How to deal with a father's lack of involvement

An ‘involved’ father, as defined in this research, is a father who reads to his child, takes outings with his child, is interested in his child’s education and takes a role equal to mother’s in managing his child. He may or may not live with the child’s mother, and he may or may not be the biological father to the child. Generally, the higher the level of a father’s education, the greater is the likelihood of his involvement with his children.

This is a strange thing to feel but, many of us do remember how much involved our fathers were in raising us. There is a noticeable difference in today's dads. Lot more fathers are involved in caring for their children than their own fathers were, especially in the early phases of a childs life. When the world is growing in all respects, the need to grow in this field dof raising a child should also shift its poles from 100% women based to atleast 25% man and 75% women based.

Benefits of a involved father

1. Good father-child relations are associated with an absence of emotional and behavioural difficulties in adolescence and greater academic motivation.
2. Teenagers feel close to their fathers when their fathers are involved with them as they were growing up.
3. When dads or other father figures get personally involved, kids do better in school. The finding, says a University of Illinois researcher, suggests that schools should encourage male interaction, especially with at-risk kids.

How to ensure you are an Involved father?

There are quite a few things which can make you a involved father. Before that check whether you are an involved father. You just need to ask some questions about you to yourself. Is your child the center of your attention or are you just trying to keep them busy while you do other things? During your time together, are you involved in activities that both you and your child enjoy? Are you investing time and energy in your children's lives on a daily basis or are you interacting with them just when it is convenient? Are you happy just spending ordinary time with your child with no particular purpose or goal in mind?

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