Change of Heart: The Impact of Child and Marital Functioning on Heart Rate Variability during Early Parenthood.

Family functioning can have important consequences on individual wellbeing, including physical health outcomes. We demonstrate how parenting and marital stressors during early parenthood are associated with lower heart-rate variability (HRV), especially amongst fathers. Specifically, the association between challenging child behaviors and fathers’ HRV is exacerbated by negative marital interactions.