THE IMPACT OF THE BIRTH OF A BABY ON THE TIME STRUCTURE AND SOCIAL MIXTURE OF A COUPLES DAILY-LIFE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES FOR WELL-BEING

In order to investigate the temporal disruption and social dislocation resulting from the birth of a child, 37 couples were studied at 4 tim e points: pre-birth (second trimester), and at 1, 4, and 12 months pos tpartum. A diary-based instrument (the Social Rhythm Metric-SRM) was u sed to evaluate the habitual times at which 17 events during the day t ook place, the proportion of events done alone, as a couple only, and with nonfamily members. Also evaluated were perceptions of the quality of the marriage relationship, feelings of depressive symptoms, and fe elings of anger. The baby's birth had a major effect on the timing wit h which daily events were done, and on differences between mothers' an d fathers' habitual limes, especially in the morning. There were also dramatic differences (50-80% reductions) in the proportion of events d one alone, as a couple only, and with nonfamily members. However, thes e effects were much more marked in mothers than in fathers and were at tenuated when there were prior children. Changes in marital quality an d mood were also observed. The birth was associated particularly with a decline in marital quality and in the levels of anger and depressive symptoms felt by parents at 1 month postpartum, although these effect s interacted with gender and prior parental experience. Furthermore, t he changes in well-being were related to changes in SRM indices, thoug h differentially for mothers and fathers.