Intergenerational coparenting and maternal feeding practices among infants and toddlers in Hangzhou, China: A...

Intergenerational coparenting is common in urban Chinese families, yet how distinct coparenting profiles influence maternal feeding practices during complementary feeding remains underexamined. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods study aimed to identify latent intergenerational coparenting profiles among 334 families with infants and toddlers (6-24 months) in Hangzhou, China, and to examine differences in maternal feeding practices across these profiles. Latent Profile Analysis based on the Coparenting Relationship Scale identified three distinct profiles: Low-Involvement Conflict (16.2%), Intermediate (48.2%), and High-Involvement Harmonious (35.6%). MANCOVA results revealed a non-linear association: mothers in the Intermediate profile exhibited significantly higher responsive feeding quality, evidenced by less pressure to eat and less instrumental feeding, than those in both the High-Involvement Harmonious and Low-Involvement Conflict groups (p < .001). Subsequent semi-structured interviews with 18 mothers (six per profile), combined with cross-profile comparisons, revealed that the advantage of Intermediate families stemmed from a "bounded collaboration" model. This model is characterized by clearly demarcated task boundaries, low-confrontation negotiation, and a strategic balance between grandparental support and maternal decision-making autonomy. These findings suggest that in urban intergenerational settings, optimizing responsive feeding depends more on maintaining maternal decision-making autonomy than on pursuing absolute family harmony.