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Coparent Support and Conflict in African-American Single Mother-Headed Families: Associations with Maternal and Child Psychosocial Functioning

NCJ Number
210565
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 20 Issue: 3 Dated: June 2005 Pages: 141-150
Author(s)
Deborah J. Jones; Rex Forehand; Shannon Dorsey; Gene Brody
Date Published
June 2005
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This longitudinal study examined main and interactive effects of coparent support and conflict on mother and child adjustment in low-income African-American single mother-headed families.
Abstract
Over the years, research examining the relative and joint effects of positive and negative dimensions of relationships on adjustment has focused on White, middle class samples. The purpose of this study was to examine aspects of the coparent relationship in 248 low-income, African-American single mother-headed families. It was hypothesized that negative or conflictual aspects of the coparenting relationship would account for more variance than positive or supportive aspects of the relationship in terms of a mother’s well-being and parenting, as well as child behavior. Data for this study were part of a larger study funded by the William T. Grant foundation that focuses on family functioning in low-income African-American single-parent families living in a rural and an urban environment. Findings support some, but not all, of the proposed hypotheses. Coparent conflict accounted for more variance than supportive aspects of the coparent relationship in maternal and child adjustment. Higher levels of coparent conflict were associated with higher levels of maternal depressive symptoms, lower levels of maternal warmth and support, and more child adjustment difficulties. In addition, findings indicate that coparent conflict and support interacted to predict one parenting behavior, specifically monitoring, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. The findings suggest that it is the combination of these two aspects (positive and negative) of the coparent relationship that promotes maternal-monitoring behavior. Tables, references