Abstract
We tested the prospective associations between coparenting relationship quality and breastfeeding duration among 164 dual-earner, cisgender, heterosexual couples identifying as mothers and fathers at the transition to parenthood. We hypothesized that mothers who perceived higher quality (more supportive and less undermining) coparenting relationships would breastfeed for a longer duration. At 3 months after childbirth, mothers reported their perceptions of coparenting relationship quality using the Coparenting Relationship Scale. Mothers reported their breastfeeding behaviors at four time points—when their infant was 3, 6, 9 months and 12–36 months old. Survival analysis revealed that higher quality coparenting relationships were associated with longer breastfeeding duration. This association was only observed among families of girls. This study highlights the interactive role of coparenting relationship quality and infant sex as proximal contexts that may shape breastfeeding practices.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 2878-2891 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | Journal of Social and Personal Relationships |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue number | 9 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Sep 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research was funded by the National Science Foundation (Grant CAREER 0,746,548, awarded to S.J.S.-S.), with additional support from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (Grant 1K-1HD056238, awarded to C.M.K.D.) and The Ohio State University’s Institute for Population Research (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Grant R24HD058484) and program in Human Development and Family Science.
Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2023.
Keywords
- Breastfeeding duration
- coparenting relationships
- infant sex