Baylor Study Finds Sports Key In Father-Daughter Relationships

February 21, 2013 /
Medicalxpress.com

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-sports-game-changers-daddaughter-relationships.html#jCp

The most frequent turning point in father-daughter relationships is shared activity—especially sports—ahead of such pivotal events as when a daughter marries or leaves home, according to a study by Baylor University researchers.

“This is the masculine style of building closeness—called ’closeness in the doing’ – whereas the feminine orientation is talking, ’closeness in the dialogue,’” said Mark T. Morman, Ph.D., a professor of communication in Baylor’s College of Arts & Sciences. An article about the findings by Morman and former Baylor graduate student Elizabeth Barrett is published in the Journal of Human Communication.

When asked what key experiences changed closeness in their relationships, fathers and daughters who were study participants mentioned events typical of those that help cement masculine friendships. Morman noted that the study is qualitative – based on written responses by participants rather than by a statistical analysis. But it reveals meaningful markers of when relationships changed, regardless of whether they became closer or more distant, he said.

The 43 fathers and 43 daughters in the study were not related to one another but were asked to pinpoint in writing a crucial moment of change in their own father-daughter relationships. Daughters in the study were required to be at least age 22, while fathers ranged from 45 to 70. Adoptive and step-family relationships were among those included.

“These (turning points) . . . were independent of some type of family history,” Morman said.


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