PERSONAL AND CO-PARENT PREDICTORS OF PARENTING EFFICACY ACROSS THE TRANSITION TO PARENTHOOD

As with the majority of the parenting literature, the focus on parenting efficacy has been almost exclusively on the experience of the mother while neglecting fathers and the potential link between partners. In the current study, we examined the influence of personal and co-parent predictors on parenting efficacy. We interviewed 104 primiparous couples during the third trimester, 1-month postpartum, and 4-months postpartum. Predictors of parenting efficacy were examined in the domains of performance accomplishment, emotional arousal, and verbal persuasion. Analyses revealed that personal and co-parent predictors of parenting efficacy changed over time and were unique for mothers and fathers. Overall, these results suggest the importance of examining actor-partner effects in the development of parenting efficacy across the transition to parenthood.