Objectives: The objectives are to explore the experience of living with a person who has undergone a process of diagnosis in his or her adult years and to examine, from the partner's perspective, how diagnosis and treatment with medication affects the ADHD patients' understanding of themselves, their behavior, and their relationships with others.…

Paul Muessig, an Advanced Technology Integrator with the Marine Corps Systems Command in Quantico, Virginia, and his wife Brenda were parents of three grown daughters--Laura, Elizabeth, and Hannah, now 21, 20 and 19 years old--when they decided they hadn't had their fill of raising children. So, nearly empty nesters, they decided to adopt four…

Examined reciprocity by manipulating the touching behavior of one spouse and monitoring responses of the other spouse in 40 couples. Selected spouses in the experimental group increased their rates of touches. Results indicated that, in response, naive spouses subsequently increased their rate of touches. Findings support the lawful nature of…

Reanalyzed data from four previous studies (N=148) to examine the effectiveness of behavioral marital therapy (BMT). Results showed that slightly more than half the couples improved; about one-third actually became nondistressed. Deterioration was rare. (JAC)

Describes the specific conflicts which suicidal women experience in their intimate relationships with men. Four major themes were found in the relationships: "smothering love", infidelity, battering, and denial of affection. Examples of the four themes are described and analyzed. (Author/BL)

Rated 50 nonclinical couples conjointly and separately on various aspects of their marriage. Both the overall distribution and relative magnitude of correlations supported the basic interpretive intent of the Marital Satisfaction Inventory. Results are contrasted with previous studies of distressed couples. (JAC)

Presents Close-Relationship Model as comprehensive framework in which to examine interrelated nature of causes and effects of infertility on marital relationship. Includes these factors: physical and psychological characteristics of both partners; joint, couple characteristics; physical and social environment; and relationship itself. Discusses…

Explored effects of mastectomy for breast cancer on individual and marital adjustment among 20 spouse pairs in which wife had single mastectomy. Results indicated that both husbands and wives had adapted to mastectomy and were functioning well as individuals. Measures of marital adjustment, however, indicated serious problems with extremes of…

Examined data from National Survey of Families and Households to examine partner choice in cohabitations and marriages. Results support view of cohabitation as distinct type of relationship from marriage. Compared to recently married persons, cohabitors showed greater propensity to choose partner with same education and lesser propensity to choose…

Presents specific intervention strategies that may serve to reinforce infertility experience as opportunity for personal and marital growth. Concludes through counseling clients may complete much of the emotional work required to reach a point of resolution and acceptance of their infertility. (Author/ABL)

Investigated characteristics of long-term first marriages (over 20 years). Findings from 147 couples revealed: lifetime commitment to marriage, loyalty to spouse, strong moral values, respect for spouse as best friend, commitment to sexual fidelity, desire to be good parent, faith in God, desire to please and support spouse, good companion to…

Discusses how colleges are doing more to help academic couples, providing jobs for spouses of new hires as a way to make employment offers more attractive. A growing number of professors, however, say that the practice has gone too far and is unfair. (EV)

We analyzed spontaneous conversational humor production and response among 11 right hemisphere-damaged (RHD) patients, 10 left hemisphere-damaged (LHD) patients, 7 normal controls (NC), and their spouses. RHD patients and their spouses reported a statistically significant decline in the patients' orientation to humor post-stroke. Also, we found a…

Little is known about the spousal support received by married executive women and the support behaviors that they value. This article details the results of a qualitative study of 20 senior and executive-level women, with the aim of understanding their received and valued spousal support. An inductive typology was developed through semistructured…

Family rituals provide a rich context in which to study the relation between ideology and action. Guided by the gender perspective, this article analyzes the experiences of 21 newly married heterosexual couples who described how they planned their weddings. The interplay among gender ideology, gender display, and gender assessment differed across…