1 Cynthia and David are in their early 60s and are the parents of four adult children. Until this year they were looking forward to retirement in 2 to 3 years. However, because of the economic turndown, their savings and investments have been drastically reduced, and their private business is barely surviving. Consequently, their lives have been filled with high levels of stress, and from all indications this will increase. For multiple reasons, the courts recently awarded them custody of their 4-year-old grandson.As a consequence, they are once again involved in securing babysitters, arranging play dates, enrolling a child in preschool, and driving a child to appropriate activities. In addition to these increased demands, last week they found out that David’s parents, because of a lack of resources, will be coming to live with them. His parents are in their 90s and are very frail.

Abstract Attachment theory has been utilized in studies of relationship violence with heterosexual samples but not with same-sex samples. The purpose of this exploratory study was to compare two nested models of perpetration of violence derived from literature using structural equation modeling procedures. The sample for this study (N = 87) consisted of 46 gay men and 41 lesbians who had recently been in a same-sex intimate relationship, who had perpetrated at least one act of violence within the past year, and who reported experiencing relationship distress. Participants completed measures of stress, attachment, and violence. Results suggested that the relationships among stress, attachment, and violence are best explained by a mediation model, i.e., the relationship between perceived stress and the perpetration of violence was mediated by an insecure attachment style. A brief discussion and implications for future researchers are included.

Involvement of African-American fathers with their children after separation and divorce has been minimally addressed in the literature. Using data from the National Survey of Families and Households, this study explores the relationship between nonresidential father involvement and various aspects of father role enactment among separated and divorced African-American fathers. Levels of participation in face-to-face visits, telephone/letter contact, and global decision-making concerning children were analyzed. Support is offered for the relationship between father involvement with children and various factors associated with social role enactment among nonresidential fathers.

Gay men and lesbians may experience domestic violence at rates as high as, or higher than heterosexuals, yet there is a noticeable absence of empirical research investigating this phenomenon. This study investigated same-sex partner violence from a disempowerment perspective to determine the influence of (a) individual characteristics, (b) family of origin factors, and (c) intimate relationship factors. A sample of 77 individuals in distressed relationships (40 gay men and 37 lesbians) were administered a series of quantitative measures in our project office. Data primarily were analyzed using two-way ANOVAs (gender×perpetrator of violence). The greatest number of differences between perpetrators and nonperpetrators was found in individual characteristics. Implications for practitioners working with gay men and lesbians experiencing partner violence are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to assess predictors of women's use of verbal and physical aggression during marital separation among a sample of 147 divorced mothers. The predictor variables examined were women's self-esteem, mastery, attachment style, gender-role identity, and husband's verbal and physical aggression during separation. Hierarchical multiple regressions revealed that women's psychological characteristics and men's use of aggression toward their wives during separation were predictive of women's use of verbal aggression toward their husbands during marital separation. In addition, women's psychological characteristics and use of verbal aggression toward their husbands during separation and men's use of aggression toward their wives during separation predicted women's use of physical aggression toward their husbands during separation.

This study is based on current research and theory that suggests that divorce creates fundamental changes in the organization of families in terms of gender. We use feminist theory, with its elevation of gender to a central category of analysis, to begin to explain the mechanisms that shape fathers’ responses to divorce. Based on a review of narratives from 20 nonresidential, recently divorced fathers, we found that divorce prompted a transformation for these men in terms of their families’ gender relations of power. Men occupied positions of relative privilege when married, and divorce called this status into question. The relational and legal changes prompted by divorce signified a loss of access and authority to which many of the research participants felt entitled. Changes in the gender order in families influenced men’s constructions of masculinity. Moreover, an examination of gender and social class as components of an interacting system illustrates the constraints that class position imposed on men as they negotiated postdivorce family relationships.

OBJECTIVE:To examine the relationship between support from health care providers and psychological adjustment for men and women experiencing infertility.DESIGN:Survey research using confidential self-administered questionnaires.PARTICIPANTS:One hundred twenty individuals experiencing infertility within their couple relationship participated in this study (60.8% women; 29.3% men).MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:Perceived support from health care providers was hypothesized to be related to stress, anxiety, and depression. Various treatment variables were held constant in the regression analyses.RESULTS:For women, perceived support from health care providers did not predict levels of stress, depression, or anxiety. For men, greater levels of perceived support from health care providers predicted lower levels of stress (FChange = 4.90, p < .05) and anxiety (FChange = 4.81, p < .05) but not depression.CONCLUSION:Much research exists indicating that friend and family support is a buffer to negative psychological adjustment for women. The results of this study emphasize that the study of support from nurses and other health care providers might provide greater understanding of ways to buffer negative psychological adjustment for men experiencing infertility in the couple relationship.

Because male athletes have exhibited aggressive tendencies in a variety of settings, they may be at risk for using violence both within and beyond their sports involvement. Five former college/professional hockey players were interviewed to determine their perspectives on the nature of aggression and violence in sports competition as well as in social relationships. The informants were asked about athletes’violence and aggression toward teammates, acquaintances, and female intimates. This analysis includes participants’ experiences, observations, and explanations of the instances of violence in hockey culture. The study findings yield (1) a greater understanding of the ways in which hockey socialization and athletes’notions of masculinity combine to create a culture of aggression and violence and (2) two major factors—consumption of alcohol and the objectification of women—that contribute to exporting violence outside the athletic arena.

Because male athletes have exhibited aggressive tendencies in a variety of settings, they may be at risk for using violence both within and beyond their sports involvement. Five former college/professional hockey players were interviewed to determine their perspec- tives on the nature of aggression and violence in sports competition as well as in social relationships. The informants were asked about athletes'violence and aggression toward teammates, acquaintances, and female intimates. This analysis includes participants' experiences, observations, and explanations of the instances of violence in hockey cul- ture. The study findings yield (1) a greater understanding of the ways in which hockey socialization and athletes' notions of masculinity combine to create a culture of aggres- sion and violence and (2) two major factors—consumption of alcohol and the objectifi- cation of women—that contribute to exporting violence outside the athletic arena.

Because male athletes have exhibited aggressive tendencies in a variety of settings, they may be at risk for using violence both within and beyond their sports involvement. Five former college/professional hockey players were interviewed to determine their perspectives on the nature of aggression and violence in sports competition as well as in social relationships.The informants were asked aboutathletes’violence and aggression toward teammates, acquaintances, and female intimates. This analysis includes participants’ experiences, observations, and explanations of the instances of violence in hockey culture. The study findings yield (1) a greater understanding of the ways in which hockey socialization and athletes’notions of masculinity combine to create a culture of aggression and violence and (2) two major factors—consumption of alcohol and the objectification of women—that contribute to exporting violence outside the athletic arena.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between adolescent functioning (i.e., self-esteem and academic achievement) and parental support, behavioral control, and psychological control in European American and African American adolescents. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that supportive behaviors of African American mothers toward their adolescent children positively predicted both self-esteem and academic achievement. Psychological control was significantly related to adolescent self-esteem in both the models of paternal parenting (African American and European American) and maternal parenting (African American). In addition, among European American adolescents, behavioral control was a significant predictor of academic achievement and self-esteem. This study provides support for the methodological value of examining the parenting dimensions independently as opposed to combining them to form parenting styles.

The purpose of this study was to assess predictors of male-initiated psychological and physical partner abuse during the separation process prior to divorce among a sample of 80 divorced fathers who reported no physical violence during their marriages. The predictor variables examined were male gender-role identity, female-initiated divorces, dependence on one's former wife, depression, anxiety, and coparental conflict. Through ordinary least square (OLS) regression techniques, it was found that male gender-role identity was positively related to male-initiated psychological abuse during separation. Logistic regression analyses revealed that male-initiated psychological abuse, anxiety level, coparental conflict, and dependence on one's former spouse increased the odds of a man engaging in physical abuse. However, depression decreased the odds of separation physical abuse. The models predicting both male-initiated psychological abuse (F = 2.20, p < .05, R2 = .15) and physical violence during the separation process were significant (Model chi2 = 35.00, df= 7, p < .001).

Increases in divorce and nonmarital childbearing have dramatically altered the family lives of children in the United States. The increasing number of children residing in single-parent households often has been linked to many of the nation's most serious social problems, including delinquency, teenaged pregnancy and welfare dependency; in fact, it is widely believed that single-parent families represent a risk factor for children's development. There are several methodological weaknesses in the research used to document the negative effects of single-parent families on children. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between single-parent family status and children's gender and social skills, utilizing a predominantly ethnic minority sample, while controlling for family socioeconomic status (SES). It was hypothesized that after controlling SES, there would be no differences between children (boys and girls) from single- and two-parent homes on measures of social skills and conflict management. This was a secondary analysis of data that were collected in a larger study focusing on child–parent relationships and conflict management. Sixty-eight preschool-aged children and their parent(s) residing in a large urban area in the southeastern United States participated in this study. Teachers of children in the study completed a social skills rating scale on the children, and parents provided necessary demographic information. Results indicated that there was no difference between boys and girls from single-parent and two-parent families on their social skills, including conflict management. Also discussed are the implications for practitioners and others who work with children from single parent homes.

In response to the significant increase in divorce and the expanding number of children affected by this stressor, parent education programs for divorcing individuals have been developed. There are over 500 of these programs nationwide, yet few of these programs have been evaluated through quantitative methods, and none have been evaluated through use of extensive qualitative means. It was the purpose of the current study to explore, in depth, the following areas related to divorce education programs through a qualitative approach: (a) how parents constructed the knowledge from the program, (b) the degree to which the participants felt the program was helpful, (c) which program components were most effective, and (d) whether the participants had any specific suggestions on how to improve the program. Suggestions for practice are also provided based upon the findings from this study. Key Words: Coparentingdivorce educationparent education

Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong are three of very few areas of the world which have high rates of economic growth along with low divorce rates. However, the divorce rates in those countries have increased rapidly since 1970. In contrast to western families that experience an increased rate of divorce with industrialization, the variation in the divorce rates in these three Chinese societies were not accounted for by industrialization. This cross-societal, comparative study drawing on secondary data, applied the concepts of the social exchange theory to analyze the cost of divorce in the target societies and its impact on divorce rates. Findings suggest that, while industrialization triggers change similar to the West, cultural values, the physical environment, the legal system, and the public policies affect the range and the direction of family response and change. The differences indicate that researchers should carefully consider cultural variations before applying Western based theory to other societies.