Partners, parents & childrearing beliefs: couple satisfaction during the transition to parenthood and attitudes towards child maltreatment across countries and caregivers

Woudstra, M.J. (2022)

Doctoral Thesis

The first aim of this dissertation was to examine predictors of (change in) couple satisfaction during the transition to parenthood. We found that couple satisfaction on average decreased from pregnancy until 4 months postpartum. The decrease in couple satisfaction in first time parents was found in both mothers and fathers and in multiple countries, including the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States (Chapter 2), and also in China from 4 until 14 months postpartum (Chapter 4). The decrease was stronger for parents who had more postpartum mental health problems (Chapter 2). In Chapter 3 we examined the association between couple satisfaction, mental health problems, and parental sensitivity from pregnancy until 24 months postpartum. We found additional evidence for the interrelatedness of couple satisfaction and mental health problems. Specifically, couple satisfaction predicted later mental health problems for both mothers and fathers. We found no associations between mental health problems and parental sensitivity, and little evidence for the association between couple satisfaction and parental sensitivity (the latter only for mothers).
The second aim was to examine attitudes about child maltreatment across caregivers and countries. We found that on average Chinese and Dutch mothers, fathers, and teachers did not differ in their ideas about the rank order of harmfulness of behaviors commonly labeled as child maltreatment. In addition, for both countries and for the three groups we found higher thresholds for labeling the behaviors as maltreatment and the perceived need for intervention by a professional than for the need for intervention by a non-professional. In both countries and across the three groups physical abuse was labeled as the most harmful form of child maltreatment and emotional neglect as the least harmful form. However, Chinese participants had higher thresholds than Dutch participants with regard to the need for intervention
and labeling the behaviors as maltreatment.

• Couple satisfaction
• Transition to parenthood
• Child maltreatment
• Childrearing attitudes
• Culture
• Parent gender

• All authors: Woudstra, M.J.
• Supervisor: Mesman, J.; Alink, L.R.A.
• Co-supervisor: Emmen, R.A.G.
• Committee: Vedder, P.H.; Steketee, M.J.; Keijzer, R.; Bos, P.A.; Wang, L.
• Qualification: Doctor (dr.)
• Awarding Institution: Leiden Institute of Education and Child Studies, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Leiden University
• Date: 2022-02-01
• ISBN (print): 9789464236064
• Sponsorship: The research described in Chapters 2, 3, and 4 of this thesis was supported by: the Economic and Social Research Council, grant number ES/L010648/1 to Dr. Claire Hughes PhD, the National Science Foundation, grant number BCS-1429152 to Dr. Clancy Blair, PhD, and the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research, grant number NWO 464-13-141 to Dr. Judi Mesman, PhD.