This pioneering volume reviews theory and research on parental gatekeeping—the extent to which parents support or thwart each other’s involvement in parenting.

Chapter authors review theories, conceptual models, and measures of gatekeeping, and evaluate its consequences for parent-child relationships. Offering a holistic perspective, this book not only explores mothers’ gatekeeping of fathers but also considers the potential roles of others, including fathers, as gatekeepers. Chapter authors also explore parental gatekeeping processes in at-risk families, including separated and divorced families and those with adolescent and nonresident fathers. This book summarizes the key findings and critical gaps in the gatekeeping literature and suggests important directions for future research.

This landmark text will be of interest to all students and scholars who study parenting, child development, and families. It will also serve as a valuable guide to future scholars in the burgeoning field of parenting research.

Sarah J. Schoppe-Sullivan is Professor in the Department of Psychology at The Ohio State University. She received her B.A. in Psychology from Northwestern University, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Professor Schoppe-Sullivan is a nationally and internationally recognized expert on coparenting, father-child relationships, and young children’s social-emotional development. She is a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Association for Psychological Science, and the National Council on Family Relations.

F. Kübra Aytaç-DiCarlo is Presidential Fellow at The Ohio State University, where she is currently pursuing her second Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology. She earned her first Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Middle East Technical University (METU). Dr. Aytaç-DiCarlo also holds three M.S. degrees: one in Psychology from Ohio State, another in Psychology from METU, and a third in Sociology from METU, where she completed her B.S. in Sociology, with a double major in Philosophy and a minor in Political Science and Public Administration. Her research focuses on coparenting, couple relationships, and family well-being in diverse cultural contexts, with multiple publications in these areas.