Maternal, Paternal, and Marital Functioning in Families of Preadolescents with Spina Bifida

Based on a family systems/social-ecological perspective, mothers and fathers of 8- and 9-year-old children with spina bifida (n = 55; 28 male, 27 female) were examined in comparison to a matched group of parents with 8- and 9-year-old able-bodied children (n = 55; 29 male, 26 female) across several areas of functioning (individual, parental, and marital). Findings suggested that mothers and fathers in the spina bifida sample tended to report more psychosocial stress than their counterparts in the able-bodied sample. Specifically, mothers and fathers in the spina bifida group reported less parental satisfaction than parents in the able-bodied group. Mothers in the spina bifida group reported less perceived parental competence, more social isolation, and less adaptability to change; fathers in the spina bifida group reported more psychological symptoms. No differences between the spina bifida and able-bodied groups were found with respect to marital satisfaction. Coping predictors of adjustment tended to vary as a function of parent gender rather than group status.