TEASING: THE SPIRIT OF MALE COMMUNICATION

Physical and verbal teasing is the way dads connect with their kids. Michelle wasn't thrilled when, thanks to Tim, five-year-old Blake's favorite phrase had become "You're a poo-poo head," which he would often say while vigorously pointing to his rear end. But for Blake and Tim, it was just part of their fun.

Dads employ teasing with sons and daughters, but their daughters usually don't like it as much as their sons. Daughters will soon try to divert Dad and assign him a part in the role-playing games girls prefer. (And most dads are usually willing to go along with whatever roles their little girls give them.) Boys, on the other hand, love the teasing games and will actively egg Dad on, trying almost anything to get his goat. Researchers have found that this kind of father-child play improves children's ability to guess what's on another person's mind and to recognize mental tricks and deceits. And for sons, this playful teasing with Dad establishes the foundation for building close connections with other males later in life. By the time Blake was six, he and Tim could banter mock insults for longer than Michelle could stand to listen.