Spouses as a parenting team : exploring links between the marital relationship and the parenting alliance

This study examined the roles of marital conflict, parental depression, and marital power dynamics in predicting the strength of the parenting alliance. The sample consisted of 80 married couples (N = 160) living in the Knoxville, TN, area. Multiple regression analyses revealed that marital conflict was a significant predictor of parenting alliance for husbands, and marital conflict and depression both contributed significantly to the prediction of parenting alliance for wives. In addition to these main effects, an interaction between depression and marital conflict was found. High levels of conflict and depression weakened the parenting alliance more severely for wives than for husbands. Marital power did not contribute significantly to the prediction of parenting alliance in the regression equation. Gender differences are discussed, and implications for future research and treatment are outlined.