Assignment: RELATIONSHIP AND ROLES

Read Chapter 11 in the Belsky textbook

SETTING THE CONTEXT

- Take the Table 11.1 Quiz. Compare how you answered with the correct answers.

1. Describe what the "deinstitutionalization of marriage" means. Compare the current landscape of marriage in Iran, Scandinavia, and the US, based on information in the text.

2. Describe your understanding of satisfaction in marriage, based on the 40 years of research described in the text. What is the U-shaped curve of marital satisfaction?

- Watch this 7 minute YouTube video of Dr. John Gottman describing important components of "relationship masters," and 4 behaviors in relationships that are very destructive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=625t8Rr9o6o

3. Describe the three communication styles of "happy" couples, according to the text? How do these styles fit with what Dr. Gottman described in the video? What are the components of commitment in a relationship, according to the text?

4. What is your understanding of the "bidirectional process" that affairs have on marriages, according to the text? What does the text state can help "ease the pain" of divorce? Describe some of the different outcomes of divorce for couples that had reported being in unhappy marriages, compared to couples that reported fairly happy marriages before their divorce.

5. List the challenges of parenting through/after a divorce, and of step-parenting, described in the text.

6. Describe the changes in fertility rates around the world in recent years.

7. What is your understanding of some of the challenges couples face when they become parents?

8. How can motherhood "destroy" a women's view of herself? What are some of the bidirectional factors that can impact this, according to the text? Describe some of the stressors that affect motherhood. Review Table 11.3. How might this chart challenge some of the stereotypes about mothers "today" compared to mothers "in the past"?

9. Describe the factors that may contribute to fathers in the US experiencing some confusion about how they should be. According to research, on average what is the difference in hands-on childcare between mothers and fathers? What percentage of single-parent households in the US are headed by men?

10. Describe what research has found in terms of the distribution of household work and childcare in heterosexual relationships when women work more hours outside the home. When does the gender balance "tip in the opposite direction," according to the text? What are some other factors from the text that can impact how involved fathers are with household work and childcare?

11. Understand the three themes that reflect differences between the careers of men and women described in the text. How can gender role expectations impact work for men and women?

- Watch the Launchpad video called "Interview with Kurt Fischer" posted in Chapter 11.

12. How could the brain research he describes in the video potentially impact how you choose a career? And how long it might take you to become an expert in your chosen field?

13. Define intrinsic & extrinsic career rewards and provide your own example of each. Define role overload, role conflict, and family-work conflict, again providing your own examples for each.

14. What is the relationship between unemployment and self-esteem, according to the text?