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This study tested a dyadic theoretical model in which conflict resolution strategies have impact on couples' marital adjustment. The study features a quantitative and transversal approach and a correlational and explanatory design. Participants included 231 heterosexual couples from different regions of Brazil, contacted after indication. The instrument composed of the Conflict Resolution Behavior Questionnaire (CRBQ) and the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (R-DAS) was filled out in the residence of the participants. Data were submitted to dyadic analysis by the latent trait model. The results indicated that the strategies have a strong impact on the individual's adjustment. Assessing the impact of one of the spouse's strategies on the other, only the marital adjustment of the men was affected. The evidence suggests differences between husbands and wives regarding the impact of strategies on adjustment. The data are discussed in light of the literature and considering their applicability in the clinical area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

The article discusses research on marital and relationship infidelity, noting statistical incongruity between rates of engagement in infidelity and societal views of its immorality. The research focuses on factors that influence a person's perceived definition and view of infidelity including religiosity and relationship satisfaction. The authors note that a goal of the study was to evaluate a sample of older adults in regard to the factor structure of the Perceptions of Dating Infidelity Scale (PDG). more...

This article investigates levels of generalized distrust of men among low-income non-Hispanic African American, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican and non-Hispanic White women in a three-city survey. The results reveal substantial variation. Hispanics' overall levels of distrust are found to be higher than levels for either African Americans or Whites. Among Hispanics, however, Dominicans are the most distrusting group followed by Puerto Ricans, whereas Mexicans report levels of distrust that are comparable to those of non-Hispanic African Americans and non-Hispanic Whites. Married women are less distrusting than cohabiting women, who in turn are less distrusting than noncohabiting women. Nevertheless, distrust is not a significant predictor of a woman's total number of lifetime marital and cohabiting relationships, and distrust only marginally predicts a woman's desire to be in a steady relationship. We suggest that studies of trust in this population should focus more on attitudes displayed in specific encounters than on overall, generalized attitudes about gender distrust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Social harmony is a valued relational rule in collectivism. Using data from in-depth interviews with 20 Chinese American couples, the authors study how husbands and wives interpret and negotiate marital harmony within a multicultural context and how gender relates to this process. Although all participants appear to seek harmony, the result indicates two quite different forms. Structural harmony is based on traditional social norms that emphasize obligation to the whole. Relational harmony is "we-centered" and prioritizes the marriage relationship itself. Not all couples fall neatly in either category; couples in transition experience a push-and-pull process between the multiple influences in their lives. These tensions are explored through six dimensions: (a) conflict between relational and structural goals, (b) communal versus dyadic obligation, (c) unclear authority structure, (d) intersection of family and workplace, (e) harmonizing multiple voices, and (f) incorporating personal agency. Implications for research and practice are addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Tests of the relationship between economic difficulties and marital distress have generally excluded retirement-aged couples. Given the aging U.S. population and the upcoming retirement of the baby boom cohort, this research gap is problematic. To rectify this omission, this study uses longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH; N = 3,853) and assesses whether the family stress model operates differently for three retirement-aged groups of couples (one group that retired before the study, one that retired during the study, and one group of retirement-aged couples that did not retire during the study) and a comparison group of younger couples. The family stress model did not operate for married couples that began the NSFH already retired but did operate for the two other retirement-aged couples. The authors discuss the potential mechanisms behind these findings and the implications for the upcoming retirement of the baby boom cohort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This study assesses and compares the relationship between parents' marital quality, parent—child relationship, and severity of eating-related psychopathology in families with and without eating disorders. Data are collected from the mother, father, and daughter of 30 families with a daughter diagnosed with anorexia or bulimia and from 30 matched healthy control families. Results indicate that parents of daughters with anorexia or bulimia have significantly lower marital quality than the control group, and the daughters report lower relationship quality with their parents. Parent—child relationships serve as a mediating variable between parents' marital quality and severity of the eating-related psychopathology. Results highlight that higher marital quality is associated with better parent-child relationships, which are related to a lower severity of eating-related psychopathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

The present study examined the midlife outcomes of 548 adults who became parents before the age of 20. Participants were from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS) and were followed prospectively from age 18 until age 53. Their life-course development was compared to sample members who gave birth at the mean age for the WLS. Midlife outcomes were assessed in five domains: educational and occupational attainment, family formation, social participation and support, physical health, and psychological health. Compared to delayed child bearers, early child bearers completed less schooling and, in midlife, had less prestigious occupations, more unstable marriages, and were less physically healthy. Differences were not evident in appraisals of job and marital satisfaction, social support, and psychological health, revealing areas of positive adaptation as well as areas of vulnerability unique to adolescent parenthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Based on a prospective longitudinal panel data set that was collected at three developmental stages—early adolescence, young adulthood, and middle adulthood—this study investigates marital satisfaction and educational attainment as mediating mechanisms as well as gender's moderating effect for the intergenerational transmission of constructive parenting (N = 1,560). The results show that perceived satisfying experiences with parents during early adolescence are positively related to marital satisfaction and educational attainment in young adulthood, which, in turn, are positively related to individuals' utilization of constructive parenting in middle adulthood. The two mediating mechanisms account for most of the direct effect of the intergenerational transmission of constructive parenting. Furthermore, the mediating effect of marital relationship is stronger for current fathers than for mothers because of a stronger association between marital satisfaction and constructive parenting for men. The implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Intelligence has long been a topic of special interest to social scientists, but research that involves intelligence as a predictor of behavior usually focuses on domains such as crime and delinquency, academic achievement, and socioeconomic status. In this article, the authors address this gap in the literature and develop a theoretical framework to hypothesize why intelligence may be related to an important family behavior: divorce. The authors propose three hypotheses in terms of ascribed statuses, achieved statuses, and direct mechanisms, each of which could potentially explain the relationship between intelligence and divorce. The results are consistent with a direct influence of intelligence on divorce, net of ascribed and achieved statuses. The authors conclude by explaining the observed effect on divorce rates through three distinct but interrelated aspects of intelligence: direction, adaptation, and criticism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Guided by a life course perspective, this study investigated whether the psychological consequences of transitioning into a caregiver role for a biological parent, parent-in-law, spouse, other kin, or nonkin among married adults might be moderated by marital role quality. Using longitudinal data from a national sample of 1,842 married adults aged 35 years and older, this study estimated regression models examining whether marital disagreement prior to the transition to caregiving predicted differences in change in global happiness and depressive symptoms because of a transition into caregiving. Results indicated that, compared to noncaregivers, new caregivers for a biological parent or spouse experienced both a greater decline in happiness and a greater increase in depressive symptoms when they reported a higher level of marital disagreement. These findings suggest that the psychological effects of becoming a caregiver for a biological parent or spouse among married adults are contingent on marital role quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

The purpose of the study is to examine the meaning that the institution of marriage can hold for young, unmarried adults, based on their systems (or collections) of beliefs about marriage. Based on symbolic interactionism, it is argued that marital meaning has implications for how people behave prior to and during marriage that may relate to marital functioning. A qualitative content analysis of scholarly literature reveals that marital meaning is multifaceted and can be conceptualized as including five distinct dimensions. A confirmatory factor analysis identifies beliefs that are scaled to represent their respective dimensions. A cluster analysis categorizes participants into three groups based on participants' scores along these dimensions. Similarities and distinctions across the three groups are discussed to highlight the complexity of belief systems that young adults can have about the institution of marriage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

In this study, the authors examine the effect of gender ideology on marital happiness in later life. Studies of marital satisfaction in later life have tended to neglect such attitudes, although they have received increasing attention in the literature on younger marriages. The authors use data from married individuals who range in age from 51 to 92 years old and are members of the 1994 Iowa Youth and Families Project. Results indicate that those who hold egalitarian attitudes report significantly higher levels of marital happiness than do those with more traditional attitudes. However, this effect is only significant for men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

In this article, I examine the distribution of time pressure associated with the roles of marital partner and parent using data from a telephone survey. Results of an analysis of open-ended responses indicate that less than a quarter of respondents are satisfied with the tune they spend with their children and spouses. Women are more likely to want to improve the quality of family time, whereas men are somewhat more likely to want more time with their spouses and children. Regression analysis indicates that social support, hours of paid labor, hours of housework, job control, and having dependent children are all associated with significant variation in family time pressures. In contrast to research on general time pressure, there are no socioeconomic differences in family time pressures, and women do not experience significantly higher family time pressures than men do. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

The authors investigate the direction of the relationship between marital happiness and wives' full-time employment using the 1987 to 1988 and 1992 to 1994 waves of the National Survey of Families and Households. First, the authors predict change in wives' employment between the two waves using marital happiness and other Time 1 characteristics. The results show that shifting into full-time employment is more likely for unhappily married than for happily married wives. Second, they examine how changes in wives' employment between Times 1 and 2 influence marital stability and changes in marital happiness. The authors find that contrary to frequently invoked social and economic theories, wives' full-time employment is associated with greater marital stability. Nonetheless, changes in wives' employment have no significant effect on how marital quality changes between Times 1 and 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Women who have chosen to invest in multiple roles as wife, mother, and professional often experience difficulty in balancing these roles. However, research shows that spousal support for women investing in multiple roles can be an important factor in their experience of distress. The authors conduct qualitative interviews designed to gather experiential information with 30 women who are both faculty members at Christian universities around the country and mothers of children living in the home. Information on the participants' relationships with their husbands and their experiences of spousal support, both practically and emotionally, are determined. Participants report that their spouses help them practically through child care, household chores, and availability in a crisis. Additionally, spouses help their wives through emotional support, including mutual respect, pride in their wives' accomplishments, and interest in their wives' work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Studies of marital conflict have concluded that the frequency of disagreements between spouses declines over time in a marital relationship. Using cross-sectional and longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households, the authors examine the frequency of marital disagreements concerning household tasks, money, sex, and spending time together reported by married women and men age 20 to 79. The study results refute a developmental explanation for marital disagreement, which posits that disagreements decline as marital partners accommodate themselves to one another over time. The results indicate, however, that increased marital duration may bring increased marital disagreements, depending on family life course stage (particularly, the presence of children in the home), and potentially also depending on spouses' ages and birth cohorts. The results also suggest a limited role of selective attrition in explaining the frequency of marital disagreements, in that couples who disagree more frequently are more likely to divorce or separate, particularly respondents of younger ages/birth cohorts, who have been married for relatively briefer periods of time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This study examines whether the meaning of marital conflict and marital solidarity are affected by the transition to retirement, whether the retirement transition alters stability and variability of, and cross-spouse influences on, marital quality, and whether retirement influences latent means of marital quality. Data from both waves of the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH) addressed these questions (N = 407 couples for wives' retirement, and N = 550 couples for husbands' retirement). Results suggest that the structure of marital conflict is unaffected by husbands' and wives' transition to retirement, but that wives' continued employment may be associated with greater conflict longitudinally. Husbands' and wives' constructs of marital solidarity differ from one another; they were unaffected by wives' retirement but converged with husbands' retirement through changes for each partner in the importance of joint time together and potential for divorce. Effects of the retirement transition are far subtler than previously believed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Explanations for the risks associated with premarital and nonmarital cohabitation (e.g., higher rates of breakup and divorce, lower relationship satisfaction, and greater risk for violent interaction) have focused on levels of conventionality, including attitudes about commitment to the institution of marriage. However, relatively little attention has been paid to the role of interpersonal, not institutional, commitment. In a national random sample (United States), premarital and nonmarital cohabitation were associated with lower levels of interpersonal commitment to partners, suggesting links to further understanding of risk in these relationships. Premarital cohabitation was particularly associated with less committed and less religious males. Prior findings associating cohabitation with lower levels of happiness and religiosity, and higher levels of negative interaction (for men) were replicated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This analysis merges marital history data for respondents in the National Survey of Families and Households with census data describing the sex composition of their local marriage markets to examine the impact of the availability of spousal alternatives on subjective measures of marital relations. The authors find significant bivariate associations between the sex composition of the local marriage market and husbands' and wives' marital happiness, perceived likelihood of divorce, and anticipated change in happiness if divorced. However, the effects of the sex composition of the local marriage market on these measures of marital quality are not significant after adjusting for racial differences. Racial differences in these subjective measures of marital quality cannot be explained by racial differences in mate availability, socioeconomic status, and other dimensions of sociodemographic background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This study compared spouses who had experienced similar versus different childhood trauma in terms of post-traumatic symptomatology, psychological symptoms of distress, and marital quality. The sample comprised two groups: Holocaust child survivors who were sexually abused during the Holocaust and are married to Holocaust child survivors (n = 44) who were also sexually abused, and adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse married to nonsurvivors of sexual abuse (n = 43). All participants were administered the post-traumatic stress disorder, Symptom Checklist 90-Revised, and Enrich Scale for Marital Quality questionnaires. The results revealed that compared with survivors married to partners with different past traumatic experiences, survivors who shared similar past traumatic experiences with their spouses had higher levels of PTSD, anxiety, depression, somatization, phobic-anxiety, and hostility but also expressed greater levels of marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

We used national panel data collected between 1980 and 1997 to classify 208 people's open-ended responses to a question on why their marriages ended in divorce. Infidelity was the most commonly reported cause, followed by incompatibility, drinking or drug use, and growing apart. People's specific reasons for divorcing varied with gender, social class, and life course variables. Former husbands and wives were more likely to blame their ex-spouses than themselves for the problems that led to the divorce. Former husbands and wives claimed, however, that women were more likely to have initiated the divorce. People who attributed the cause of the divorce to the relationship itself, rather than to internal (self) or external factors, tended to have the best postdivorce adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Using data from the National Survey of Families and Households, this study examines the duration dependence of relationship quality for cohabitors and marrieds. Cohabitors experience declines in relationship interaction and happiness that are similar to those experienced by marrieds. But unlike marriages, the stability of cohabiting unions is related to duration. This unique effect is indicative of the meaning of cohabitation as well as its role in the family life course. Most cohabitors expect to marry their partners, and provided that they do so within a few years of initiating the cohabiting union, perceived instability remains low. In contrast, cohabitations that are not readily transformed into marriages are hindered not only by high levels of instability but also especially low levels of relationship interaction and happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This research examines the relationship between gender, controlling one's spouse, and the effect this control has on staying married as expressed in marital commitment. The authors examine structural and cultural views as a way of theoretically understanding the relationship between gender, control, and commitment. The results suggest that both theoretical processes may be operating. The expectations tied to men's and women's structural positions and the control that these positions imply for interaction (the structural view), as well as what control means for men and women and the responses that follow from this meaning (the cultural view), appear to be simultaneously operating in marital interaction. These results suggest that cultural meanings and social structural meanings coalesce to produce predictable outcomes for commitment in marriage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Using longitudinal data from the 1987 to 1988 (Wave I) and 1992 to 1993 (Wave II) National Survey of Family and Households, the authors compared long-term cohabiting, married, and remarried couples in four areas of relationship quality at Wave II (happiness, communication, fairness, and disagreements). Comparisons were made after controlling for presence of a child, relationship duration, educational level, gender, ethnic status, and relationship quality at Wave I. We found that long-term cohabiting couples reported lower relationship happiness and fairness than other types of couples. Couples who cohabited prior to marriage were similar to couples who did not cohabit prior to marriage, whether the couples were in first marriages or remarriages. Differences were small among the types of couples in level of communication or disagreements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This study examined the relation between parental status and marital adjustment of employed individuals. The sample consisted of 91 individuals--47 employed wives and 44 employed husbands. This study found that men with children reported higher levels of marital adjustment compared to men without children and women with and without children. Overall, women with children reported lower levels of marital adjustment compared to women without children and men with and without children. The study also investigated the potential moderating effects of social support on the relation between parental status and marital adjustment. As expected, women with children who reported lower social support were more vulnerable to lower marital adjustment than were other groups of women. Level of social support was not a moderator for men. It also was found that affective support had moderating effects, but no such effects were evident for instrumental support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

In this research, we investigate how children shape maternal marital happiness. The findings reveal that the otherwise negative effects of sibship size are altered by the gender composition of the sibling group. Having sons tends to reduce the negative impact of sibling grout size. Solving for main effects in the interactions that include sibship size by the gender coin position of the sibling group, we find that having all sons affords the most beneficial consequences for marital happiness. The daughter-only groups have nonsignificant effects, ant the mixed-gender sibships have the most deleterious influence on maternal marital happiness. Within a subsample of mixed-gender sibships only, we further find that mothers who have more boys than gifts are move likely to report higher marital gratification. Generally speaking, our research demonstrates the need to examine both main and interaction effects of family structure on marital happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This article reties on in-depth, open-ended interviews with 15 Black men to explore three questions: What do Black men and Black women expect from marital life? How did these expectations evolve? and What impact, if any, will these expectations have on the cycle of the second shift and provider role strain? The author found that the male and female respondents expect that men will take on the provider roles in their families because a man's self-worth rooted in his ability to take on the provider role. Respondents also expect that women will be nurturers in their families. This is not to suggest that the male respondents expect that their wives will be submissive--far from it. In fact, the male respondents expect their wives to work. However, regardless of whether women work or not, the respondents insist that men have to be providers and women have to be nurturers in their families. Finally, the male and female respondents intend to pass/have passed their gender-specific ideologies about family life and spousal roles on to their children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

In this article, we ask the question: Does a wife's economic independence destabilize marriage and heighten the risk of divorce? Using longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households, we find only weak support for the economic independence thesis. There is an initial positive association between a wife's percentage contribution to family income and divorce, but the relation is reduced to nonsignificance as soon as variables measuring gender ideology are introduced into the model. Our analysis indicates that measures of marital commitment and Satisfaction are better predictors of marital dissolution than measures of economic independence. This strongly suggests that the independence effect found in prior research, which did not include controls for marital quality, may have been measuring the role of wives' economic independence in exiting bad marriages, not in exiting all marriages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

The cultural context in Tatarstan is currently characterized by uncertainty and change. Since perestroika, glasnost, and ultimately the fall of communism, the cultures of the former Soviet Republic have been struggling to regain stability and balance. This has put incredible pressure on families and, especially, the marital relationship. This study explores the relationship among communication strategies designed to maintain marriages and marital quality indicators in Tatar, Russian, and mixed Russian-Tatar couples. Data collected from 321 married couples indicated that the behavior of both self and spouse are related to perceptions of satisfaction and commitment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Current demographic patterns indicate that a significant number of children are living apart from their biological fathers, suggesting a structural fragility or vulnerability of men's connections with their children. In this article, we first explore whether fathers have concerns about possible disruptions of their relationships with their children and identify the nature of these concerns. Next, we identify those characteristics that distinguish the fathers with high levels of concern from those who are less concerned. The quality of the marital or partner relationship strongly predicts fathers' concerns. Fathers who have a history of living apart from their child, and who maintain a high level of involvement with that child, express the least amount of concern. In addition, we find that the salience of the father role predicts concerns but that this effect varies according to the fathers' current age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Using a convenience sample of 152 married or cohabiting couples, this study tested different theoretical models of male aggression toward a female intimate that addressed the relation between physical and verbal aggression variables and family of origin violence, psychological symptoms, and marital satisfaction. Results of covariance structural analysis procedures provided general support for the proposed models. Resells indicated that physical violence witnessed in one's family of origin was predictive of greater psychological distress in adulthood for men and women Husbands' reports of psychological symptomatology were an important path to their own display of physical and verbal aggression; tiffs relation was not true for women's symptomatology reports and their partners' aggression displays. Marital satisfaction was found to have a significant negative relation with both wives' reports of their husbands' verbal aggression toward them and husbands' reports of verbal aggression toward their wives The findings for the physical aggression model closely paralleled those found for the verbal models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Given the prominence of marital dissolution in American life in recent decades, it is important to understand what contributes to or deters it. This article focuses on spouses' shared leisure activities as a possible deterrent. An "attachment hypothesis"- that spouses' shared leisure time is a form of pleasurable interaction that strengthens the attachment between them and helps prevent marital break-up at the time and into the future-is tested in the context of controls for a variety of hypotheses. The empirical tests are supportive of the attachment hypothesis and suggest that, because couples with children have less shared leisure time, children can contribute to marital break-up as well as help prevent it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This article reports on a study of the choice of confidant among a sample of married persons aged 55 and over. Although 85% of the women and 70% of the men reported having a confidant, less than 30% of the women and 40% of the men reported confiding in their spouses. Those who do confide in their spouses have markedly higher levels of marital satisfaction than others and also generally score higher on measures of overall emotional well-being. In many cases, the estimated negative effects of confiding in someone other than one's spouse are as large as or larger than the negative effects of not having a confidant. These findings indicate the import of identity of the confidant for both marital and general well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Data from a representative sample of 1,070 married Protestants and Catholics were used to examine the relationship between religious homogamy and marital happiness. Although couples may vary in the extent to which they share religious views (e.g., beliefs, values), previous research has treated religious homogamy as a dichotomy; a couple is either homogamous or it is not. A partial explanation for this is that few studies have gone beyond the broad divisions of Protestant, Catholic, and Jew. In the present study religious bodies were classified on the basis of doctrine and ritual, yielding six categories: Baptist, Calvinist, Catholic, fundamentalist, Lutheran, and Methodist. These categories were then used to develop a measure of estimated "religious distance" or degrees of heterogamy. This measure was used to test the hypothesis that the larger the religious distance or disparity, the greater the likelihood of unhappiness with the marriage. The hypothesis was supported by the data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This study uses a national sample of married persons under age 55, interviewed in 1980 and again in 1983, to estimate why divorce and marital instability vary by age and duration of marriage. Results indicate that the accumulation of assets substantially reduces the propensity to divorce. We also find that several important correlates of divorce and instability (age at marriage, health, social integration, and income) interact with age and duration. In general, these factors seem to operate almost exclusively among young people and young marriages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Reported sources of marital dissatisfaction were examined in a sample of 153 newly separated persons, virtually all of whom subsequently divorced. Respondents were asked about their own marital dissatisfactions and about the dissatisfactions of their spouses in 18 different categories of behavior and attitude. Factor analysis of the responses yielded a highly coherent set of marital dissatisfaction source clusters that were relatively independent of each other. A number of these clusters were based upon similar expressions of marital dissatisfaction attributed to both respondent and spouse. Analysis of demographic and mental health characteristics revealed that many of these cluster scores were significantly associated with age, length of marriage, parent status, and with the respondent's role in the initiation of the marital separation. In addition, several marital dissatisfaction source cluster scores were significantly related to measures of psychological well-being and adaptation to the early marital disruption process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

An extensive literature demonstrates a negative correlation between the presence of children and marital quality. Few of these studies are designed to test the reasons for this relationship. Using a national panel study, we examine two possible paths: that people who choose to have children differ from those who do not in ways that affect marital quality, and that having a child changes marital structure and process. The results of the analysis support neither hypothesis. Although marital quality deteriorated over the three-year period, the transition to parenthood does not seem to affect changes in marital happiness, interaction, disagreements, division of labor, satisfaction with division of labor, or number of marital problems. Having a child did, however, seem to deter divorce and permanent separation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Evidence for the relationship between marital status and psychological well-being has been largely cross-sectional and subject to multiple interpretations. Estimates of well-being prior to marital termination permit a fuller examination of the impact of psychological well-being on changes in marital status. The present study utilizes data from a large metropolitan Chicago sample to assess the initial life conditions and depressive affect of married respondents, and contrasts those who divorced during the following four years with those who remained married. Among women, significantly more of those who would subsequently divorce were employed at Time 1. Those who would subsequently divorce also differed from those who would remain married in being somewhat younger and more distressed by their marriages, but they were not significantly more depressed. These findings suggest that previously observed marital status differences in psychological well-being reflect the negative life conditions that follow divorce, and the decreased well-being associated with those new conditions, more than they reflect preexisting psychological problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Analyses of the combined General Social Surveys for 1972-1983 are used to estimate propensity to divorce (proportion of ever-married persons who have ever been divorced or legally separated) for major occupational categories and for selected occupations. Separate analyses for males and females show significant estimated effects of occupation on propensity to divorce even when occupational prestige, age, age at first marriage, income, education, and number of children are statistically controlled. Contrary to the findings of previous studies, male professional and technical workers do not have the lowest propensity to divorce. Propensity to divorce for male professional and technical workers, when adjusted for income, occupational prestige, age, age at first marriage, education, and number of children, is higher than for any occupational category except transport equipment operatives. For female workers, on the other hand, professional and technical workers do have the lowest propensity to divorce among nonfarm workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Past research on the relationship between wives' employment and divorce has focused on two types of explanations: those positing changed motives regarding divorce and those suggesting changed opportunities. Without discounting totally the path from income to opportunity, we focus here on a somewhat neglected alternative, that leading from time constraints to changed motives toward maintaining a marriage. We argue that time spent by the wife working outside the home impedes the completion of tasks necessary to the maintenance of the household and hence increases the probability of divorce. Using data from the Young and Mature Women samples of the National Longitudinal Survey, we find that among employed women, hours worked has a greater impact on marital dissolution than do various measures of wife's earnings. In partial support of our hypotheses, the relationship between wife's hours worked and the probability of divorce is strongest for middle income families and families in which the husband disapproves of his wife's employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

A major aspect of the divorce process is the psychological divorce: detachment from the ex-spouse and formation of a new life with new emotional bonds and commitments. Many people complete this process promptly, but at least 25% of the divorced population have significant difficulty completing the psychological divorce and remain attached to their ex-spouses for significant periods of time. The present study examined demographic, personality, and relational characteristics of this population. No personality traits were found to be related to attachment. Several socioeconomic variables were found to be significantly related to ongoing attachment, and characteristics of the relationship to the ex-spouse prior to and following the separation were found to predict ongoing attachment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This review of recent literature on the whos and whys of divorce examines data on the frequency of divorce and research on the mediocre period. The still lingering emphasis on a pathological perspective to explain marital dissolution is posited as a reason for the focus of much of the divorce literature on demography rather than process or outcome. Societal and legal explanations for the increase in the divorce rate are explored. Demographic correlates, mental and physical health issues, and the reasons the divorced themselves give for the decision to end their marriages are reviewed. The article concludes with an examination of techniques and topic areas that would help move future research away from static descriptions and toward an integrated explanation of the divorce process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Using longitudinal interview data, we examine the predictive ability of a scale designed to predict divorce and permanent separation. We find that high scorers are nine times more likely to divorce than low scorers. Divorce rates for components of the scale indicate that dissolution is a process, becoming more likely as overt actions succeed attitudinal factors. Finally, discriminant analysis is used to test a model predicting the likelihood of individuals moving from instability to divorce. The results indicate that individuals are more apt to move on to divorce or permanent separation if alternative attractions are present, there are few barriers to divorce, or when the marriage retains fewer attractions. The results indicate that the marital instability index in conjunction with information on barriers and attractions provides the basis for a comprehensive model predicting divorce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Examines how attitudes toward divorce can affect marital quality based on the exchange and cognitive dissonance theories. Estimation of reciprocal paths between changes in attitudes toward divorce and changes in marital quality; Support for the exchange theory hypothesis than the cognitive dissonance hypothesis. more...

Examines the influence of sociodemographic and attitudinal characteristics of each spouse on the likelihood of marital disruption. Use of longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households for the study; Role of wives in the maintenance of marital relationships. more...

This study uses longitudinal data from two sources (parents and their adult offspring) to determine the long-term consequences of marital violence for children. The authors find that parents' reports of marital violence between 1980 and 1988 (when children were between the ages of 11 and 19, on average) predict offspring's reports of negative outcomes in early adulthood, including poorer parent-child relationships, lower psychological well-being, and more violence within their own relationships. Most of these associations are independent of parents' nonviolent conflict, divorce, self-reported abusive behavior toward children, and alcohol/drug use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This article focuses on marital instability after midlife. In North America today, marital separation and divorce are relatively common phenomena not only for young people, but also for middle-aged and older adults. According to Canadian Vital Statistics, 27,689 women and 34,811 men aged 40 or older terminated their marriages by divorce in 1991. The divorce rates for this age group have more than doubled since 1971. Recent evidence concerning divorce at and after midlife suggests that these divorces tend to have a negative impact upon partners' economic and physical well-being, their relationships with their children and their social support networks. Those who divorce later in life, particularly older women, are less likely to remarry and they may live for many years without a spouse often the major source of support and assistance for married persons in times of crisis or declining health. Studies suggests that if current trends continue, the incidence of marital separation and divorce after midlife is likely to rise. Because opportunities for remarriage generally decline with age, an increasing number of people can be expected to remain unmarried through the remaining years of their lives. more...

This study tests the hypothesis that lit influences of family disruption, marital conflict; and disengaged parent-child relations on antisocial behavior decline as the individual moves from childhood to adolescence and early adulthood. The study examines the three waves of the National Survey of Children, which includes assessments in childhood adolescence, and early adulthood. The results show declines in the influence of family disruption, marital conflict; and parent-child relations. However the pattern of decline was not the same for all three family stressors. The analysis specifies the developmental period when the declines occurred and distinguishes decreases due to adaptation (time since exposure to the family stressor) from those due to maturation (age of the child). The results and conceptual framework of the study provide an approach to reconciling some previous inconsistent findings regarding the long-term effects of child exposure to family stressors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Using longitudinal data from a national sample of married persons, we exploit a wide range of contextual factors that may influence the effect of retirement on marital quality. Characteristics of the husband's job, the division of labor, health, social support, and marital quality are preretirement factors found to affect the influence of retirement on marital quality. Leaving a high-stress job improves marital quality, whereas factors signifying gender role reversals, poor health, and reduced social support lower marital quality Changes that accompany retirement involving role reversals and decreased social support lower marital quality as did the amount of change in the individual's life. Retirement has a more powerful and pervasive influence on marital quality than prior research suggests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

This article describes a revised Conflict Tactics Scales (the CTS2) to measure psychological and physical attacks on a partner in a marital, cohabiting, or dating relationship; and also use of negotiation. The CTS2 has (a) additional items to enhance content validity and reliability; (b) revised wording to increase clarity and specificity; (c) better differentiation between minor and severe levels of each scale; (d) new scales to measure sexual coercion and physical injury; and (e) a new format to simplify administration and reduce response sets. Reliability ranges from .79 to .95. There is preliminary evidence of construct validity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...