With the consolidation of fathers’ engagement in caregiving, understanding the neuroendocrine and hormonal mechanisms underlying fatherhood becomes a relevant topic. Oxytocin (OT) has been linked with maternal bonding and caregiving, but less is known about the role of OT in human fatherhood and paternal caregiving. A systematic review of methods and findings of previous OT research in human fathers was carried. The literature search on PubMed and Scopus yielded 133 records. Twenty-four studies were included and analyzed. Significant variability emerged in OT methodology, including laboratory tasks, assessment methods, and outcome measures. Fathers’ OT levels appear to increase after childbirth. OT was significantly correlated with less hostility and with the quality of paternal physical stimulation in play interactions, but not with paternal sensitivity. Fathers’ and children's OT levels were significantly correlated in a limited subset of studies, intriguingly suggesting that cross-generational OT regulation may occur during the early years of life. This study highlights relevant issues and limitations of peripheral OT assessment in human subjects, especially in fathers. Although the study of paternal neuroendocrinology appears promising, coping with these issues requires dedicated efforts and methodological suggestions are provided to guide future advances in this field.

中文翻译：

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对人类父亲催产素的系统评价：对方法论和我们目前所知的见解

随着父亲参与照顾的巩固，了解父亲身份背后的神经内分泌和激素机制成为一个相关话题。催产素 (OT) 与母体关系和照顾有关，但关于 OT 在人类父亲和父亲照顾中的作用知之甚少。对先前对人类父亲的 OT 研究的方法和结果进行了系统评价。在 PubMed 和 Scopus 上的文献检索产生了 133 条记录。纳入并分析了 24 项研究。OT 方法学出现显着差异，包括实验室任务、评估方法和结果测量。父亲的 OT 水平在分娩后似乎会增加。OT与较少的敌意和游戏互动中父亲身体刺激的质量显着相关，但没有父亲的敏感性。在有限的研究子集中，父亲和孩子的 OT 水平显着相关，有趣的是，跨代 OT 调节可能发生在生命的早期。本研究强调了人类受试者，尤其是父亲中外周 OT 评估的相关问题和局限性。尽管父亲神经内分泌学的研究看起来很有希望，但应对这些问题需要付出专门的努力，并提供方法学建议来指导该领域的未来进展。本研究强调了人类受试者，尤其是父亲中外周 OT 评估的相关问题和局限性。尽管父亲神经内分泌学的研究看起来很有希望，但应对这些问题需要付出专门的努力，并提供方法学建议来指导该领域的未来进展。本研究强调了人类受试者，尤其是父亲中外周 OT 评估的相关问题和局限性。尽管父亲神经内分泌学的研究看起来很有希望，但应对这些问题需要付出专门的努力，并提供方法学建议来指导该领域的未来进展。