# Patterns, predictors, and outcomes of paternal activation parenting

> **NIH NIH F31** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2022 · $46,036

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Extant research on paternal caregiving in early childhood has typically relied on traditional caregiving
dimensions derived from research and theory on mothers (e.g., sensitivity).2 However, some have argued that
fathers play a unique role in promoting children's experiences and relationships with individuals outside of the
security provided by attachment relationships through activation parenting (AP).5,13,14 AP includes behaviors
that challenge children to approach novel situations, explore their environments, and take physical and
socioemotional risks, through a balance of encouragement and limit-setting.3,4,7,15 Whereas components of AP
have been linked to children's self-regulation (SR) skills, comprehensive measures of AP and, importantly,
longitudinal research on Black and Latinx families from low socioeconomic backgrounds is lacking.7 These
limitations greatly constrain our understanding of the potential benefits of paternal AP for children's emerging
SR. Thus, the overall goal of the application is to test associations between paternal AP, paternal
characteristics, and children's SR skills, in a sample of low-income, ethnically-diverse fathers. The specific
aims are to: 1) validate a novel AP coding scheme and generate a latent factor for paternal AP in clean-up and
teaching tasks; 2) test unique associations between paternal AP and children's SR skills, with the hypothesis
that higher levels of paternal AP will be associated with higher child SR at ages 4 and 5, especially for children
who exhibit an optimal level of activation; and 3) test unique associations between paternal factors and
paternal AP, with the hypothesis that higher family income and paternal education, lower paternal depressive
symptoms, and being Black and/or Latinx will be associated with higher levels of paternal AP. The 24-month
training plan proposed in the application will provide necessary training to support the applicant in advancing
their expertise to become an independent researcher. The program of training comprises three areas: 1)
expand knowledge of research on fatherhood, especially Black and Latinx fathers; 2) gain experience with
methods used in observational coding of parent-child interactions with a specific focus on the construct and
coding of AP; and 3) learn and apply multilevel analytic procedures to multivariate analyses. Professional
development opportunities will be infused throughout the training period. Results from the proposed research
could have important implications for basic and applied research on children's SR, and specifically promoting
AP in fathers during early childhood. Similarly, improving understanding of the determinants of paternal AP
would also inform future targets of prevention efforts to promote paternal AP in early childhood.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10464162
- **Project number:** 1F31HD106773-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Julia Sarah Feldman
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $46,036
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-05-01 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10464162

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10464162, Patterns, predictors, and outcomes of paternal activation parenting (1F31HD106773-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10464162. Licensed CC0.

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