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Using a Comparative Species Approach to Investigate the Neurobiology of Paternal Responses
07:59

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Published on: September 19, 2011

Scent of a father: Paternal body odors boost interbrain synchrony

Yaara Endevelt-Shapira1,2, Linoy Schwartz1, Ruth Feldman1

  • 1Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel.

Science Advances
|July 15, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Infants respond to paternal body odors (BO), enhancing brain synchrony and attention. Paternal BO aid infant social brain development and learning, even in the father's absence.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Olfactory Communication

Background:

  • Mammalian infants use maternal body odors (BO) for bonding and learning.
  • The impact of paternal BO on infant brain development remains largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate infant responses to paternal body odors (BO).
  • To assess how paternal BO influence infant brain maturation and interbrain synchrony.
  • To understand the role of fathers in infant neural development.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized dual-electroencephalography (EEG) to record interbrain synchrony between infants and fathers/strangers.
  • Employed ecologically-valid, naturalistic interaction paradigms.
  • Assessed the effects of paternal body odors (BO) on infant-stranger interactions.

Main Results:

  • Infants exhibited greater interbrain synchrony with their fathers than with strangers.
  • Paternal BO increased infant-stranger interbrain synchrony and positive arousal.
  • Fathers' presence, signaled by BO, enhanced cross-hemisphere alpha connectivity, crucial for attention regulation.

Conclusions:

  • Infants process paternal olfactory cues, associating them with the father's presence.
  • Paternal BO contribute to infant brain maturation, particularly in attention regulation.
  • Paternal olfactory signals support infant associative learning and cognitive development.

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