More Evidence that Dads are Really Important

Kids with depressed mothers see a significant benefit from involved fathers. This doesn't exactly surprise me, but  it's a nice reminder of how much better off children are when dad is active at home.

“My study corroborates findings from previous research that a child is at increased risk of problem behaviors when the mother is depressed,” said Jen Jen Chang, Ph.D., assistant professor of community health in epidemiology at the Saint Louis University School of Public Health and principal investigator.

“But once we factored in a father’s positive involvement, I observed that the adverse impact of the mother’s depression was attenuated. The father served as a buffer. He may have engaged with the children when the mother wasn’t available due to her illness.”

Children of depressed moms do better when dad is involved, SLU researcher finds