Why is fathers’ reflective function important?

Abstract

Reflective function (RF) is an ability to think about one's own thoughts and feelings, as well as those of others. It imparts an awareness of one's self and others and forms the basis for self-construal and human relationships. Parental RF has been shown to play an important role in parenting and to promote the development of children's RF. Research on parental RF has been mostly restricted to mothers and to early stages of development. This article reviews the existing research on paternal RF and its role at later stages of development. Although there is a paucity of research on paternal RF, there is evidence that it is significant for children's development, particularly during adolescence, and that adolescence appears to be a significant period for the development of RF. However, there is also evidence for gender differences in RF, with fathers scoring lower than mothers. Various factors may impede RF, including emotional regulation and language skills, as well as social norms and socialization practices that may perpetuate gender differences in RF. Motivation seems to be a key factor in the realization of RF, and various interventions have been developed that appear to enhance RF. Our review underscores the need for further research on paternal RF, particularly in the context of adolescence, and on the factors that may impede its development and realization. In addition, there is a need for further development and assessment of intervention programs aimed at enhancing RF at the community, family, and individual levels.

Reflective functioning in fathers with young children born preterm and at term

“…Research on the assessment of mentalization has led to an index known as Parental Reflective Functioning (Slade, 2005), which has been used successfully to predict the quality of parent-child relationships (Fonagy, Steele, Moran, Steele, & Higgitt, 1991;Kelly, Slade, & Grienenberger, 2005). Although studies on Reflective Functioning (RF) in fathers (specifically of young children) are rare (for an overview see Benbassat & Priel, 2015), there is evidence that levels of RF in both parents are similar (see Steele & Steele, 2008;Taubner et al, 2013), whereas other studies show differences with fathers scoring lower than mothers (Benbassat-Lifshitz, 2008;Cooke, Priddis, Luyten, Kendall, & Cavanagh, 2017).…”

Stages of change and engagement in a family intervention

“…If precontemplation is predominant, the first change needed is to raise awareness about the relational roots of the family problem. The focus of the intervention is reflection, understanding the mental states underlying attitudes and behaviours associated with conflicts and developing the capacity to understand oneself and others (Benbassat & Priel, 2015). Other strategies that foster involvement are to more openly emphasize family strengths, resources, and capacities, to revisit the issue of blame, and to set achievable objectives aimed at laying the groundwork for change (Isaacs, Roman, Savahl, & Cheng Sui, 2017;Pereira & Barros, 2018).…”

“…From our perspective, the fundamental issue was raising awareness that relational difficulties exist, that each family member contributes to those difficulties, and that change requires enhancing family members' capacity for reflection, that is, mentalization (Benbassat & Priel, 2015;Fonagy & Target, 1997). From our perspective, the fundamental issue was raising awareness that relational difficulties exist, that each family member contributes to those difficulties, and that change requires enhancing family members' capacity for reflection, that is, mentalization (Benbassat & Priel, 2015;Fonagy & Target, 1997).…”

“…that are present in family conflicts (Benbassat & Priel, 2015;Fonagy & Target, 1997;Lebow & Rekart, 2007). that are present in family conflicts (Benbassat & Priel, 2015;Fonagy & Target, 1997;Lebow & Rekart, 2007).…”

Satisfacción de Pareja y Depresión: ¿Es la Función Reflexiva una Variable Interviniente?

“…Gottman (1999) describió que las parejas que referían satisfacción en su relación eran aquellas capaces de discriminar qué dificultades podían ser efectivamente resueltas y que, además, eran capaces de desarrollar diálogos respetuosos y emocionalmente afectuosos al referirse a sus problemas recurrentes. De esta manera, es posible pensar que la presencia de un funcionamiento reflexivo, que facilita el diálogo a partir de la compresión de sí mismo y del otro, podría favorecer el afrontamiento adecuado de los conflictos y las emociones negativas (Benbassat & Priel, 2012), contribuyendo también a identificar las circunstancias que facilitan o dificultan la relación de pareja y la crianza (Benbassat & Priel, 2015).…”