Family interaction during pregnancy and the transition to parenthood creates the social environment in which the fetus becomes part of the family, family relationships and roles are reorganized, and the infant's temperament appears. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among family dynamics, parental-fetal attachment, and infant temperament across the transition to parenthood. A sample of 91 families in Helsingborg, Sweden completed the Family Dynamics Measure and the Maternal/Paternal Fetal Attachment Scale during the third trimester of pregnancy. When the infant was 8-9 months old, mothers (n = 62) and fathers (n = 54) again completed the Family Dynamics Measure. The mother completed the Revised Infant Temperament Questionnaire as well. Overall, we found small changes in family dynamics, with an increase in perceived role conflict and mutuality reported by mothers. Fathers reported greater fetal attachment than their partners. Greater paternal- and maternal fetal attachment was related to more positive family dynamics, and maternal-fetal attachment was positively related to infant mood at 8 months. The stability of family dynamics across the transition to parenthood is a sign that most families negotiate this transition without difficulty.

URRICULA have been developed in the C mathematics and sciences by cooperating groups of academicians, psychologists and teachers. The result of these cooperative efforts have been well-designed learning experiences for students. However, a significant point with regard to these curricula is that they have developed outside the context of the local classroom. Since these curricula have been developed for one primary reason-change in classroom practice-it is of interest to ask to what extent are these programs capable of instigating change. Urich and Frymier [ 61 raised this question when they said:While it is desirable that outstanding scholars of the various disciplines play an important part in the development of instructional materials . . . such programs will not in and for themselves bring improved instruction.An ineffective teacher will not suddenly become effective with the adoption of new curriculum materials.A further study of the curriculum materials reveals that a philosophy of teaching is implicit in these programs. These are programs in which the role of the student and that of the teacher are quite different from the traditional pattern.The student becomes the focal point, and as such he becomes increasingly responsible for learning. The teacher is an effective companion and guide in the learning experience. Since a person tends to take from the printed page only that information 1 The research represented herein was performed pursuant to Contract # OE6-1@-108 (Research and Development Center for Teacher Education, The University of Texas), with the Office of Education, U.S.