Prenatal parental representations: Influences on perceived romantic couple adjustment and infant's temperament during pregnancy and after the infant's birth
In: Family relations, Band 71, Heft 2, S. 750-765
ISSN: 1741-3729
AbstractObjectiveThe present work aimed to evaluate the differences between fathers' and mothers' prenatal parental representations, the differences between pre‐ and postnatal perceptions of couple adjustment, and whether the quality of prenatal parental representations is associated with the perception of couple adjustment and with the perception of infant temperament at 3 months.BackgroundWithin a multifactorial, transactional model, several studies indicated that prenatal parental representations are relevant to the quality of infant–parent relationship and the child's development.MethodCouples experiencing their first pregnancy (n = 40) (mothers: Mage = 33.7 years, SD = 5,1 years; fathers: (Mage = 37.4 years, SD = 5.6 years) responded to the Parental Representations Interview During Pregnancy and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale during the seventh month of pregnancy. When couples' infant was 3 months of age, the parents completed the Infant Behavior Questionnaire‐R to assess infant temperament.ResultsAnalyses revealed that mothers and fathers who had an unbalanced and unintegrated parental representation perceived their couple adjustment as less cohesive, and this was related to a more negative perception of the child's temperament.ConclusionsPrenatal parental representations were found to be a significant variable in terms of their influence on the quality of pre‐ and postnatal parents' romantic couple adjustment and on the infant's temperament.ImplicationsIt is important to include both mothers and fathers to further our understanding of parental influence on a child's development and to enhance the efficacy of preventive programs since pregnancy.