Millions of couples navigate the transition from pregnancy to postpartum in a given year, and this period of change and adjustment in the family is associated with elevated risk for intimate relationship dysfunction. Self-compassion has the potential to promote skills that are essential for healthy adaptation (e.g., emotion regulation, greater openness and flexibility, and more awareness of the needs of oneself and one's partner). The overarching goal of the present study was to investigate the role of self-compassion in intimate relationship quality during pregnancy. A sample of 159 couples completed semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. Parents engaging in more compassionate self-responding during pregnancy have higher-quality intimate relationships as measured across multiple facets—the degree of emotional intimacy and closeness in the relationship, adaptive conflict management and resolution, high-quality support in response to stress, and a high degree of respect and acceptance directed toward each other. Furthermore, compassionate self-responding emerged as a mediator of the link between attachment security and intimate relationship quality. Specifically, mothers who were higher in attachment anxiety reported lower levels of compassionate self-responding, which in turn undermined multiple dimensions of the intimate relationship. Furthermore, fathers who were higher in attachment avoidance practiced less self-compassion, which have deleterious consequences for the couple. These results provide implications that can inform conceptual frameworks of intimate relationship quality and clinical implications for interventions targeting the transition into parenthood.

中文翻译：

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自我同情在怀孕夫妇的依恋安全与亲密关系质量之间起中介作用

数以百万计的夫妇在某一年经历了从怀孕到产后的过渡，而这段家庭的变化和调整时期与亲密关系功能障碍的风险增加有关。自我同情有可能促进对健康适应至关重要的技能（例如，情绪调节、更大的开放性和灵活性，以及​​对自己和伴侣需求的更多认识）。本研究的首要目标是调查自我同情在怀孕期间亲密关系质量中的作用。159 对夫妇的样本完成了半结构化访谈和问卷调查。在怀孕期间进行更有同情心的自我反应的父母拥有更高质量的亲密关系，从多个方面衡量——关系中的情感亲密程度和亲密程度、适应性冲突管理和解决、应对压力的高质量支持，以及对彼此的高度尊重和接纳。此外，富有同情心的自我回应成为依恋安全和亲密关系质量之间联系的中介。具体来说，依恋焦虑程度较高的母亲报告的富有同情心的自我反应水平较低，这反过来又破坏了亲密关系的多个方面。此外，依恋回避程度较高的父亲较少自我同情，这对这对夫妇产生了有害的后果。