Neither Parents’ Sex Nor the Type of Family Modulates Attentional Bias Toward Infant Faces: A Preliminary Study in Different-Sex and Same-Sex Parents

An attentional bias toward infant versus adult faces has been detected in parents and positively associated with sensitive caregiving behaviors. In previous research, the attentional bias has been measured as the diference in attention, in terms of reaction times, captured by infant versus adult faces; the larger the diference, the greater the cognitive engagement that adults deployed to infant faces. However, research so far has been mostly confned to samples of mothers, who have been more represented than fathers. Moreover, new family forms, especially same-sex families of men, have been left out of research. To clarify potential sex diferences and extend previous fndings to diverse family forms, we implemented a modifed Go/no-Go attentional task measuring attentional bias to infant faces in parents with children aged from 2 to 36 months. The sample (N=86) was matched and included 22 fathers and 22 mothers from diferent-sex families and 20 fathers and 22 mothers from same-sex families. Overall, the results confrmed that infant faces induced a greater attentional bias compared to adult faces. Moreover, we found that neither the type of family nor parents’ sex modulated the attentional bias toward infant faces. The findings are discussed in relation to the importance of understanding the correlates of parental response to infant cues going beyond a heteronormative perspective on parenting.