Psychological adjustment in childbearing couples : the application of a general model of psychological health

Childbearing is widely considered to be detrimental to psychological health. However, research in this area has typically employed simplistic models and poorly defined and operationalised constructs to account for the negative outcomes of childbearing to the exclusion of examining possible positive outcomes. While there has been much research examining the impact of this event on women who are having their first child, the study of its effect on fathers and individuals who already have children has been neglected. This study applies a general model of psychological health, developed out of the extant mood, personality, and psychological health literatures, to the specific context of childbearing. Using the theoretical formulations of Gray (1973), Tellegen (1985), and Staats (1975), a model of psychological health that integrates emotional temperaments, self-regulation, and external events is developed to account for the psychological health dimensions of well-being/positive affect and distress/negative affect. Primiparous and multiparous childbearing couples (N= 116) were recruited into the study and psychological health was assessed in the second and third trimester of pregnancy, ten days after the birth of the baby, and at three months postpartum. Self-reports of positive affect increased marginally through the study period. Changes in negative affect were more complex with differential effects for both parity and sex. Contrary to the 'maternity blues' hypothesis, the immediate postpartum period was the maximal point of positive affect for both women and men, irrespective of parity, and only the maximal point of negative affect for primiparous women. The broader well-being and distress measures failed to support the view that 'first-time' parents found childbearing more stressful than 'experienced' parents. Multiparous parents reported more distress and less well-being than primiparous parents throughout the study. Overall, levels of well-being decreased and levels of distress increased from the second trimester to three months postpartum. Using structural equation modelling, it was concluded that confirmatory factor analyses supported the hypothesised reward and punishment sensitivity measurement model. However, significant problems emerged in the use of spouse-rated trait affect and the EPQ Extraversion scale as indicators of emotional temperaments. Overall, the hypothesised path model of general psychological health was not supported, either when outcomes were operationalised as positive and negative affect or psychological well-being and distress. The mood self-regulation construct consistently failed to significantly influence psychological health. While there was some instability in the path estimates of the observed models, there was support for the view that reward sensitivity and pleasant events influenced well-being related outcomes while punishment sensitivity and unpleasant events influenced distress related outcomes. Limitations of the study in terms of the sample size and representativeness are discussed. Future research examining interactional models of psychological health, coping constructs, and employing larger samples studied over a more extended period is recommended.