66–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Majdandžić, M., de Vente, W., & Bögels, S. M. (2016). Challenging parenting behavior from infancy to toddlerhood: Etiology, measurement, and differences between fathers and mothers. Infancy, 21(4), 423–452. https://doi.org/10.1111/infa.12125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Majdandžić, M., de Vente, W., Colonnesi, C., & Bögels, S. M. (2018). Fathers’ challenging parenting behavior predicts less subsequent anxiety symptoms in early childhood. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 109, 18–28. Retrieved from. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2018.07.007

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Majdandžić, M., Möller, E. L., de Vente, W., Bögels, S. M., & van den Boom, D. C. (2014). Fathers’ challenging parenting behavior prevents social anxiety development in their 4-year-old children: A longitudinal observational study. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 42(2), 301–310. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-013-9774-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manassis, K., Mendlowitz, S. L., Scapillato, D., Avery, D., Fiksenbaum, L., Freire, M.,... Owens, M. (2002). Group and individual cognitive-behavioral therapy for childhood anxiety disorders: A randomized trial. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 41(12), 1423–1430. doi:https://doi.org/10.1097/00004583-200212000-00013

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McHale, J. P. (2007). When infants grow up in multiperson relationship systems. Infant Mental Health Journal, 28(4), 370–392. https://doi.org/10.1002/imhj.20142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, L. B. (1997). Fathers. Zero to Three, 18(1), 9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Page, T., & Bretherton, I. (2003). Representations of attachment to father in the narratives of preschool girls in post-divorce families: Implications for family relationships and social development. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 20(2), 99–122. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022864614244

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Panter-Brick, C., Burgess, A., Eggerman, M., McAllister, F., Pruett, K., & Leckman, J. F. (2014). Practitioner review: Engaging fathers – Recommendations for a game change in parenting interventions based on a systematic review of the global evidence. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 55(11), 1187–1212. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paquette, D. (2004a). Dichotomizing paternal and maternal functions as a means to better understand their primary contributions. Human Development, 47(4), 237–238. https://doi.org/10.1159/000078726

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paquette, D. (2004b). Theorizing the father-child relationship: Mechanisms and developmental outcomes. Human Development, 47(4), 193–219. https://doi.org/10.1159/000078723

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paquette, D., & Bigras, M. (2010). The risky situation: A procedure for assessing the father–child activation relationship. Early Child Development and Care, 180(1–2), 33–50. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430903414687

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perez, A. (2019). Waking daddy up: Restoring a father’s place in a borderline personality couple. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (pp. 39–49). Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Perren, S., Forrester-Knauss, C., & Alsaker, F. D. (2012). Self-and other-oriented social skills: Differential associations with children’s mental health and bullying roles. Journal for Educational Research Online/Journal für Bildungsforschung Online, 4(1), 99–123.

    Google Scholar 

  • Phares, V., Rojas, A., Thurston, I. B., & Hankinson, J. C. (2010). Including fathers in clinical interventions for children and adolescents. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (5th ed., pp. 459–485). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pleck, J. H. (2010). Fatherhood and masculinity. In M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development (5th ed., pp. 27–57). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rapee, R. M. (2000). Group treatment of children with anxiety disorders: Outcome and predictors of treatment response. Australian Journal of Psychology, 52(3), 125–129. https://doi.org/10.1080/00049530008255379

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roggman, L. A. (2004). Do fathers just want to have fun? Human Development, 47(4), 228–236. https://doi.org/10.1159/000078725

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rose-Krasnor, L., & Denham, S. A. (2009). Social-emotional competence in early childhood. In K. H. Rubin, W. M. Bukowski, & B. Laursen (Eds.), Handbook of peer interactions, relationships and groups (pp. 162–179). New York: Guildford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Salomonsson, B., Baradon, T., & von Klitzing, K. (2019). Three themes about father in parent-infant psychotherapy. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (Vol. 154–168). Oxon, UK: Roultledge

    Google Scholar 

  • Sandler, J., & Rosenblatt, B. (1962). The concept of the representational world. The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child, 17(1), 128–145.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, S., Blatter-Meunier, J., Herren, C., Adornetto, C., In-Albon, T., & Lavallee, K. (2011). Disorder-specific cognitive-behavioral therapy for separation anxiety disorder in young children: A randomized waiting-list-controlled trial. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 80(4), 206–215. https://doi.org/10.1159/000323444

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sicouri, G., Tully, L., Collins, D., Burn, M., Sargeant, K., Frick, P.,... Dadds, M. (2018). Toward father-friendly parenting interventions: A qualitative study. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 39(2), 218–231. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/anzf.1307

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, P. K. (2010). Children and play. John Wiley & Sons. New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stern, D. N. (1985). The interpersonal world of the infant: A view from psychoanalysis and developmental psychology. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • StGeorge, J., Fletcher, R., Freeman, E., Paquette, D., & Dumont, C. (2015). Father–child interactions and children’s risk of injury. Early Child Development and Care, 185(9), 1409–1421. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2014.1000888

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Target, M., & Fonagy, P. (2002). Fathers in moder psychoanalysis and in society: The role of the father in child development. In J. Trowell & A. Etchegoyen (Eds.), The importance of fathers – A psychoanalytic re-evaluation (pp. 45–66). Hove, UK: Brunner-Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tiano, J. D., & McNeil, C. B. (2005). The inclusion of fathers in behavioral Parent training: A critical evaluation. Child & Family Behavior Therapy, 27(4), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1300/J019v27n04_01

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • van der Sluis, C. M., van der Bruggen, C. O., Brechman-Toussaint, M. L., Thissen, M. A. P., & Bögels, S. M. (2012). Parent-directed cognitive behavioral therapy for young anxious children: A pilot study. Behavior Therapy, 43(3), 583–592. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2011.10.002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verschueren, K., & Marcoen, A. (1999). Representation of self and socioemotional competence in kindergartners: Differential and combined effects of attachment to mother and to father. Child Development, 70(1), 183–201. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00014

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Volling, B. L., & Cabrera, N. J. (2019). Advancing research and measurement on fathering and Children’s development. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 84(1), 7–160. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1111/mono.12404

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Volling, B. L., Stevenson, M. M., Safyer, P., Gonzalez, R., & Lee, J. Y. (2019). IV. In search of the father–infant activation relationship: A person-centered approach. In B. L. Volling & N. J. Cabrera (Eds.), Monographs of the Society for Research in child development: Advancing research and measurement on fathering and children’s development (Vol. 84, pp. 50–63). New York: John Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Klitzing, K. & Burgin, D. (2005). Parental capacities fro triadic relationships during pregnancy: Early predictors of children’s behavioral and representational functioning at preschool age. Infant Mental Health Journal, 26(1), 19–39.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Klitzing, K. (2019). The role of father in early child development. In T. Baradon (Ed.), Working with fathers in psychoanalytic parent-infant psychotherapy (pp. 14–27). Oxon, UK: Routledge.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • von Klitzing, K., Simoni, H., Amsler, F., & Bürgin, D. (1999). The role of the father in early family interactions. Infant Mental Health Journal, 20(3), 222–237. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0355

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • von Klitzing, K., Simoni, H., & Bürgin, D. (1999). Child development and early triadic relationships. The International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 80(1), 71–89. https://doi.org/10.1516/0020757991598576

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Webster-Stratton, C. (1985). The effects of father involvement in parent training for conduct problem children. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 26(5), 801–810. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.1985.tb00593.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • White, L. O., Wu, J., Borelli, J. L., Mayes, L. C., & Crowley, M. J. (2013). Play it again: Neural responses to Reunion with excluders predicted by attachment patterns. Developmental Science, 16(6), 850–863. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12035

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winnicott, D. W. (1964) What about father? In The child, the family and the outside world (pp. 113–118). New York: Da Capo Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Winnicott, D.W. (1971). Playing and Reality. London: Tavistock Publications.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

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

    Kai von Klitzing M.D. & Lars O. White Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Kai von Klitzing M.D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Lars O. White Ph.D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kai von Klitzing M.D. .

Editor information

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

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

von Klitzing, K., White, L.O. (2020). Fathers in Child Psychotherapy. 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_37

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation