Being Parents and Lovers: Associations Between Role Conflict and Daily Sexual Well-Being in New Parents Couples

The transition to parenthood involves relational, sexual, and identity changes for individuals and couples. Although prior research suggests that new mothers may experience tension between their roles as parents and sexual partners, this "parent-lover" role conflict remains underexplored in non-bearing partners, especially at the daily level. This study examined how daily feelings of parent-lover role conflict in new parents relate to both partners' sexual well-being (satisfaction, desire, enjoyment, frequency) at four months postpartum, and whether these associations vary by feeding habits (exclusive breastfeeding vs. mixed-feeding/formula exclusively). A sample of 196 first-time parent couples (bearing mothers and non-bearing partners) completed online daily diaries for 14 days. Multilevel analyses provided evidence that, overall, higher role conflict was related to more negative sexual outcomes for both parents. Associations between mothers' higher role conflict and both parents' poorer outcomes were more consistent across the 14 days, whereas associations with partners' role conflict were more apparent at the daily level. Partners' higher role conflict was related to lower couple sexual frequency, both daily and over the 14-day period. Breastfeeding was related to higher role conflict and lower sexual satisfaction and moderated two associations between role conflict and sexual well-being. These results highlight that role conflict is not unique to mothers but may be a shared experience among new parents and a potential risk factor for both partners' sexual well-being during the early postpartum. They also suggest that feeding habits may shape how this conflict is experienced and how it relates to sexual well-being.