A literature review uncovered three themes on women's psychosocial development: diverse and nonlinear patterns, importance of intimacy and identity, and centrality of relationships and connectedness to others. The review assessed the applicability of existing developmental models to women and identified alternative designs and methods needed to…

Describes workshop designed to help college-bound high school students begin to address developmental issues before matriculating. Discusses workshop activities based on Coons' (1974) description of developmental tasks of college students: resolution of parent-child relationship, solidifying sexual identity, formulation of personal value system,…

Discusses issues of intimacy in qualitative research raised by Harry Wolcott's Brad trilogy in connection with Reba Page's use of the trilogy to teach about validity in interpretive research methods. Focuses on intimacy in research, relational reflexivity, power in relationships, relational ethics, evolutionary understandings of relationships, and…

Examines the perception of urban African-American adolescent mothers and fathers regarding sex, love, intimacy, pregnancy, and parenting. Uses structured interviews and focus groups to gather data. Employs inductive data analysis using constant comparison methods to identify themes and patterns within and across gender groups. (Author/GCP)

Used data from 134 female and 135 male, Caucasian, Protestant college students to develop a path model of psychosocial development. For both genders, identity encompassed both personal competence and social connection, and intimate relationships served as a bridge between the private and social selves. (SLD)

Studies beliefs about dating violence in a sample of 298 undergraduate and graduate students. After reading 15 vignettes, respondents were asked to rate how violent and abusive a depicted incident was, what they thought was likely to happen to the relationship in the future, and what should happen following the incident. Incidents varied along…

Basic concepts and procedures of qualitative analysis are discussed, especially as they relate to the study of the features, processes, and effects of friendships. The contributions of the previous chapters are presented according to theory and research on friendship as a developmental process.

In this paper, a case study of women's incipient literacy in Junigau, Nepal, I argue that literacy can be both a catalyst for social change and a result of numerous other types of social transformation. The increase in female literacy rates in Junigau in the 1990s made possible the emergence of new courtship practices involving love letters and…

Background: Quality of life is a popular measure of outcomes and its widespread use has led to recent calls for a better understanding of the construct, emphasizing the need to build a substantial body of knowledge around what determines perceptions of life quality. Three widely reported and used conceptual principles are examined in this study.…

Although instruments that estimate the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) are available, few include potential predictors of violent behaviors such as beliefs and attitudes. The main purpose of this study was to develop a measure of attitudes toward various forms of IPV. The secondary purpose was to examine Mexican American and…

As a universal theme, love touches each of our lives in different and unique ways. This manuscript addresses the often overlooked sense of grief and loss that occurs when our dreams of love are shattered. It also addresses how addiction and commitment conflicts impede intimacy and loving relationships. While movies, music, and books offer many…

Every year in the United States, health and social problems result from adolescents' use and abuse of alcohol. Alcohol use is associated with high-risk behaviors and is a leading cause of death among adolescents. Research indicates that alcohol advertising influences drinking intentions for children and adolescents. Using content analysis of 486…

Assimilation theorists have long viewed inter-group romantic partnerships as indicators of racial equality. Although the past half-century has witnessed the erosion of anti-miscegenation laws and subsequent increases in the frequency of interracial marriages, these unions remain relatively infrequent. Low intermarriage rates may be partially…

The Relationship Involvement Scale was created to allow individuals to identify the degree to which they are involved in a relationship. The developed scale includes norms, reliability, and validity and was completed by a total of 306 undergraduates at two southern universities. While there were no significant differences between women and men on…

This study examined vicarious trauma effects in male and female clinicians who treat sexual abuse survivors (n = 111) and sexual offenders (n = 272). The national survey was conducted using a random sample of clinical members of two professional organizations. Analyses tested the relationships between demographic variables, maltreatment history,…