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…

There are four strategies spouses may attempt to employ in cases of conflict: authority, control, influence, and manipulation. Rates of marital dissolution are a function of the relative equality between spouses in terms of the types of conflict-resolution strategies they are able to employ. (Author)

This study examined the role of men's breadwinner status and their gender ideologies in shifting the breadwinning boundary. Data come from a 3-wave panel survey of 522 married men in 1980, 1983, and 1988. A strong effect of men's breadwinner status on their ideologies is found in 1983 but not in 1988, whereas the reversed pattern holds for the…

This study addresses three questions: Does earlier family mobility have long-term effects on later parent-adult offspring relations? Do differences in parenting behaviors and family social capital account for these effects? Does the family structure in which a move occurs matter? The author investigates these issues using 17-year longitudinal data…

Family members do work to meet people's emotional needs, improve their well-being, and maintain harmony. When emotional work is shared equally, both men and women have access to emotional resources in the family. However, like housework and child care, the distribution of emotional work is gendered. This study examines the psychological health…

Interviewed married couples (N=30) concerning strategies each spouse used to resolve conflicts. Findings show that husbands win most conflicts regardless of the strategies they or their wives employ. Suggests general background factors of the marriage shape outcomes but the process by which they are translated into outcomes is unclear. (Author)

Compared psychological well-being of men and women before and after marital separation with that of control group who remained married during same period. Prior to separation, men and women in disrupted group had lower psychological well-being scores than controls. Scores of separated women, but not men, declined even further after separation.…

The long-term consequences for children of marital violence were investigated using data from parents and their adult offspring over time. Marital violence was distinguished from other marital conflict. Outcome effects on young adults' lives of these and other predictor variables were investigated. Implications for counseling are discussed. (EMK)

Compared adults who came from disrupted families with those who lived with biological parents (at age 16). Little difference was found and those effects noted were positive. Results suggest that under certain circumstances a family disruption and associated stress may eventually turn to the individual's advantage. (Author/JAC)

Examines hypothesis that effect children have on parents' marriage is due to stress in parental role. Collected data from 287 intact couples with children living at home. Findings indicate parenting was affected by number of children and economic distress, but not by other roles. For both spouses, psychological well-being and perceived marital…

The efficacy of a mediational model for predicting child behavior problems (N=45 five year olds) from marital discord measures was assessed. Indirect relations between marital discord and both social withdrawal and aggression in the child are discussed. Working models of parents' behaviors are found to guide the child's behavior. (EMK)

As subsystems within the stepfamily structure compete for limited resources, conflicts arise among subsystems and within subsystems among persons with membership in different subunits. Stepfamilies can become more unified through recognition of prior loyalties, negotiations to resolve conflicts, and techniques to redefine the boundaries between…

Family disruption, marital conflict, and disengaged parent-child relations have a decreasing effect on child behavior over time. And survey analysis shows that the pattern of decline differs for these three stressors. Analysis specifies the developmental period when declines occurred and distinguishes the decreases due to adaptation and those due…

Considers the question of family policy in terms of "conventional-progressive" interest group perspectives. The conventional perspective is that "family problems" are the result of "breakdown" and can be resolved by reestablishing the status quo ante. Progressive advocates argue that changes in citizens'…

Reports recent research on family violence in eight articles. Deals with issues in wife abuse such as why women leave violent relationships and wife abuse programs. Discusses child abuse, its relationship to maternal employment and maturity, and child stealing. Analyzes the current state of knowledge and research. (JAC)