Partner supportive dyadic coping and relationship stability among parents of children with autism spectrum disorder

Studies involving parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have reported negative relationship outcomes for some couples and positive for others, indicating the need to determine the moderators of the link between stress and divorce. This study aims to examine the moderating effect of partner supportive dyadic coping, i.e., interpersonal coping that involves providing comfort, empathy, or practical advice to one’s partner, on the association between parental stress and relationship stability among parents of children with ASD. The study was conducted on a sample of parents (N=89) who met the criteria of being in a relationship and parenting at least one child diagnosed with ASD. The questionnaire included the Parental Stress Scale, a subscale of the Dyadic Coping Inventory, an item assessing the potential for divorce, and sociodemographic variables. The logistic regression analysis model explained a substantial amount of the variance of relationship stability. Higher probability of having a stable relationship was associated with lower levels of parental stress and higher levels of supportive dyadic coping. Additionally, supportive dyadic coping buffered the negative effect of parental stress: the effect of stress on relationship stability was evident only among participants whose partners showed low supportive dyadic coping. The results indicate that a relationship does not necessarily end in divorce when a couple experiences stressful circumstances, such as raising a child with ASD. The key factor could be supportive dyadic coping that prevents negative effects of stress on relationship maintenance. Support services should aim to enhance supportive dyadic coping skills among parents, and advocate for the fact that both stress and coping are joint processes of partners in a relationship.

A social perspective on resilience: social support and dyadic coping in teacher training

Stress in teaching and teacher training is a well-known issue and stress management during teacher training may not only be affected by individual coping efforts, but also determined by private and work-related networks the individual is integrated in. In that regard, our article aims firstly to identify sources of social support in the German teacher training system and secondly to analyze interdependencies in dyadic coping interactions based on the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. On the basis of questionnaire data from 307 German trainees and qualified teachers from vocational and general schools, we found that mentors, partners, fellow trainees, colleagues at school, parents, and good friends were named as the most supportive reference persons during teacher training. In a follow-up survey, data from 49 sources of support were obtained, which could be assigned to the corresponding (trainee) teachers (in the sense of support recipients). These dyads thus form the basis for the analysis of dyadic coping interdependencies. The results of the moderator analyses show, among other things, that support recipients who prefer the coping strategy palliative emotion regulation tend to react rather sensitively to contrary coping strategies of the source of support with regard to their stress symptoms. Social interactions in this respect can represent both protective as well as risk factors. Therefore, a system of complex social interdependencies must be considered when analyzing relational resilience among prospective teachers.

Centrality of Religiosity and Dyadic Coping in Close Romantic Relationships: Actor Partner Interdependence Model

Some studies suggest that religious people cope better with stress. For married couples, if partners perceive their relationship as sacred, supportive dyadic coping mediates the association of sanctification with marital satisfaction and well-being. In the current study, applying the actor–partner interdependence model to 116 Polish couples (n = 232), aged between 21 and 64 (males: M = 37.8, SD = 11.8; females M = 37.1, SD = 12.0), we examined the link between centrality of religiosity and dyadic coping. Although general dyadic analyses indicate that centrality of religiosity and dyadic coping are unrelated concepts, at the subscales level, we could observe few significant relationships. The results show that Polish religious men rate their common dyadic coping low. Actor effects in women are moderated by the type of relationship (cohabitation and civil marriage vs. catholic marriage).

Stress, Dyadic Coping, and Relationship Instability During the COVID-19 Pandemic

How romantic partners respond to stress has important implications for the well-being of their relationship. In this study, we examined the effects of three types of stress on relationship instability and evaluated individuals’ perceptions of their partner’s dyadic coping as a mediator in a sample of 117 different-gender couples ( N = 234) across 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that perceived stress, but not economic pressure or pandemic concerns, was associated with increases in relationship instability for both men and women. For women but not men, perceived stress was negatively associated with dyadic coping, and dyadic coping was related to lower relationship instability. Although direct effects were present for most of the variables of interest, dyadic coping did not mediate the associations between stress and relationship instability for either partner. These findings underscore the direct paths between stress, adaptive responses, and relationship instability, building upon past theorizing and research on stress and dyadic coping.