Prenatal parental representations: Influences on perceived romantic couple adjustment and infant's temperament during pregnancy and after the infant's birth

Objective: The present work aimed to evaluate the differences between fathers' and mothers' prenatal parental representations, the differences between pre- and postnatal perceptions of couple adjustment, and whether the quality of prenatal parental representations is associated with the perception of couple adjustment and with the perception of infant temperament at 3 months. Background: Within a multifactorial, transactional model, several studies indicated that prenatal parental representations are relevant to the quality of infant–parent relationship and the child's development. Method: Couples experiencing their first pregnancy (n = 40) (mothers: Mage = 33.7 years, SD = 5,1 years; fathers: (Mage = 37.4 years, SD = 5.6 years) responded to the Parental Representations Interview During Pregnancy and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale during the seventh month of pregnancy. When couples' infant was 3 months of age, the parents completed the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-R to assess infant temperament. Results: Analyses revealed that mothers and fathers who had an unbalanced and unintegrated parental representation perceived their couple adjustment as less cohesive, and this was related to a more negative perception of the child's temperament. Conclusions: Prenatal parental representations were found to be a significant variable in terms of their influence on the quality of pre- and postnatal parents' romantic couple adjustment and on the infant's temperament. Implications: It is important to include both mothers and fathers to further our understanding of parental influence on a child's development and to enhance the efficacy of preventive programs since pregnancy.