WAITING FOR PATERNITY - INTERPERSONAL AND CONTEXTUAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE TIMING OF FATHERHOOD

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of life-span contextu al variation on father-child relationships. Sixty families in which bo th parents were either younger than 26 or older than 29 when they bega n childbearing, and whose child was between the ages of 3 and 5 at the time of the study participated. Videotaped observations of father-chi ld play were collected. Questionnaires were also administered to fathe rs, assessing their marital satisfaction, work-horne compatibility, an d social network attributes. Older fathers established stronger connec tions to extra-familial contexts and displayed greater reliance on ver bal mechanisms to engage children during play. Younger fathers maintai ned a more traditional style of fathering and engaged their children t hrough physical stimulation. The implications of these findings for mo dels of father-child relationships were explored.