EC Paediatrics

A previous study on low co-parenting couples by our group found that father–mother interaction, as well as changes in and characteristics of the program’s efforts, needed clarification before the program can be utilized. To clarify this issue, we reanalyzed our data, which included 278 participants (128 mothers, 32.3 ± 4.0 years old; 150 fathers, 33.8 ± 3.4 years old) in their childrearing years who would stand to benefit from the intervention. Thoughts on parenting life before the program efforts were “I should be more aware” for mothers and “I am fine with the way things are now” for fathers, with the fathers being more likely to continue and be aware of the program efforts. Among the four subscales identified, the subscale “shared responsibility and difficulties”, which was considered a negative factor, yielded the lowest scores for fathers. Moreover, fathers expressed that they “have learned to respect the other person”, whereas mothers were more likely to state that “If he is not cooperative, he will not naturally try to help me”. Furthermore, no changes in “mutual emotional support”, “mutual concrete support”, and “agreement and negotiation on parenting” were observed, indicating a discrepancy between fathers and mothers. Fathers’ cooperation did not match mothers’ level of satisfaction, which can be attributed to a lack of communication. Changes occurring after the implementation of a program largely depend on how much interaction takes place, such as agreement on how to work on the program, mutual understanding of each other’s thoughts and feelings, and mutual appreciation and appreciation for each other’s efforts. Hence, understanding the significance of “couple parenting” when creating the program, having each couple reflect on their current situation and make concrete efforts with the intention of working on it, and incorporating a considerable amount of “couple communication”, which was considered a factor that improves the effectiveness of co-parenting, were considered effective. The program was also effective in incorporating substantial efforts in “couple communication”, which was considered a factor in improving the effectiveness of co-parenting.

 Keywords: Co-Parenting Program; Father Mother Effectiveness

1. McHale James., et al. “Coparenting in diverse family systems”. In Bornstein, M. H. (ED) Handbook of parenting 2^nd edition: Volume 3 Being and becoming a parent. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erbaum Associates, Inc. 2 (2002): 75-107.
2. Nakagawa Mari. “Wife's engagement and husband's participation in child-raising and housework in working couples”. Journal of Humanities and Sciences (2010): 305-313.
3. McBride Brent A., et al. “Parental identity, maternal gatekeeping, and father involvement”. Family Relations 54 (2005): 360-272.
4. Kato Michiyo., et al. “Creation of the marital parenting adjustment scale and cross-sectional examination of changes by parenting time”. Psychological Research 84 (2014): 566-575.
5. Kato Michiyo. “Child-rearing attitudes, behaviors, and support resources of mothers in the early years of child-rearing”. National Women's Education Center Research Bulletin 3 (1999): 53-59.
6. Benesse Educational Research Institute. “Pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare basic survey/follow-up survey 2006-2009 Longitudinal Survey” (2011).
7. Benesse Institute of Education. “Survey on Fathers of Infants and Toddlers” (2016).
8. Shimizu Yoshiko. “Marital parenting adjustment patterns and related factors during childrearing”. Maternal Health 61 (2020): 340-351.
9. Takeishi Yumiko., et al. “Implementing a program to promote co-parenting as part of prenatal education”. The Japanese Journal for Midwwives Igaku Shoin 73 (2019b): 762-767.
10. Yasuno Sayuri., et al. “Influence of marital and coparenting relationships on depressive symptoms in parents raising a preschool child”. Journal of Japan Academy of Nursing Science 43 (2023): 174-182.
11. Oshima Riko., et al. “Features of midwives’ support at a birth center to promote Co-parenting”. Medicine and Biology 163 (2023): 1-11.
12. Shimizu Yoshiko. “Short co-parenting awareness scale and the relationship with parenting happiness, parenting stress, and husband’s parenting behaviors”. Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research1 (2023c): 1-10.
13. Shimizu Yoshiko. “Developing a short version of the co-parenting awareness scale through confirmatory factor analysis: associations with parenting time, number of children, age of children, and prenatal discussions”. EC Pediatrics10 (2023b): 1-15.
14. Shimizu Yoshiko. “Attempts to Implement a program to promote co-parenting for couples in the parenting phase”. EC Pediatrics5 (2024): 1-16.
15. Shimizu Yoshiko. “Examination of the effects of a program focusing on the continuation of reinforcement programs for couples in the low-co-parenting group who are in the childrearing and pregnancy period”. EC Pediatrics1 (2025): 1-15.
16. Shimizu Yoshiko. “Mothers' and fathers' perceptions of child rearing and parental growth”. Japanese Journal of Moral Psychology 16 (2002): 7-16.
17. Shimizu Yoshiko and Suganuma Nobuhiko. “Developing a new co-parenting awareness scale for measuring effective co-parenting awareness strategies: relationship with attribute/parental awareness development”. Clinics in Mother and Child Health 20 (2023a): 1000445.
18. kodomo-manabi-labo.net.
19. Keiko Yoshida., et al. “A Japanese version of Mother-to-Infant Bonding Scale: factor structure, longitudinal changes and links with maternal mood during the early postnatal period in Japanese mothers”. Archives of Women's Mental Health5 (2012): 343-352.
20. Cox John L., et al. “Detection of postnatal depression: development of the 10-item Edinburgh postnatal depression scale”. British Journal of Psychiatry 150 (1987): 782-786.
21. Laurie A Van Egeren. “Coming to terms with coparenting: implications of definition and measurement”. Journal of Adult Development3 (2004): 165-178.
22. McHale James P. “Coparenting and triadic interactions during infancy: the roles of marital distress and child gender”. Developmental Psychology6 (1955): 985-996.
23. Sarah J., et al. “Maternal gatekeeping, coparenting quality, and fathering behavior in families with infants”. Journal of Family Psychology3 (2008): 389-398.
24. Morishita Yoko. “The effect of becoming fathers on men’s development”. The Japanese Journal of Developmental Psychology 17 (2006): 182-192.
25. Ito Yuriko., et al. “Effects of marital communication on relationship satisfaction: focusing on self-disclosure”. Bunkyo Gakuin Journal of Human Studies 9 (2007): 1-15.