Shared care arrangements and parental wellbeing in Aotearoa New Zealand

Objective: This study examines how shared care arrangements, where children are cared for across households, are socially patterned and whether variation in in-kind support within these arrangements is associated with parental mental health in Aotearoa New Zealand. Background: Although shared care arrangements are commonly defined by the division of parenting time, they also entail the sharing of resources and responsibilities across households. Research has largely overlooked variation in in-kind support within shared care as a factor contributing to parental wellbeing. Method: Data come from the 2022 New Zealand Income Support Survey (n=972), a nationally representative sample of low-to-middle income families. Multinomial logistic regression models examined associations between shared care arrangements, levels of in-kind support, and parents’ anxiety and depressive symptoms. Results: Close to one in five (19%) families had a shared care arrangement. These families were more socioeconomically disadvantaged than two-parent families without shared care arrangements, but more advantaged than sole-parent families. Lower levels of in-kind support were associated with greater anxiety and depressive symptoms. Conclusion: Shared care arrangements are heterogeneous in their socioeconomic distribution and the extent of resource sharing between parents, with implications for parental wellbeing. Implications: Findings highlight the importance of considering informal and in-kind support as a key dimension of post-separation family life, suggesting that policies focused primarily on formal child support may overlook other important sources of parental wellbeing inequality.