The Effects of a Couples‐Based Health Behavior Intervention During Pregnancy on Latino Couples’ Dyadic Satisfaction Postpartum

• Published date: 01 September 2018
• Author: Geeta K. Swamy,Kristina Coop Gordon,Patricia N. E. Roberson,Alexander M. Khaddouma,Laura Fish,Alicia M. Gonzalez,Kathryn I. Pollak,Devon Noonan,Jessica A. Hughes
• Date: 01 September 2018
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12354

The Effects of a Couples-Based Health Behavior

Intervention During Pregnancy on Latino Couples’

Dyadic Satisfaction Postpartum

KRISTINA COOP GORDON*

PATRICIA N. E. ROBERSON

§

JESSICA A. HUGHES*

ALEXANDER M. KHADDOUMA*

GEETA K. SWAMY

†,‡

DEVON NOONAN

†,‡

ALICIA M. GONZALEZ

†,‡

LAURA FISH

†,‡

KATHRYN I. POLLAK

†,‡

Many couples tend to report steadily decreasing relationship quality following the birth

of a child. However, little is known about the postpartum period for Latino couples, a

rapidly growing ethnic group who are notably underserved by mental and physical health

caregivers in the United States. Thus, this study investigated whether a brief couples’ inter-

vention focused on helping couples support each other while increasing healthy be haviors

might improve dyadic functioning postpartum. This study presents secondary analyses of

data regarding couple functioning from a larger randomized controlled trial with 348

Latino couples to promote smoking cessation. Portions of the intervention taught the couple

communication and problem-solving skills to increase healthy behavior. Couples partici-

pated in four face-to-face assessments across 1 year starting at the end of the fir st trime-

ster. Latent growth curve analyses revealed that the treatment group reported an increase

in relationship satisfaction and constructive communication after the intervention, which

diminished by 1-year follow-up, returning couples to their baseline levels of satisfaction.

Results suggest that incorporating a brief couple intervention as part of a larger health

intervention for Latinos may prevent postpartum decreases in relationship sat isfaction.

Keywords: Couple Interventions; Latino Couples; Relationship Satisfaction; Pregnancy

Fam Proc 57:629–648, 2018

INTRODUCTION

Latinos are the largest and fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States. In fact,

recent Census data indicate that between 2000 and 2010, this group grew by more

than 15 million individuals, which made up over half of the entire population growth of

the United States (U.S. Census Bureau, 2011). However, although there is a growing body

*Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN.

†

Cancer Control and Population Sciences, Duke Cancer Institute, Durham, NC.

‡

Department of Community and Family Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC.

§

Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Kristina Coop Gordon, Department of

Psychology, University of Tennessee, 310B Austin Peay, 37996-0900 Knoxville, TN. E-mail: kgordon1@

utk.edu

This study was supported by National Cancer Institute (R01CA127307).

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Family Process, Vol. 57, No. 3, 2018 ©2018 Family Process Institute

doi: 10.1111/famp.12354

of literature on more general Latino family functioning, the literature on dyadic function-

ing in Latino couples is still small. The existing research suggests that Latino couples

might be more distressed than non-Latino couples in some areas of their relationships and

also perhaps more likely to engage in avoidant communication styles (Holt & DeVore,

2005). Furthermore, there remains a pressing need to examine how well existing couple

interventions meet the needs of this population (Daire et al., 2012; Wheeler, Updegr aff, &

Thayer, 2010). Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to conduct a secondary analysis

to examine the effects of a couples-based smoking cessation intervention delivered to

Latino couples expecting a child on their communication and relationship satisfaction.

Based on prospective data from non-Latino couples, it was expected that pregnancy

might be a sensitive and critical time period in which Latino couples might benefit from a

couples-based intervention (Halford, Petch, & Creedy, 2010; Schulz, Cowan, & Cowan,

2006; Shapiro & Gottman, 2005). In a primarily non-Latino sample, Lawrence, Rothman,

Cobb, Rothman, and Bradbury (2008) demonstrated that first-time parent couples have

greater rates of marital decline than their nonparent counterparts, even after controlling

for a number of potentially confounding variables (e.g., marital duration or remarriage).

The decline in dyadic satisfaction is steepest in the postpartum period, and this drop

occurs most drastically by 6 months after the baby’s birth (Lawrence et al., 2008). Fur-

thermore, a decline in dyadic satisfaction is found not only among nonparent couples mak-

ing the transition to parenthood, but is also present in many couples following the birth of

a new child; for example, a meta-analysis demonstrated that couples with childr en in

infancy report greater marital dissatisfaction than other couples (Twenge, Campbell, &

Foster, 2003). Thus, relationship adjustment appears to be particularly at risk during the

postpartum period for non-Latino couples, which may be due to heavy burdens in physi-

cally caring for an infant, less time for couple communication and uninterrupted attention

for each other, reduced frequency of couple time, decrease in sexuality, and decreases in

disposable income (e.g., Petch & Halford, 2008). Although these mechanisms have primar-

ily been studied in Caucasians, one might reasonably expect that these same issues would

apply to Latino couples as well. Babies still demand attention, no matter what language is

spoken in the home.

Therefore, similar to non-Latino couples, the birth of a new child into the home might

be a difficult and stressful time point for low-income Latino couples, and the burden might

be particularly heavy given the increased financial burden of a new baby (Petch & Hal-

ford, 2008), but this possibility requires more empirical investigation. Latino couples

overall, particularly Latino wives, have reported higher marital distress compared to non-

Latino couples (Negy & Snyder, 1997, 2000); however, few studies to date have examin ed

the effect of childbirth on dyadic satisfaction for Latino couples. Given that these couples

often are under strain for cultural and economic reasons, which in turn puts them at risk

for relationship distress (Vega, Kolody, & Valle, 1988), it seems likely that the potentially

stressful experience of adding another member to the household could be a critical transi-

tional period for these couples. Along these lines, and similar to prospective empirical find-

ings for non-Latino couples, retrospective, qualitative interviews with long-term Latino

couples indicated that they perceived their level of conflict increased overall in child-bear-

ing years and that this time period was a particular source of distress (Mackey & O’Brien,

1998). However, it also is possible that Latino values of familismo, which refer s to the high

priority placed on familial harmony and cohesion (Lugo Steidel & Contreras, 2003; Mar

ın

& VanOss Mar

ın, 1991), might be activated in these transition periods and thus might

buffer Latino couples from the stress incurred after the birth of a child. Consequently, it

remains unclear at this point whether Latino families experience the same declines in sat-

isfaction postpartum than do non-Latino couples; thus, research on this transition is

greatly needed.

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