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Ryan Rose Weaver (she/hers)'s avatar

This is very interesting. I do wonder if the cohesiveness itself begets more cohesiveness, as well, leading to positive outcomes. I.e., if mom and dad are more aligned and not in conflict, I would imagine that makes it easier to enforce rules and convey values to all family members consistently from day to day, which would make it harder for one child to feel they’re getting parented in a markedly different way than another, or like there’s a scarcity of love for which they have to compete. I also wonder if strong sibling bonds themselves, in the study or in other contexts, can have the effect of creating cohesion. (As a child of divorce with a late sibling I adored, we had to create the cohesiveness between us while our parents battled it out. I would not recommend that approach to fostering closeness but I’m grateful for the protective effects it had!)

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Isabelle Mathewes's avatar

Amazing points! It's always so helpful to have specific actionable steps. I'm so interested in the father-specific finding also. I wonder why that is...

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