Abstract Objectives This study examined the effects of dyadic trust in physicians as a determinant of children’s quality of life (QoL) in pediatric asthma. Actor and partner effects of children’s and parents’ trust towards physician were tested, and linear vs. curvilinear associations were compared within an Actor–Partner Interdependence Model (APIM). Methods A longitudinal design included 222 child–mother dyads (children’s Mage = 12.6 years) assessed at two time points 1 year apart. Children completed trust in physician scale and a QoL questionnaire; parents reported their own trust in physicians, asthma severity, adherence, and illness-related conflict with the child. Results The linear APIM demonstrated a good fit (χ2(12) = 24.53, Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.97, Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) = 0.93, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) = 0.07, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR) = 0.08) and explained 50% of the variance in children’s QoL at Time 2. Both actor (β = .18, p = .018) and partner (β = .18, p = .007) effects of trust were significant and statistically equivalent (Wald χ2 (1) = 0.25, p = .62). The quadratic model showed poorer fit (CFI = 0.89, RMSEA = 0.11), and model comparisons favored the linear specification (Δχ2 (2) = 8.63, p = .013). Discussion Findings highlight children’s and mothers’ trust in physicians as a dyadic, mutually reinforcing predictor of children’s well-being. In pediatric asthma, higher trust, whether from the child or the parent, consistently benefits QoL, supporting a linear rather than curvilinear relationship. Strengthening trust on both sides of the parent–child dyads may enhance adherence, engagement, and long-term health outcomes.
Serena Petrocchi (2026) studied this question.