Tavares Inês M, Rosen Natalie O, Heiman Julia R, Nobre Pedro J
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Department of Gynaecology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Fam Process. 2024 Mar;63(1):192-209. doi: 10.1111/famp.12859. Epub 2023 Jan 31.
There is limited understanding of the dynamic between relational and sexual well-being as couples adjust to new parenthood, despite this being a vulnerable period for couples' relationships. This study was aimed at examining the bidirectional links between relationship quality and sexual well-being (i.e., sexual satisfaction, sexual distress) across the transition to parenthood. We assessed new parent couples (N = 257) across four time points (two prenatal) from mid-pregnancy through 6 months postpartum. Parallel dyadic latent growth curve modeling was employed to examine the associations between trajectories of perceived relationship quality, sexual satisfaction, and sexual distress. New parents' declines in relationship quality were associated with declines in own and partners' sexual satisfaction and with increases in own sexual distress. Mothers' prenatal relationship quality and sexual distress predicted subsequent changes in own sexual distress and fathers' relationship quality, respectively. Results indicate that changes to new parents' relational and sexual well-being mutually influence each other over time. Current results indicate that the impact of the transition on couples' relationships is partly determined by own and partners' prenatal factors, to which clinicians and researchers can attend to early on. Cross-domain links between relational and sexual well-being should be considered in research and clinical practice.
尽管新为人父母的阶段是夫妻关系的脆弱时期，但人们对夫妻适应新角色时关系幸福与性幸福之间的动态关系了解有限。本研究旨在探讨为人父母过渡期间关系质量与性幸福（即性满意度、性困扰）之间的双向联系。我们评估了257对新父母夫妻，从怀孕中期到产后6个月共四个时间点（两个产前时间点）。采用平行双变量潜在增长曲线模型来检验感知到的关系质量、性满意度和性困扰轨迹之间的关联。新父母关系质量的下降与自身及伴侣性满意度的下降以及自身性困扰的增加有关。母亲产前的关系质量和性困扰分别预测了自身性困扰和父亲关系质量的后续变化。结果表明，随着时间推移，新父母的关系幸福和性幸福变化相互影响。目前的结果表明，过渡对夫妻关系的影响部分取决于自身及伴侣的产前因素，临床医生和研究人员可以尽早关注这些因素。在研究和临床实践中应考虑关系幸福与性幸福之间的跨领域联系。
