Science says daddy’s little girl is more than just a stereotype – it’s a biological predisposition for dads to be more attentive and responsive to the needs of their daughters then their sons.
David Beckham is the perfect example of a besotted, doting dad, in the case of that infamous Instagram kiss – some say too doting.
But it turns out that despite the controversy, David is not alone.
A new study published in the American Psychological Association’s journal Behavioural Neuroscience found that fathers are more likely to respond to the cries of their daughters than their sons.
A lead researcher on the study, Jennifer Mascaro, PhD, of Emory University explained:
“If the child cries out or asks for Dad, fathers of daughters responded to that more than did fathers of sons. We should be aware of how unconscious notions of gender can play into the way we treat even very young children.”
Other findings from the study include fathers of daughters would more openly speak about emotions, use analytical language and were even more likely to sing to their little girls. These sort of interactions are the perfect environment for empathy building.
Unsurprisingly, the study also found fathers with sons were more likely to use achievement based language (words like proud and win) and were more likely to engage in rough play.
Of these differences, Dr Mascaro said, “The fact that fathers may actually be less attentive to the emotional needs of boys, perhaps despite their best intentions, is important to recognize.”
“Most dads are trying to do the best they can and do all the things they can to help their kids succeed, but it’s important to understand how their interactions with their children might be subtly biased based on gender.”
Interestingly the study could not determine if these results were genetic or based on unconscious societal gender bias, meaning more research needs to be done in the area.
“We’d need to follow up to find out why,” Dr Mascaro said. “Perhaps fathers feel more comfortable using [this sort of analytical language] with their daughters, or perhaps the girls are pulling those words out of their dads.”
What we really want to know is how these findings will effect who the favourite child is… I mean not that there is one, of course.
