Identity and crisis in evaluation in young fathers in relation to age of the child

Abstract

BackgroundThe fact of becoming a father is related to the necessity of taking up a number of new commitments. The changes following from taking up a new social role generate much stress and can bring some identity transformations (Freudenreich, Liberska, & Miluska, 2011) and a crisis in evaluation (Trempała, 2010).Participants and procedureIn order to characterise the structure of identity of young fathers and to determine whether they suffer from a crisis in evaluation, a study was performed on 90 men who became fathers of their first child in the period up to about half a year earlier. Techniques used in the study were: <i>Dimensions of Identity Development Scale</i> (DIDS), <i>Questionnaire for Investigation of Crisis in Evaluation</i>, and a questionnaire prepared by the author.ResultsThe structure of identity of young fathers has no relation to the age of the child, at least in the first six months of the child’s life, but it is related to the crisis in evaluation.ConclusionsAccording to the results, the crisis in evaluation in young fathers is of intermediate intensity and is related to the age of the child. The study suggests a relationship between normative events related to the world of the child and a psychological crisis, involving identity and structures of values.

Satisfaction with Life, Emotions, and Identity Processes in Polish First-Time Mothers and Fathers and Their Child’s Age

“…The restructuring of one’s own identity by the first-time father and mother is a necessary condition for effective coping with the increased or modified repertoire of roles. Psychological knowledge of the subject is very much limited [ 7 , 45 ].…”

“…A favorable factor in making a procreation decision and satisfaction from the fulfilment of the role of mother and father is a structure of the life concept and one’s own person with parenthood fitted into it. As a result of men and women noticing the link between the fulfilment of parenthood and their own psychological development, including identity development, parenthood can become a source of many positive emotions and satisfaction with life [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ].…”

“…Some studies on the identity of women and men identify masculinity as a key factor in changing gender inequality in the transition to parenthood [ 27 ]. Despite the importance of this issue, there is a clear lack of research on the identity processes of men and women who became parents for the first time [ 7 ]. Making an assumption about the interdependence of development changes in the family system constitutes the ground for undertaking the exploration of the problem concerning emotional experiences and identity processes of first-time mother and first-time father in the time of parental role transition [ 7 , 28 , 29 ].…”

Fathers’ Coping Strategies and Children’s Temperament as Predictors of Parental Attitudes among Polish Fathers

“…These parental attitudes also depend on the gender of both the parent and the child, the parents’ level of education, and the child’s and father’s ages (Lipowska, Lipowski, and Pawlicka 2016, Liberska et al 2018). Moreover, the way parents treat children depends on the number of children in the family and the order in which they are born (Hogan 2011).…”

“…The results of a study on Polish fathers conducted by Włodarczyk (2014) show that fathers aged 35 to 44 more often presented the model of partnerships in their relation with children, whereas younger fathers (aged 18 to 34) are less associated with this model. Liberska et al (2018) emphasize that being a father in young adulthood may cause many problems related to changes in career, social life, relations with a partner, etc., and is associated with the need to redefine their self-conception to now include fatherhood. The above challenges may, directly and indirectly, affect the implementation of parental roles by a father.…”