It has long been thought that the key to empathy is the mother-child connection—that if a mother is loving and nurturing, the child will learn by her compassionate example. But new studies suggest that it is the involvement of the father that is the most important variable in the development of empathy in children—in particular, his ability to be both warm and to set limits on unacceptable behavior.
ATTRIBUTION:
Victoria Secunda (20th century), U.S. psychologist and author. Women and Their Fathers, ch. 5 (1992).
