The Dresden Study on Parenting, Work, and Mental Health (“ DR esdner Studie zu E lternschaft, A rbeit, und M entaler Gesundheit”, DREAM ) aims to prospectively investigate the relationship between parental work participation, role distribution, stress factors, and their effects on perinatal outcomes and long-term family mental and somatic health in a community sample targeting N = 4,000 individuals, i.e., 2,000 couples, expecting a child and residing in Dresden, Germany (interim sample of N = 1,410 participants, recruitment ongoing). Various questionnaires are completed at four measurement points from pregnancy to 2 years postpartum (prolongation into middle childhood planned). Applying a multi-method approach, long-term endocrinological data (analyses of hair cortisol concentrations and other endogenous hormones, “DREAM HAIR ”) and qualitative interview data (regarding gender role attitudes and distribution of domestic work, child care, and paid employment; “DREAM TALK ”) are obtained. In this study protocol, the theoretical background, methods, and preliminary results considering sociodemographic characteristics during pregnancy and birth-related factors at 8 weeks postpartum are presented. Additionally, there is a focus on our endocrinological sub-study DREAM HAIR . In this sub-study currently comprising N = 152 participants, i.e., 88 families (recruitment ongoing), we want to gain knowledge on the transgenerational processes of stress regulation and psychopathology in the whole family by analyzing hair cortisol concentrations in both parents and children during the course from pregnancy (or after birth regarding children) to at least 2 years postpartum. By comparing data of the community sample to a clinical sample of mothers with postpartum mental disorders, their children, and their partners during the period between admission and discharge from a mother-baby unit and post-treatment (“DREAM MBU ”), the course of mothers' psychopathology, parent-infant interaction, and infant regulation disorders with special regard to long-term endocrine correlates will be examined. With previous studies neglecting the fathers or partners involved, a major advantage of DREAM is the use of a multi-method and multi-level approach by examining the whole family in a longitudinal design. Therefore, the DREAM study will contribute to a better understanding of the role of social, work, and stress factors for mental and somatic health and its long-term endocrine correlates in the natural course of becoming a family.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects individuals and families from all backgrounds, regardless of their ethnicity, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, or religion. Pregnancy and childbirth could be a time of vulnerability to violence because of changes in physical, emotional, social, and economic demands and needs. Prevalence of IPV against women during the perinatal period is increasingly researched and documented. However, evidence on IPV prevalence among intimate partners as well as on the course of IPV over the perinatal period is scarce. The purpose of this review was to provide a narrative synthesis of the existing literature regarding the prevalence estimates of IPV among intimate partners over the perinatal period. Through this review, we also gained better insight into associated factors, as well as the various forms of IPV. Of the 766 studies assessing prevalence estimates identified, 86 were included, where 80 studies focused on unidirectional IPV (i.e., perpetrated by men against women) and six studies investigated bidirectional IPV (i.e., IPV perpetrated by both partners). Most of the included studies reported lower overall prevalence rates for unidirectional IPV postpartum (range: 2–58%) compared to pregnancy (range: 1.5–66.9%). Psychological violence was found to be the most prevalent form of violence during the entire perinatal period. Studies on bidirectional IPV mostly reported women's perpetration to be almost as high as that of their partner or even higher, yet their findings need to be interpreted with caution. In addition, our results also highlighted the associated factors of IPV among partners, in which they were assimilated into a multi-level ecological model and were analyzed through an intersectional framework. Based on our findings, IPV is found to be highly prevalent during the entire perinatal period and in populations suffering from social inequalities. Further research exploring not only the occurrence, but also the motivations and the context of the bidirectionality of IPV during the perinatal period may facilitate better understanding of the detrimental consequences on partners and their families, as well as the development of effective intervention strategies. Public health prevention approaches intervening at optimal times during the perinatal period are also needed.
Background: Father-infant bonding is important for child development. Yet, in contrast to mother-infant bonding, little is known about factors that might facilitate father-infant bonding. With new generations of fathers being more involved in childcare, this study aims to examine the impact of paternal leave duration on father-infant bonding, and whether this relation is mediated by the amount of time fathers actively spend on childcare.Methods: Data of n = 637 fathers were derived from the German population-based cohort study “Dresden Study on Parenting, Work, and Mental Health” (DREAM). Mediation analyses were conducted. Duration of paternal leave (predictor), weekly hours spent on childcare (mediator), and father-infant bonding (outcome) were measured at 14 months postpartum. The potential confounders current status of paternal leave, part-time work during paternal leave, duration of solo paternal leave, age, education, and partnership satisfaction were included in a second mediation analysis.Results: Without considering confounders, duration of paternal leave positively predicted father-infant bonding through weekly hours spent on childcare. When adding confounders to the model, this indirect path did not stay significant. Moreover, in the adjusted model and on the direct path duration of paternal leave negatively predicted father-infant bonding. Additionally, partnership satisfaction positively predicted father-infant bonding. Some study variables were significantly associated with the mediator. Longer duration of paternal leave, currently being on paternal leave, younger age, and lower educational level predicted more weekly hours spent on childcare.Conclusions: Duration of paternal leave not being a stable predictor for father-infant bonding suggests that fathers, who do not have the opportunity to take long periods of paternal leave, can still form strong bonds with their infants. Other factors, for example partnership satisfaction, which might represent fathers' underlying capacity to bond, might be more crucial for father-infant bonding. At the same time, results should not be interpreted in a way that father involvement (e.g., paternal leave/time spent) does not matter for children's development. The finding that longer duration of paternal leave increases weekly hours spent on childcare supports the idea that facilitating father involvement can be achieved by paternal leave incentives such as non-transferable father months.
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