Paternal Stimulation and Early Child Development in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.
Few studies have examined the relationship between paternal stimulation and children's growth and development, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of paternal stimulation and to assess whether paternal stimulation was associated with early child growth and development.



Data from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys rounds 4 and 5 were combined across 38 LMICs. The sample comprised 87 286 children aged 3 and 4 years. Paternal stimulation was measured by the number of play and learning activities (up to 6) a father engaged in with his child over the past 3 days. Linear regression models were used to estimate standardized mean differences in height-for-age z-scores and Early Childhood Development Index (ECDI) z-scores across 3 levels of paternal stimulation, after controlling for other caregivers' stimulation and demographic covariates.



A total of 47.8% of fathers did not engage in any stimulation activities, whereas 6.4% of fathers engaged in 5 or 6 stimulation activities. Children whose fathers were moderately engaged in stimulation (1-4 activities) showed ECDI scores that were 0.09 SD (95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.12 to -0.06) lower than children whose fathers were highly engaged; children whose fathers were unengaged showed ECDI scores that were 0.14 SD lower (95% CI: -0.17 to -0.12). Neither moderate paternal stimulation nor lack of paternal stimulation was associated with height-for-age z-scores, relative to high stimulation.



Increasing paternal engagement in stimulation is likely to improve early child development in LMICs.
Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts; jjeong@mail.harvard.edu.
Joshua
J
Jeong
Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Dana Charles
DC
McCoy
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan; and.
Aisha K
AK
Yousafzai
Department of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts.
Carmel
C
Salhi
Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.
Günther
G
Fink
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003906:Developing Countries; D004522:Educational Status; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D014505:Urban Population; D055815:Young Adult