Traditionally, research about the link between a caretaker’s
and a child’s mental health has focused on mothers. But a team of researchers has
officially shown that it ain’t just the womenfolk who screw up their kids.
University of Oxford researchers found that teenagers with
depressed dads are more likely to be depressed themselves and to have suicidal
thoughts. Kids whose fathers suffer from generalized anxiety disorder are twice
as likely to have anxiety themselves. And paternal alcoholism is associated
with a whole range of behavioral problems in children (particularly sons), including
substance abuse, poor academic performance, and low self-esteem.
Having grown up with a father who struggles with depression, I find this study most important for its societal implications. Whether
or not my own depression was imparted to me by my dad—either biologically or
relationally—my father is the person who has helped me the most when I’m going
through a depressive episode because he understands exactly what I’m
experiencing and he’s committed to helping me through it.
But my father’s willingness to openly discuss personal
problems is rare among men. As researchers point out, men are more
reticent than women to seek help in managing mental health problems. I suspect
that this reticence could have a greater effect on children than a father’s
mental state, particularly for sons who are taught to adopt a “tough guy”
mentality for dealing with emotional difficulties.
Photo: BBC
