Marriage And Family Essay Research Paper

. Types of marriage-

- common-law- not legally married, living together for a certain number of years.

- legal marriage- married by priest or judge, recognized by government in all states

-Polygamy

- polygyny- one husband has two or more wives

- polyandry- wife has two or more husbands (up to five).

. In 1990, 28% of US births were to unmarried women. By 1995, this figure had increased to 32%.

Gender

. Gender vs. Sex

- gender is the social and psychological characteristics associated with being male or female.

- sex is the biological distinction between being male or female.

. Gender roles are learned through interaction with the environment, not through biology.

. The Cognitive-developmental theory of gender role development reflects a blend of biological and social learning views. Biological readiness, in terms of cognitive development, of the child influences how the child responds to gender cues in the environment.

Love

. Sternberg s triangle of love-

- intimacy- disclosing personal feelings

- passion- sexual longing and need

- commitment- decision to maintain love relationship with partner

. Lee s love styles-

- ludus views love as a game

- pragma is logical and rational

- eros is erotic, consumed by passion and romance

- mania love feels intense emotion and sexual passion but is out of control

- storage is calm, soothing, nonsexual love devoid of all passion

- agape is selfless and giving, expecting nothing in return.

. 67% of 620 never-married college students reported that they would divorce if they fell out of love with their spouse.

Dating and Mate Selection

. 41% of adults in US age 25-29 reported that they had over 5 partners since age 18, in contrast to 26% between the ages of 18 and 24 who reported that they had had over 5 partners.

. Cohabitating Couples-

- Here and now- partners who have an emotional/sexual relationship and want to live together because they enjoy each other.

- Testers- emotionally/sexually involved partners who want to assess whether staying together and getting married is right for them.

- Engaged- partners who are committed to getting married.

- Money savers- partners who live together primarily out of economic necessity.

- Pension partners- live together because marriage would result in loss for one or both partners of benefits from a previous marriage.

-Cohabitants forever- couples who view living together as a permanent alterative to marriage.

. Most frequent reasons for college students ending a relationship-

-cheating (18%)

- met someone new (15%)

- partner met someone new (13%)

- went back to previous lover (6%)

- partner went back to previous lover (5%)

Someone else was the biggest reason people broke off relationships, next was dishonesty.