A Longitudinal Study of Parental Depressive Symptoms and Coparenting in the First 18 Months

• Author: Paolo Ghisletta,Hervé Tissot,France Frascarolo,Jean‐Nicolas Despland,Nicolas Favez
• Published date: 01 June 2017
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12213
• Date: 01 June 2017

A Longitudinal Study of Parental Depressive

Symptoms and Coparenting in the First 18 Months

HERV



E TISSOT*

NICOLAS FAVEZ*

,†

PAOLO GHISLETTA*

,†

FRANCE FRASCAROLO

‡

JEAN-NICOLAS DESPLAND

‡

Although the negative impact of postpartum depression on parenting behaviors has been

well established—albeit separately—for mothers and fathers, the respective and joint

impact of both parents’ mood on family-group interactive behaviors, such as copa renting

support and conflict behaviors between the parents, have not yet been investigated. The

aim of this study was to examine the association between parental depressive symptoms

and coparenting behaviors in a low-risk sample of families with infants, expl oring

reciprocity between the variables, as well as gender differences between mothers and

fathers regarding these links. At 3 (T1), 9 (T2), and 18 months postpartum (T3), we

assessed both parents’ depressive symptoms with a self-report questionnaire and ob served

coparenting support and conflict during triadic mother–father–child interactions. The

results revealed that higher maternal depressive symptoms at T1 were associated with

lower support at T1 and T2. Conflict at T3 was associated with higher maternal depressive

symptoms at T3 and, more surprisingly, with less depressive symptoms in mothers at T2

and fathers at T3. Cross-lagged associations suggested that parental depressive symp toms

were more likely to influence coparenting than the reverse. Moreover, maternal depressive

symptoms were more likely to be linked to coparenting behaviors than were paternal

depressive symptoms. These results confirm that parental—mostly maternal—depressive

symptoms, even of mild intensity, may jeopardize the development of healthy family-level

relations, which previous research has shown to be crucial for child development.

Keywords: Coparenting; Longitudinal study; Maternal depression; Paternal depression;

Triadic interactions

Fam Proc 56:445–458, 2017

INTRODUCTION

Parental depressive symptoms following the birth of a child are common, and approxi-

mately 15% of mothers and 8% of fathers meet the criteria for clinical depression in

the first months postpartum (Gawlik et al., 2014; Ramchandani, Stein, Evans, & O’Con-

nor, 2005). Depression in either mothers or fathers is likely to negatively affect the par-

ent–child (Connell & Goodman, 2002; Sethna, Murray, & Ramchandani, 2012) and the

*FPSE, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.

†

Distance Learning University, Switzerland.

‡

Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Center, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Herv

e Tissot, Uni-Mail, Room 5163,

Bd du Pont d’Arve 40, CH-1205 Geneva, Switzerland. E-mail: herve.tissot@unige.ch.

This research was supported by Grant 32003B_125493 from the Swiss National Science Foundation.

445

Family Process, Vol. 56, No. 2, 2017 ©2016 Family Process Institute

doi: 10.1111/famp.12213