title: The design and development of the father-child instrument (FCI) for assessing the characteristics of fathers' availability and engagement with their preschool children.
abstract: Despite the fact that father-child involvement has extensive effects on the health and well-being of the family, there is a paucity of research on fathers' presence in health care research. The design and development of an instrument for assessing the characteristics of fathers' availability and engagement with their preschool-aged children in Finland is presented. Data collection was undertaken in two separate periods involving 263 and 821 fathers. Results indicate that the father-child instrument (FCI) is ready for use in research seeking to assess fathers' availability and engagement with their preschoolers. Further research is nonetheless required to assess the potential for a more sensitive interaction and for the generalization of the FCI.
authors: Department of Nursing Science, University of Tampere, Finland. nina.halme@thl.fi
authors: Nina
authors: N
authors: Halme
authors: Marja-Terttu
authors: MT
authors: Tarkka
authors: Eija
authors: E
authors: Paavilainen
authors: Tapio
authors: T
authors: Nummi
authors: Päivi
authors: P
authors: Astedt-Kurki
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005220:Fathers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005387:Finland; D006801:Humans; D016901:Intergenerational Relations; D008297:Male; D009769:Object Attachment; D016487:Parenting; D010332:Paternal Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires