In this article, Maureen Perry-Jenkins, an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and past director of the Center for the Family at UMass, discusses findings from a federally funded five-year, longitudinal study that examined the transition to parenthood and transition back to paid employment for working-class couples. The following challenges faced […]

As part of their Family Fun & Entertainment feature, the Family Education Network provides seasonal indoor and outdoor activities plus tips for selecting the right summer camp, staying safe, and preventing summer brain drain. (Author abstract modified)

This historical article discusses findings from a study that investigated the impact of a child on 46 married couples with children. Findings indicate 38 of the couples experienced extensive or severe crisis in adjusting to their first child, the crisis pattern occurred in marriages that were good or poor, and the 38 couples had romanticized […]

This study examines the interplay between job stability, wage rates, and marital instability. We use a Dynamic Selection Control model in which young men make sequential choices about work and family. Our empirical estimates derived from the model account for self-selection, simultaneity and unobserved heterogeneity. The results capture how job stability affects earnings, how both […]

This article offers advice for married couples on dealing with potential conflicts that may arise when a child enters a marriage. According to research, the mother feels the impact of parenting during the first 6 months of the child’s life while the husband experiences the effects from 6 months to 18 months. To deal with […]

A Florida Marriage Preparation series, this online curricula includes the segments : Can We Talk? Improving Couples’ Communication, Couples Considering Parenthood, Couples Considering A Blended Family, So You are Getting Married in Florida!, Your Money Matters, and Conflict Management and Resolution–Can We Agree?

This article explores the experiences and feelings fathers may have during a pregnancy and childbirth. It discusses how paternal developmental processes occurring during pregnancy are influenced by such factors as whether the pregnancy is planned or unplanned, the quality of the partner relationship, previous experiences with childbearing and childrearing, paternal and maternal age, educational level, […]

Busby et al present the conceptual model underlying RELATE, a relationship evaluation instrument, and describe how this instrument can be used by instructors, clinicians and therapists. The RELATE model contains measures of the four primary contexts of a couple’s experience: The individual, the family, the culture, and the couple. (Author abstract).