A Father's Role in the Family

We are born like blank pieces of paper, waiting for the black and white to define our futures. With every encounter/relationship we develop, we are supposed to gain something. Shaped by our experience and relationships, the person that we are today is a direct result of the people that we allowed to be a part of the stage play called “Life”. There are two psychologists known for their work on observational or social learning: Albert Bandura and Julian Rotter. Reciprocal determinism is Bandura’s belief that cognitions, behaviors and the environment interact to produce personality. According to Rotter’s theory, prior learning experiences create cognitive expectances that guide behavior and influence the environment. The absence of a healthy father-child relationship negatively affects a person but anyone can overcome this hurdle and become truly successful in life. A father's role in the family is far more important than just being the breadwinner and male authority figure. There is a consensus among the experts in child and family studies that the father’s role in the family affects his children’s development (Lamb, 2003). A solid foundation is the minimal pre-requisite for well-rounded and productive children that should begin with the father. Research findings consistently reveal that warm and affectionate fathers not only can help their children develop positive self-esteem, but also influence the development of their children’s gender role behavior. Fathers play an enormous role in developing infants into healthy adults. According to Wendy Pan, the father child relationship is fundamentally important in its developmental process. The play that a father engages in, which tends to be more physical and spontaneous, contributes to healthy brain development in infants. As infants grow into small children, the role of play takes on broader meaning and value. It takes on the role of teaching the child problem solving, exploring limits, and goal oriented