Father-infant interaction at the first contact after delivery.
The behavior exhibited by human fathers at their first contact with the young was studied on 15 fathers of full-term infants delivered by cesarean section. The naked infant was presented to the father approximately 15 min after delivery, and photographs were taken every second during the first 7 min of contact. An orderly progression of behavior was observed: the father began touching the extremities, and then proceeded to touch the infant with his fingers and fingertips, then to use his palms and finally the dorsal side of his fingers. An increase in eye-to-eye contact over time was observed. It was concluded that the father displayed a very similar behavior, in his first contact with the young, as has been described previously for the mother.
D000328:Adult; D001519:Behavior; D002585:Cesarean Section; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011187:Posture; D011247:Pregnancy; D013239:Stereotyped Behavior