Abstract
The objective of this study is to describe how expert public health nurses understand the characteristics of interpersonal relationships and behaviors of fathers who commit child abuse. In this study, a qualitative descriptive design was applied to data analysis. We analyzed data from eight cases as told to us through a semi-structured interview with public health nurses who had been in charge of maternal and child health services for at least 5 years at a public health center. From the nurses’ perspective, the interpersonal relationships and behavioral characteristics of fathers who committed child abuse were divided into seven categories: ‘the inability to build a good family relationship’, ‘the inability to fulfill the role of a father’, ‘the inability to build appropriate relationships with others’, ‘the inability to express feelings or thoughts’, ‘exhibiting selfish behavior’, ‘the inability to behave as a responsible member of society’, and ‘exhibiting aggressive behavior and actions’. The findings suggest the necessity for expert public health nurses to understand fathers, to be aware of the difficulty of building a supportive relationship with fathers, and to improve skills to help fathers form a good relationship with their family members.
