Couples’ Coparenting and Parent-Child Relationship Quality: A Dyadic Daily Diary Study

Abstract

This study examined how daily experiences of coparenting relate to parent–child relationship quality using a dyadic daily diary design. Eighty-five heterosexual cohabiting couples (N = 170 individuals), with at least one child under 16, completed daily assessments over seven consecutive days. Participants reported on coparenting cooperation, conflict, and child involvement in conversations, as well as parent-child relationship quality. Actor-Partner Interdependence Models (APIMs) distinguished between stable between-person differences and within-person daily fluctuations. At the between-person level, coparenting cooperation was positively associated with both parents’ own parent–child relationship quality, and child involvement in conversations was positively associated with the partner’s. At the within-person level, daily coparenting conflict predicted lower same-day parent–child relationship quality for mothers, while other same-day and next-day effects were non-significant. These findings highlight the dynamic nature of coparenting effects across temporal levels, emphasizing the distinction between stable relational climate and short-term spillover processes. Practically, interventions may benefit from strengthening long-term cooperative coparenting while helping parents prevent daily conflict from spilling over into parent–child interactions.

Keywords

coparenting parent-child relationship dyadic analysis daily diary family

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