Coparenting

Co-parenting involves parents who together take on the socialization, care, and upbringing of children for whom they share equal responsibility.[1] The co-parent relationship differs from an intimate relationship between adults in that it focuses solely on the child.[2] The equivalent term in evolutionary biology is bi-parental care, where parental investment is provided by both the mother and father.[3][4]

The original meaning of co-parenting was mostly related to nuclear families. However, since the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 20 November 1989, the principle that a child has to continue to maintain a strong relationship with both parents, even if separated, has become a more recognized right. Thus, the concept of co-parenting was extended to divorced and separated parents and to parents who have never lived together as well.[5]

  1. ^ McHale, James; Lindahl, Kristen (2011). Coparenting: A conceptual and clinical examination of family systems. American Psychological Association. ISBN 978-1-4338-0991-0.
  2. ^ Ellie, McCann; Kjersti, Olson; Eugene, Hall; Maisha, Giles; Stephen, Onell; Rose, McCullough; Jenifer, McGuire; Cari, Michaels (October 2015). "Children in Common: Ensuring the Emotional Well-being of Children When Parenting Apart". hdl:11299/175941. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ^ Clutton-Brock, T.H. 1991. The Evolution of Parental Care. Princeton, NJ: Princeton U. Press. pg. 9
  4. ^ Trivers, R.L. (1972). Parental investment and sexual selection. In B. Campbell (Ed.), Sexual selection and the descent of man, 1871–1971 (pp. 136–179). Chicago, IL: Aldine. ISBN 0-435-62157-2.
  5. ^ Feinberg, Mark E. (May 2003). "The Internal Structure and Ecological Context of Coparenting: A Framework for Research and Intervention". Parenting. 3 (2): 95–131. doi:10.1207/S15327922PAR0302_01. PMC 3185375. PMID 21980259.