ABSTRACT

Toddlers’ sleep difficulties have mainly been investigated from the mother’s point of view, despite the fact that paternal implication seems to influence young children’s sleep quality. This qualitative study aims to better understand how fathers experience toddlers’ sleep difficulties by examining their sleep-related cognitions and strategies used to solve their child’s sleep problems. Thirty-six French fathers of children aged between 9 months and 4 years old answered to a semi-directive interview. Thematic analysis revealed that cognitions seeking to understand the sleep difficulties were mainly related to immediate child-related factors such as physical discomfort or psychological need. A variety of strategies were reported: technical solutions were the most frequently represented, followed by limit-setting, physical comfort, and for some, a lack of strategy. Most fathers also expressed how the difficulties affected them. The results bring out clinical perspectives that can help promote fathers’ implication in the improvement of children’s sleep consolidation.

摘要

尽管父亲的暗示似乎会影响幼儿的睡眠质量，但主要从母亲的角度调查幼儿的睡眠困难。这项定性研究旨在通过检查父亲与睡眠相关的认知和用于解决孩子睡眠问题的策略，更好地了解父亲如何体验幼儿的睡眠困难。36 名孩子年龄在 9 个月到 4 岁之间的法国父亲接受了半定向访谈。主题分析显示，寻求理解睡眠困难的认知主要与直接的儿童相关因素有关，例如身体不适或心理需要。报告了各种策略：最常出现的是技术解决方案，其次是限制设置、身体舒适度，对于某些人来说，缺乏策略。大多数父亲还表达了困难对他们的影响。结果带来的临床观点可以帮助促进父亲对改善儿童睡眠巩固的影响。