2026/06/11 by Christian Franz Josef Woll, Linda Luisa Stürmlinger, Corinna Reck +6 · 1 voice
Medicine · Psychology · #Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum #Attachment and Relationship Dynamics #COVID-19 and Mental Health
paper · doi:10.1177/02654075261459477
openalex publication_date 2026/06/11 · openalex created_date 2026/06/12 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
Mothers with young children were particularly susceptible to elevated stress levels during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examined dynamic, reciprocal, longitudinal relationships between maternal perceived stress, perceived relationship quality with the partner, and mother-to-child bonding. The sample consisted of n = 1,394 mothers of children aged 0 to 3 years who completed online questionnaires at three time points between May 2020 to May 2022. We analyzed a Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Model with maternal stress, relationship quality with the partner, and mother-to-child bonding, enabling the separation of stable between-person differences and dynamic within-person processes. At the between-person level, lower partner relationship quality was associated with higher average stress ( r = −.20) and impaired mother-to-child bonding ( r = −.29), while stress and impaired bonding were strongly correlated ( r = .56). At the within-person level, increases in partner relationship quality predicted intraindividual decreases in stress ( β T1→T2 = −.19; β T2→T3 = −.21) and, at trend level, decreases in impaired bonding ( β T1→T2 = −.15; β T2→T3 = −.16). The results demonstrate the interrelation of stable components of maternal stress, relationship quality, and bonding. Additionally, they highlight the dynamic role of the maternal perceived relationship quality with the partner in shaping maternal stress and bonding, positioning relationship quality as a resilience (or risk) factor for maternal well-being during crises. An exploratory model including sociodemographic and pandemic-related variables further showed that factors such as maternal education, income, family size, and work changes significantly shaped baseline stress and relational functioning. Hence, support services should focus on strengthening the relationship with the partner while being tailored to families’ structural contexts to mitigate stress, promote bonding, and prevent adverse consequences for mothers, children, and families.