Examined perspective-taking differences among 259 individuals in high- and 43 individuals in low-adjustment marriages. Four hypotheses were tested that demonstrated that females in high- and low-adjustment marriages did not differ in their perspective-taking ability with others in general. Males and females in high- and low-adjustment groups did…

Used interview data from national sample of married persons to examine extent to which people in remarriages have attributes that adversely influence marital quality/stability. Found that persons in remarriages were more likely to be poorly integrated with parents and in-laws, willing to leave marriage, be poor marriage material, and to have lower…

Describes investigation of ways in which combat decreases marital quality and stability. Results support three models: (1) factors propelling men into combat also make them poor marriage material; (2) combat causes problems that increase marital adversity; and (3) combat intensifies premilitary stress and antisocial behavior which then negatively…

Longitudinal data on over 1,300 married persons suggest that divorce was deterred by absence of divorce in reference group (normative integration) and was deterred for shorter marriages by more friends and organizational affiliations (communicative integration). Sharing friends and organization affiliations with spouse (functional integration) may…

Evaluated effectiveness of marital therapy designed to enhance intimacy through self-disclosure of personal constructs. Couples in therapy (n=22) and controls (n=19) showed significant reduction in symptoms of nonpsychotic emotional illness. Couples in therapy subjectively reported improvement. Found significant pattern of improvement for wives in…

Compared communications patterns and conflicts over psychological distance in 25 nondistressed couples, 15 clinic couples, and 22 divorcing couples. Compared with nondistressed couples, both distressed groups had less mutual constructive communication, more avoidance of communication, more demand/withdraw communication, and more conflict over…

Reports on a group treatment model designed for individuals (N=44) in the predivorce stage of divorcing. Results indicate that the model had meaningful impact on individuals' anger, attachment, and ambivalence, suggesting that group treatment designed specifically for predivorced individuals can be effective in the early stages of divorce. (RJM)

Discusses the pursuer-distancer relationship style so as to help counselors recognize this type of interaction and offers several treatment techniques to alleviate it. Demonstrates the relationship between the concepts of parentification and childlike behavior and the pursuer and the distancer. Uses an integrative model of marital therapy as a…

The risk of separation or divorce late in the marital career is examined from a family development perspective. A hazards framework is used to estimate the effects of women's economic independence, couples' economic status, and family life course factors on the risk of middle-age separation or divorce. (Author/EMK)

Identifies empirical links between social homogamy, similarity in leisure interests, and role performance preferences and the dynamics of premarital relationships. Data were collected from 168 working- and middle-class couples married for the first time in central Pennsylvania during the early 1980s. Discusses findings. Argues for the importance…

Consistent with the bidirectional perspective on parent-child relations, the current study examined children's perceptions of agency in the context of marital conflict. A storytelling task was completed by 11 5 five-year-old children, tapping perceived agency. These children and their mothers and fathers completed measures of marital conflict at…

We use data from the 1995 National Survey of Family Growth (N=4,547) to investigate racial and ethnic differences in risk factors for marital disruption, with a particular emphasis on premarital cohabitation. We find that the nature and strength of the estimated effects of several risk factors for disruption differ across groups. In particular,…

A vast literature has examined the effects of marital disruption on child well-being, however medically attended childhood accidents/injuries have not been considered as an outcome. This article investigates this association as well as possible intervening pathways using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-linked mother-child file.…

Life history theorists have proposed that humans have evolved to be sensitive to specific features of early childhood environments and that exposure to different environments biases children toward development of different reproductive strategies, including differential pubertal timing. The current research provides a longitudinal test of this…

Contemporaneous and longitudinal associations among marital conflict, parent-child relationship quality, and youth maladjustment were examined using data from the National Survey of Families and Households. Analyses were based on 551 married families with a child age 5 to 11 years at Wave 1. The concurrent association between marital conflict and…