Influenza del partner sullo stress genitoriale: coppie adottive e biologiche a confronto

[Autom. eng. transl.] Introduction: There are several factors associated with parental stress, such as depression and individual anxiety for mothers and fathers, as well as the well-being of children. But what is the role played by the couple? How much does the partner's perception of stress affect individual stress levels? The researches that follow a relational perspective and choose the parental couple as units of analysis are currently limited, both in the context of families with biological children, and in the context of adoption. The present longitudinal study has the following objectives: a) to assess the levels of parental stress reported during the first year from the arrival / birth of the child, considering the effect of gender (mother and father) and the type of couple (adoptive and biological); b) to assess the influence of individual and partner perceptions of stress in predicting stress levels over time, through the Actor Partner Interdependence Model. Method: 36 adoptive couples and 31 biological couples were involved in the first parenting experience, for a total of 134 participants, through the collaboration of Adoption Centers and Hospitals of the Lombardy region. The couples were met within three months (T1) and 1 year after the arrival / birth of the child (T2). A self-report questionnaire was used, administered individually to both members of the couple, consisting of some questions aimed at collecting socio-demographic information and the Parenting Stress Index Short Form. Results: The preliminary analyzes showed similar levels of stress between parents adoptive and biological and greater interdependence between partners in adoptive couples. Conclusions: The results will be discussed in light of the implications for the support and support intervention of couples living in the parental transition, in order to also promote the well-being of children.