Sexual and gender identities and alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study examined differences in alcohol use by sexual and gender identities during the COVID-19 pandemic, and assessed whether variation between groups was explained by pandemic-related stressors and minority stress. Data from 2,429 partnered adults in the National Couples' Health and Time Use Study (n = 3,593) collected from September 2020 to April 2021 were used to model drinking patterns (frequency, amount, and drinking to cope) by sexual and gender identities, COVID-19 stress and disruption, microaggressions, and supportive climate. Regression models indicated differences in drinking by gender and sexual identities, even controlling for demographic and socioeconomic factors.

Coping Patterns During the COVID-19 Pandemic by Sexual and Gender Identity.

National polls have shown that COVID-19 has been highly stressful, negatively affecting well-being and life satisfaction overall, but few studies have focused on individuals with sexual and gender diverse identities. Pandemic-related stress may increase engagement in adverse or negative health-related coping behaviors and decrease engagement in positive coping strategies, potentially exacerbating existing LGBTQ+ health disparities. Relying on a nationally representative population-based sample, we examine disparities in rates of negative and positive COVID-19 coping behaviors by sexual and gender identities.

Emotional support among partnered sexual minority and heterosexual individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Emotional support, particularly support from family and friends, is essential to health outcomes especially for marginalized communities. Although emotional support is recognized as a critical resource, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, to date no research has examined access to support during the pandemic for sexual diverse populations. This study aims to apply minority stress theory by drawing on a new population-based data source of 3,642 respondents, the National Couples' Health and Time Study (NCHAT), which oversampled sexual and gender diverse populations during the pandemic.

Stress and Mental Health: A Focus on COVID-19 and Racial Trauma Stress.

In the United States, COVID-19 unfolded alongside profound racial trauma. Drawing on a population representative sample of 20-60 year-olds who were married or cohabiting, the National Couples' Health and Time Study ( =3,642), we examine two specific sources of stress: COVID-19 and racial trauma. We leverage the fully powered samples of respondents with racial/ethnic and sexual minority identities and find that COVID-19 and racial trauma stress were higher among individuals who were not White or heterosexual most likely due to racism, xenophobia, and cis-heterosexism at the individual and structural levels.

COVID-19 Stress and Sexual Identities.

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has disrupted lives and resulted in high levels of stress. Although the evidence at the societal level is clear, there have been no population-based studies of pandemic-based stress focusing on individuals who identify as sexual minorities. Drawing on representative data collected during the pandemic, National Couples' Health and Time Study, the authors find that partnered (cohabiting or married) individuals who identified as sexual minorities experienced higher levels of stress than individuals who identified as heterosexual.

Fathers' Parenting and Coparenting Behavior in Dual-Earner Families: Contributions of Traditional Masculinity, Father Nurturing Role Beliefs, and Maternal Gate Closing.

We investigated whether dual-earner fathers' adherence to traditional masculine norms, father nurturing role beliefs, and maternal gate closing behavior predicted the quality of new fathers' observed parenting and coparenting behavior. Data were drawn from a longitudinal study of the transition to parenthood among 182 dual-earner different-sex couples. Expectant fathers reported their masculine agency, hostile sexism, gendered provider beliefs, and father nurturing role beliefs in the third trimester of pregnancy.

A biopsychosocial framework for understanding sexual and gender minority health: A call for action.

The number of US adults identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or a different sexual identity has doubled since 2008, and about 40 % of the sexual and gender minority population identify as people of color. Minority stress theory posits that sexual and gender minorities are at particular risk for stress via stigma and discrimination at the structural, interpersonal, and individual levels. This stress, in turn, elevates the risk of adverse health outcomes across several domains.

A Cohort Comparison of Predictors of Young Adult Union Formation and Dissolution in the US.

The theory of the second demographic transition argues that as educated Americans began valuing self-actualization and individual autonomy, delays in union formation spread through the US. The accelerated adulthood theory suggests that socioeconomic disadvantage distinguishes young adulthood such that those with fewer resources have shorter, more informal (i.e.

New Fathers' Perceptions of Dyadic Adjustment: The Roles of Maternal Gatekeeping and Coparenting Closeness.

Although the association between maternal gatekeeping and relationship functioning has been explored by a few studies, none of these have focused on fathers' perceptions of these constructs. Given that today's new fathers are challenged by elevated expectations for active parenting and coparenting even as most new mothers remain primary caregivers of infant children, this is a critical omission. This study examined the associations between new fathers' perceptions of maternal gatekeeping and change in dyadic adjustment as mediated through coparenting closeness.

Paternal stimulation and father-infant attachment.

This study examined the longitudinal associations between fathers' observed parenting behaviors and father-infant attachment ( = 58 father-infant dyads). Fathers were observed playing with their infants at 9 months postpartum and were assessed for stimulating behaviors (i.e.

The intergenerational transmission of partnering.

As divorce and cohabitation dissolution in the US have increased, partnering has expanded to the point that sociologists describe a merry-go-round of partners in American families. Could one driver of the increase in the number of partners be an intergenerational transmission of partnering? We discuss three theoretical perspectives on potential mechanisms that would underlie an intergenerational transmission of partnering: the transmission of economic hardship, the transmission of marriageable characteristics and relationship skills, and the transmission of relationship commitment. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Child and Young Adult study (NLSY79 CYA) and their mothers in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79), we examined the intergenerational transmission of partnering, including both marital and cohabitating unions, using prospective measures of family and economic instability as well as exploiting sibling data to try to identify potential mechanisms.

What Are Men Doing While Women Perform Extra Unpaid Labor? Leisure and Specialization at the Transition to Parenthood.

Marriage has significantly changed since Becker proposed his specialization model yet some scholars maintain that specialization characterizes modern couples. Specialization occurs when one partner, traditionally the man, concentrates on market work while the other partner, traditionally the woman, focuses on nonmarket work such as housework or childcare. Using innovative time diary data from primarily highly-educated, White, dual-earner U.

Coparenting in the family of origin and new parents' couple relationship functioning.

To better understand the long-term implications of coparenting quality for adult child outcomes, we examined the associations between coparenting quality in the family of origin (Generation 1; G1), and attachment avoidance and anxiety and perceived relationship functioning of new parents (Generation 2; G2) using a dyadic approach. Dual-earner families expecting their first child (n = 182) were followed across the transition to parenthood and assessed at the third trimester of pregnancy (3T) and 9 months after childbirth (9M). At 3T, parents reported on the coparenting quality in their families of origin, and attachment avoidance and anxiety.

Maternal Coparenting Attitudes and Toddler Adjustment: Moderated Mediation through Father's Positive Engagement.

Objective: To better understand the antecedents of fathers' positive engagement and child externalizing behaviors, we examined the roles of maternal coparenting attitudes and fathers' prenatal intuitive parenting behaviors in predicting fathers' positive engagement and toddler externalizing behaviors.

Design: One hundred and eighty-two dual-earner families residing in Columbus, Ohio were recruited when parents were expecting their first child. They were followed across the transition to parenthood and assessed at the third trimester (Time 1), 3 months postpartum (Time 2), 9 months postpartum (Time 3), and when the child reached approximately 27 months of age (Time 4).

Doing Gender Online: New Mothers' Psychological Characteristics, Facebook Use, and Depressive Symptoms.

Online social networking sites, such as Facebook, have provided a new platform for individuals to produce and reproduce gender through social interactions. New mothers, in particular, may use Facebook to practice behaviors that align with their mothering identity and meet broader societal expectations, or in other words, to "do motherhood." Given that Facebook use may undermine well-being, it is important to understand the individual differences underlying new mothers' experiences with Facebook during the stressful first months of parenthood.

New Parents' Psychological Adjustment and Trajectories of Early Parental Involvement.

Trajectories of parental involvement time (engagement and child care) across 3, 6, and 9 months postpartum and associations with parents' own and their partners' psychological adjustment (dysphoria, anxiety, and empathic personal distress) were examined using a sample of dual-earner couples experiencing first-time parenthood ( = 182 couples). Using time diary measures that captured intensive parenting moments, hierarchical linear modeling analyses revealed that patterns of associations between psychological adjustment and parental involvement time depended on the parenting domain, aspect of psychological adjustment, and parent gender. Psychological adjustment difficulties tended to bias the 2-parent system toward a gendered pattern of "mother step in" and "father step out," as father involvement tended to decrease, and mother involvement either remained unchanged or increased, in response to their own and their partners' psychological adjustment difficulties.

Like mother, like child: Offspring marital timing desires and maternal marriage timing and stability.

Understanding the determinants of marital timing is critical because it has implications for marital functioning and divorce. One salient predictor of marital timing is youth's desires for marriage timing. To shine light on predictors of both desires for marital timing and the timing of marriage itself, we examine offspring marital desires and maternal marriage characteristics in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1979 (NLSY79) cohort and 1979 Child and Young Adult cohort (NLSY79-CYA; biological offspring of the women in the 1979 cohort).

Supportive Coparenting Relationships as a Haven of Psychological Safety at the Transition to Parenthood.

Guided by research on psychological safety, we used longitudinal survey data from a sample of 182 dual-earner male-female couples to examine the role of supportive coparenting in mediating relations between adult attachment orientations and parenting stress/satisfaction, and further considered whether parenting self-efficacy moderated relations between supportive coparenting and parenting stress/satisfaction. Path analyses using IBM SPSS AMOS 22 and bootstrapping techniques indicated that fathers' (but not mothers') perceptions of supportive coparenting at 3 months postpartum mediated the associations between their attachment anxiety in the third trimester of pregnancy and their parenting stress and satisfaction at 9 months postpartum. Additional tests of moderation revealed that mothers' perceptions of greater supportive coparenting were associated with lower parenting stress only when their parenting self-efficacy was low, but fathers' perceptions of greater supportive coparenting were associated with greater parenting satisfaction only when their parenting self-efficacy was high.

Emotional health across the transition to first and second unions among emerging adults.

The link between romantic relationships and emotional health has been extensively examined and suggests that marriage provides more emotional health benefits than cohabiting or dating relationships. However, the contemporary context of intimate relationships has changed and these associations warrant reexamination among emerging adults in the 2000s. We examined the change in emotional health across the entrance into first and second unions, including cohabiting unions, direct marriage (marriage without premarital cohabitation), and marriage preceded by cohabitation.

Boy or Girl? Maternal Psychological Correlates of Knowing Fetal Sex.

Ultrasound provides a reliable, convenient way to determine fetal sex, but not all expectant mothers pursue this knowledge. We used logistic regression to investigate whether maternal personality, parenting perfectionism, and gender role beliefs were associated with knowing fetal sex in a recent sample of first-time expectant mothers. We also tested whether conscientiousness and extraversion moderated the association between gender role beliefs and knowing fetal sex.

Dimensions of attachment and commitment across the transition to parenthood.

We used structural equation modeling and actor-partner interdependence models to test dyadic associations between adult attachment and changes in relationship commitment at the transition to parenthood in a sample of 182 dual-earner couples. Overall, more avoidant individuals experienced significant changes in commitment at the transition to parenthood; specifically, higher avoidance was associated with decreases in personal confidence and dedication. More anxious fathers experienced increases in personal felt constraint while anxious mothers' commitment remained stable.

Expectant fathers' intuitive parenting: associations with parent characteristics and postpartum positive engagement.

This study examined expectant fathers' intuitive parenting behavior and its correlates and associations with fathers' postpartum positive engagement. One hundred eighty-two expectant couples completed the Prenatal Lausanne Trilogue Play in the third trimester of pregnancy. Coders rated expectant fathers' and mothers' intuitive parenting behavior during this procedure.

Who are the Gatekeepers? Predictors of Maternal Gatekeeping.

Objective: The goal of this study was to identify determinants of maternal gatekeeping at the transition to parenthood.

Design: Participants included 182 different-gender dual-earner couples. During pregnancy, expectant parents completed questionnaires regarding their psychological functioning, attitudes, and expectations, and at 3 months postpartum questionnaires regarding maternal gatekeeping behavior and gate closing attitudes.

Commitment across the Transition to Parenthood among Married and Cohabiting Couples.

Commitment has long been hypothesized to increase across the transition to parenthood, even though much research has found that relationship functioning declines during this period. We examined change in interpersonal commitment, measured as personal dedication and relationship confidence, and constraint commitment, measured as felt constraint, across the transition to parenthood. We tested for marital status differences in the change in commitment across the transition among three groups: cohabitation, marriage preceded by cohabitation, and direct marriage.

Infant characteristics and parental engagement at the transition to parenthood.

Positive engagement activities support children's adaptive development and new parents are encouraged to be highly engaged with infants. Yet, fathers' engagement is widely understudied and maternal engagement quantity is frequently overlooked. Our study contributes to growing knowledge on associations between infant temperament and parental engagement by testing transactional and moderation models in a recent sample of first-time parents when infants were 3, 6, and 9 months old.