Children at risk of allergic development: the parents' dyadic relationship

The paper describes a study of parents' dyadic interaction in high-/low-risk families (n = 161) with children at risk of asthmatic/allergic development. The high-risk couples tend to consist of a mother who denies negative affects and a dissatisfied father. The high-risk mothers tend to overrate the agreement especially on affective expression. There were no significant differences in dyadic interaction in low-risk couples. The results are discussed according to family communication patterns, repressed conflicts and possible immunological consequences of chronic emotional stress, learned coping and emotional expression styles.