Father–Child Play: What Types of Play Do Fathers Engage in With Their Daughters and Sons?
Hayriye Kamrak, Merve Canbeldek Erol, Ahmet ErolABSTRACT
Objective
This study aimed to investigate the types of play that fathers in Turkey engage in with their children aged 4–6 years and to examine whether these plays differ according to the child's gender.
Background
Despite the importance of fathers in child development, limited evidence exists on father–child play and gender differences in play activities in Turkey.
Methods
A qualitative descriptive design was employed. A total of 314 fathers were recruited through convenience sampling from preschool institutions in Turkey. Data consisted of 1888 play activities recorded in a semi‐structured seven‐day diary. Fathers' reports were analyzed using deductive content analysis based on Whitebread's play framework, and frequency distributions and chi‐square analyses were conducted.
Results
Physical play was the most frequently reported category (35.4%), followed by rule‐based play (27.1%), object play (19.1%), socio‐dramatic play (13.8%), and symbolic play (2.9%). The most reported activities were ball play, hide‐and‐seek, and construction‐based play. Fathers spent an average of 226 min playing with their children across the 7 days. Play preferences differed significantly by gender, with medium effect sizes favoring boys for car play and football, and favoring girls for coloring/drawing, pretend house/role play, and dancing.
Conclusion
Fathers in Turkey predominantly played physically active and rule‐based games with their children, although some activities varied according to the child's gender.
Implications
Findings provide insights into the characteristics of paternal play in Turkey and highlight the importance of addressing gendered play patterns in father education programs.