The transition to parenthood for Australian heterosexual couples: expectations, experiences and the partner relationship
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: The perinatal period precipitates significant intra- and inter- personal changes. How heterosexual couples understand and account for such changes, however, has received relatively little attention. METHODS: Semi-structured individual interviews were undertaken as part of a longitudinal study on planned first-time parenthood. This article reports on an inductive thematic analysis of a data corpus focused on six interview questions (three from interviews conducted during pregnancy, and three from interviews conducted six months after the birth of the child), derived from interviews with eight individuals (4 women and 4 men) comprising four couples. RESULTS: In antenatal interviews, the theme of intrapersonal changes differentiated participants by two sub-themes that were then linked to postpartum experiences. Those who 'prepared for the worst' reported positive experiences after the arrival of a child, whilst participants who during pregnancy viewed life after the arrival of a child as 'an unknown' experienced challenges. Similarly in terms of the theme of interpersonal change, antenatal interviews were linked to postpartum experiences by two sub-themes, such that participants who approached the impending arrival of a child as a team effort reported that the arrival of a child cemented their relationship, whilst participants who expected that the couple relationship would buffer child-related stressors experienced challenges. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight the importance of a focus in antenatal education on the psychological effects of new parenthood, and support for the couple relationship during the perinatal period.
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Couples who envisioned the changed future with a child necessitating a team effort reported greater marital satisfaction compared with those who assumed the couple relationship would buffer child-related stressors.
“Couples who envisioned the changed future with a child necessitating a team effort reported greater marital satisfaction compared with those who assumed the couple relationship would buffer child-related stressors.96”
From The transition to parenthood in obstetrics: enhancing prenatal care for 2-generation impact (2022) · cites this paper as [96]
Studies show that parents' prenatal expectations of postpartum experiences impact intrapersonal adjustment to parenting and interpersonal couple functioning.
“Studies show that parents’ prenatal expectations of these postpartum experiences impact intrapersonal adjustment to parenting and interpersonal couple functioning.95,96”
From The transition to parenthood in obstetrics: enhancing prenatal care for 2-generation impact (2022) · cites this paper as [96]
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The transition to parenthood in obstetrics: enhancing prenatal care for 2-generation impact
Monk, C., Dimidjian, S., Galinsky, E., Gregory, K. D., Hoffman, M. C., Howell, E. A., Miller, E. S., Osborne, C., Rogers, C. E., Saxbe, D. E., et al. (2022) · American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology MFM · doi:10.1016/j.ajogmf.2022.100678 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
- Authors
- Riggs, D. W., Worth, A., & Bartholomaeus, C.
- Affiliations
- Flinders University (AU)
- The University of Adelaide (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Riggs, Damien W.
- Venue
- BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth
- Published
- 2018-08-22
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 342-342
- ISSN
- 1471-2393 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC6106754
- OpenAlex
- W2887999708
- Cited by
- 21
- References
- 29
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 3.62
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Adelaide Research & Scholarship (AR&S) (University of Adelaide) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Flinders Academic Commons (Flinders University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Flinders Academic Commons (Flinders University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Australian Research Council (FT130100087)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Keywords
- transition to parenthood, heterosexual couples, perinatal period, prenatal education, couple relationships, postpartum experience, interpersonal change
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Psychological, Australia, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Parents, Pregnancy, Sexual Partners, Parenting, Heterosexuality, Postpartum Period
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