Co‐parenting and parenting behaviour: The role of parent mental health for mothers and fathers in the postnatal period

The relationship between co‐parenting, parent mental health and parenting remains unclear for parents during the postnatal period, particularly fathers. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to investigate these relationships for families in the postnatal period. Routinely collected self‐repor...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Child & family social work 2023-11, Vol.28 (4), p.1203-1213
Main Authors: Schulz, Madison L., Wood, Catherine E., Giallo, Rebecca
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Childhood
Community health services
Families & family life
Fathers
Health behavior
Hostility
Intervention
Mental health
Parenthood education
Parents & parenting
Path analysis
Postpartum period
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Summary:The relationship between co‐parenting, parent mental health and parenting remains unclear for parents during the postnatal period, particularly fathers. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to investigate these relationships for families in the postnatal period. Routinely collected self‐report data from 138 mothers and 138 fathers participating in Family Foundations, a co‐parenting intervention facilitated by a community health service in Melbourne, were used. Path analysis revealed that for mothers, more supportive co‐parenting was associated with fewer mental health difficulties and, in turn, low parenting hostility and high parenting warmth. For fathers, supportive co‐parenting was associated with fewer mental health difficulties, which was associated with low parenting hostility but not parenting warmth. Co‐parenting was also directly associated with parenting warmth and hostility for fathers. The findings highlighted some key differences between mothers and fathers and the importance of interventions targeting the co‐parenting relationship during early childhood.
ISSN:1356-7500
1365-2206
DOI:10.1111/cfs.13042