Table 2 Main findings from the studies

De Stasio et al. [60]

There were no correlations between paternal bedtime and global involvement with the paternal report of a child’s emotional lability/emotion regulation. Correlations were present with the maternal report of the child’s emotional lability/emotion regulation, such that when the father involvement was low, the greater were the emotion regulation difficulties reported by mothers (r = − .35, p < .01, bedtime involvement; r = − .27, p < .05, global involvement).

Aquino et al. [61]

Children of fathers who were disengaged during an interaction with them at 8 months displayed more emotional underregulation at 24 months (β = 0.27, p < .01). More displays of paternal minimizing responses were related to greater child emotional underregulation at 24 months (β = 0.41, p < .001). Greater father involvement was related to greater children’s emotional underregulation at 24 months (β = 0.191, p < .05).

Bocknek et al. [62]

Greater consistent biological fathers’ presence correlates with greater child emotion regulation at 24 months (r = .06, p < .05) and 36 months (r = .07, p < .05), but not at 14 months. Consistent biological fathers’ presence links to toddlers’ regulatory development across toddlerhood, particularly among Caucasians as compared with African American toddlers (effect size not reported).

Planalp & Braungart-Rieker [63]

Infants lower in Surgency with a highly involved father increased Self-distraction at a faster rate (but not in Self-comforting regulatory strategy), particularly with highly involved fathers (effect size not reported).

Isaac et al. [68]

Greater fathers’ authoritarian parenting (r = .23, p < .05) and physical coercion (r = .26, p < .05) correlated with higher hair cortisol concentration. Fathers’ authoritative and permissive parenting and fathers’ non-reasoning/punitive did not correlate with children’s physiological stress.

Richter & Lickenbrock [69]

At 4 months, infant cardiac physiology (i.e., RSA) correlates with father involvement in play (r = .22, p < .05) and does not correlate with father involvement in care. At 8 months, infant cardiac physiology (i.e., RSA) correlates with father involvement in care (r = .36, p < .01) and does not correlate with father involvement in play. Infants with highly involved fathers in care have higher baseline RSA (β = 0.34, p = .001), typically associated with better emotion regulation. Fathers’ play is not significant.

Olofson and Schoppe-Sullivan [70]

The father’s parenting behaviors are not associated with the mother’s infant-toddler dysregulation.

Altenburger & Schoppe-Sullivan [71]

Children’s negative emotionality score does not correlate with paternal sensitivity, detachment, and positive affect. Children’s orienting and regulatory capacity score correlate with positive affect (r = .16, p < .05) and do not correlate with paternal sensitivity and detachment.

Lunkenheimer et al. [72]

Higher paternal responsiveness and expressiveness were both not related to children’s lower negative arousal with fathers. However, they were both related to children’s lower negative arousal with mothers (r = − .295, p < .01, paternal responsiveness; r = − .237, p < .05, paternal expressiveness).

Burniston et al. [75]

Greater paternal supportive emotion socialization was significantly associated with children’s higher total cortisol output (β = 0.31, p < .05).