Familial influences on kindergartners' social adjustment: Assessment and effects of the marital subsystem

Abstract

Developed and tested a measure reconceptualizing the marital subsystem--the relationship between two parents in a family--to include the parenting relationship--cooperation between parents in raising children--and marital conflict. Explored the linkages between the marital subsystem, parent-child relationships, and kindergartners' social adjustment. Mothers completed the Parenting Relationship Scale (PRS), a measure assessing the marital subsystem; observations of mother-child interaction were coded for emotional connectedness and support for child's autonomy; and teachers and peers rated children's social competence in the classroom. Evidence was found for the reliability and validity of the PRS. The marital subsystem can be described in terms of domain of interaction (cooperation about childrearing, conflict (about both child- and nonchild-related issues), and conflict resolution). The link between the marital subsystem and social adjustment was indirect, via the parent-child relationship. Results differed for boys and girls. These data support the idea that it is important to assess the marital subsystem more broadly, by including both the parenting relationship and marital conflict, and underscore the importance of considering the context within which conflict occurs.