ABSTRACT

Family systems theory suggests that the family is an organized system in which different subsystems influence each other within and across levels, such as across dyadic and higher-order family-level systems. It is therefore expected that dyadic mother – child and father – child relationships contribute to shape relational processes that take place at the triadic mother – father – child level. Consequently, this study examined whether the quality of mother – child and father – child interactions in toddlerhood was associated with subsequent quality of the coparenting relationship during mother – father – child triadic interactions in kindergarten. When children were aged 18 months, mother – child and father – child interactions were assessed observationally with 136 families. Four and a half years later, the quality of the coparenting relationship was assessed during triadic interactions. Analyses revealed that fathers (but not mothers) who had higher-quality dyadic interactions with their toddler had better coparenting interactions with their spouse four and a half years later. This prediction held above child temperament and both parents’ marital satisfaction. These results highlight that the quality of father – child relationships may be centrally involved in the development of the coparenting alliance across the preschool years.

摘要

家庭系统理论认为，家庭是一个有组织的系统，其中不同的子系统在层次内和层次间相互影响，例如跨二元和更高阶的家庭层次系统。因此，预计二元母子关系和父子关系有助于形成发生在三元母子层面的关系过程。因此，本研究调查了幼儿期母子和父子互动的质量是否与幼儿园母子三元互动期间共同养育关系的后续质量相关。当孩子 18 个月大时，对 136 个家庭进行了母子互动和父子互动的观察评估。四年半后，共同养育关系的质量在三元互动期间进行了评估。分析显示，父亲（但不是母亲）与幼儿的二元互动质量更高，四年半后与配偶的共同养育互动更好。这一预测高于孩子的气质和父母双方的婚姻满意度。这些结果突出表明，父子关系的质量可能是整个学龄前共同抚养联盟发展的核心。