Skip to Main Content
UCLA Logo Center for Reproductive Science Health & Education

Dr. Darby Saxbe: Neurobiological Changes in Fathers

Do fathers experience neurobiological changes during the postpartum period similar to that of mothers? Stephanie sits down with Dr. Darby Saxbe, PhD, Professor of Psychology at the University of Southern California, as they explore this transition to parenthood as a window of neuroplasticity. The two dive into the influence of specific hormones such as prolactin, why fathers have been understudied, and the importance of social connection in society today.

Curious about a specific topic? Here’s what we cover:

0:45 Introduction to Dr. Saxbe

2:22 Prolactin and its effect on fathers

5:52 Using the word “attachment” versus “bonding” in research

7:24 Link between fathers’ birth experiences and paternal mental health

12:22 Resiliency for couples through birth and postpartum

14:20 Mothers’ birth stress and postpartum outcomes

15:38 How and/or why fathers’ mental health has changed

19:36 Should we be screening fathers’ mental health or no?

24:24 What surprised Dr. Saxbe the most while conducting her research

26:27 Parenting and its neuroprotective effects

31:10 Future directions for Dr. Saxbe’s research

Recent Research

Cortical volume reductions in men transitioning to first-time fatherhood reflect both parenting engagement and mental health risk (https://academic.oup.com/cercor/article-abstract/34/4/bhae126/7645338?redirectedFrom=fulltext&login=false)

Prenatal prolactin predicts postnatal parenting attitudes and brain structure remodeling in first-time fathers (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306453023003104?via%3Dihub)

Fathers’ subjective childbirth stress predicts depressive symptoms at six months postpartum (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306453023003104?via%3Dihub)

Prenatal testosterone synchrony in first-time parents predicts fathers’ postpartum relationship quality (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0018506X23001381?via%3Dihub)

Changes in hippocampal volume in first-time fathers: Associations with oxytocin, testosterone, and adaptation to parenthood (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jne.13270)

Dr. Darby Saxbe

NeuroEndocrinology of Social Ties Lab (https://dornsife.usc.edu/nestlab/)

Biography

Dr. Saxbe has studied the transformative impact of new parenthood on the brain, body, and mind, as well as the enduring legacy of early family environments on child well-being. Her current work focuses on the transition to parenthood and follows couples from pregnancy into the first year postpartum. One of her studies examines the “fathering brain,” using neuroimaging to scan fathers both prenatally and again postpartum. She has also examined physiological synchrony within families and has published multiple studies that find hormonal linkage within couples and parent-child dyads. Her research has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, and she received a Fulbright Fellowship to study the parenting brain in Spain in Fall 2019. Her first book, Dad Brain, is forthcoming from Flatiron Books in Spring 2026.