2025-10-21 カナダ・コンコルディア大学
<関連情報>
- https://www.concordia.ca/news/stories/2025/10/21/child-behavioural-problems-are-associated-with-decreased-heart-rate-variability-in-parents-new-concordia-research-shows.html
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167876025007470
子どもと夫婦のストレスは、就学前の子どもを持つ親の自己制御能力の心理生理学的指標と関連している Child and marital stress are associated with a psychophysiological index of self-regulatory capacities among parents of preschool children
Sasha MacNeil, Chelsea da Estrela, Warren Caldwell, Jean-Philippe Gouin
International Journal of Psychophysiology Available online: 17 September 2025
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2025.113251
Highlights
- Child behaviour problems were related to reduced vagally-mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV).
- Partner-reported marital stress moderated the association of child stress with vmHRV.
- Lower vmHRV was observed in the context of high child stress and high marital stress, particularly among fathers.
Abstract
Objective
A parent’s ability to self-regulate influences parenting practices. Child-related stressors may deplete parent’s self-regulatory capacities. However, this effect may be moderated by the marital context within which stressful parent-child interactions are occurring. The aim of the current study was to investigate the association between child behavioural problems and parent vagally-mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV), a proposed psychophysiological index of self-regulatory capacities, and to test whether marital stress moderated this effect.
Methods
Eighty cohabiting heterosexual couples with preschool children had their vmHRV recorded during a laboratory session and completed a measure of child behavioural problems. Daily assessments of marital stress were measured over six consecutive days. Partner’s ratings of child behavioural problems and marital stress were used to predict participant’s vmHRV.
Results
After adjusting for participant’s age, gender, and ethnicity, greater child behavioural problems predicted lower parent vmHRV. Marital stress exacerbated the association between child behavioural problems and parent vmHRV. However, this association was moderated by parent’s gender, with marital stress exacerbating the association between child behavioural problems and parent vmHRV for fathers, but not for mothers.
Conclusion
Child-related stressors are associated with reduced self-regulatory capacities among parents of preschool children as assessed by vmHRV. Fathers are especially vulnerable to the marital context within which these stressors are occurring. Poor self-regulation capacities during the early parenting years may place both parents and children at risk for long-term maladaptive outcomes.
