How does dispositional mindfulness enhance co-parenting quality? A dyadic investigation of the mediating roles of self- and other- forgiveness

Abstract

Past studies found that dispositional mindfulness is a protective factor of coparenting quality. To clarify the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of mindfulness, a dyadic cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the mediating roles of self and interpersonal forgiveness in the association between mindfulness and coparenting quality. Potential gender differences were also explored. A total of 103 Chinese mother-father dyads were recruited. The association between mindfulness and coparenting relationship quality was examined with an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. Marital-specific self and interpersonal forgiveness were included as serial mediators to explore the underlying mechanism. We found that for both mothers and fathers, dispositional mindfulness increases own as well as partner’s coparenting quality, and the indirect effects of self-forgiveness and interpersonal forgiveness were significant. Both mothers’ and fathers’ dispositional mindfulness were positively related to their own and partners’ self-forgiveness. Self-forgiveness subsequently predicted their own interpersonal forgiveness. However, only mothers’ (but not fathers’) own interpersonal forgiveness positively predicted their own coparenting relationship quality. This current dyadic study elucidates the mechanistic understanding of how dispositional mindfulness benefits coparenting quality. Given the limitations of the correlational study, future experimental studies are needed to further examine the causal relationship proposed in this model.