This study used a family development perspective to examine the stresses and gratifications of the transition to parenthood, the influence of parity, differences between the developmental experiences of mothers and fathers, and the interaction between the development of the marital relationship and the development of parenting relationships. Twenty married couples in their 20s and early 30s were interviewed during the last month of their first or second pregnancy, and again at two months postpartum. Ten couples were first-time parents and ten were having a second child. One-half of each group were local working-class couples and one-half were university-based middle class. On each occasion, the couple was interviewed jointly and then husband and wife were interviewed individually. Special emphasis was placed on those aspects of the transition to parenthood that the couple identified as contributing to learning about parenting or to their sense of growth in their roles as spouses. Topics covered in the semistructured open-ended interviews in late pregnancy included history of the marital relationship, allocation of household work, social networks, pregnancy experience, expectations for parenthood, and future plans. The postpartum couple interviews covered labor and delivery, reactions to the baby, arrangements for household management and infant care, feelings about being a parent, and future plans. The individual interviews explored some of these same issues in more detail. The Murray Center has typed transcripts of all interviews.
