Tom Lee

After “I Do”: The Newlywed Transition

Abstract Marital satisfaction, marital adjustment, and problem areas experienced during the early months of marriage were examined using a sample of 1,010 newlywed husbands and wives. Results revealed that between 8% and 14% percent of newlyweds already scored in the distressed range on measures of marital satisfaction and adjustment, respectively. For both husbands and wives, the most problematic areas in the early months of marriage were balancing employment and marriage and debt brought into marriage. However, protective factors in the marriage, including respect, appreciation, commitment, mutual affection, and trust, were the strongest predictors of marital satisfaction and adjustment. Implications for future research and family life education are proposed.

Marital Commitment and Religiosity in a Religiously Homogenous Population

Statewide surveys of marriage and divorce in Oklahoma and Utah point to the need to better understand the importance of commitment to marriage in a religiously homogenous population. The components of commitment—to their spouse, to marriage as an institution, and constraints to stay in the relationship—were explored in relation to religious values and attendance in an organized religion. Results indicate significant associations between these variables, with higher levels of values and attendance having a positive relationship with commitment to spouse and marriage. Constraint commitment was associated with lower religious values and attendance.

Religiosity, Homogamy, and Marital Adjustment: An Examination of Newlyweds in First Marriages and Remarriages

This article explores the relationship between religiosity, denominational homogamy, religiosity homogamy, and marital adjustment. Using a statewide sample of spouses in first marriages (N = 1,394) and remarriages (N = 601), the authors find that within-group differences in religiosity, denominational homogamy, and religiosity homogamy are not as prevalent for spouses in remarriages. Overall, husbands and wives in first marriages who are very religious have significantly higher marital adjustment scores than spouses who are less religious. Similarly, husbands and wives in first marriages who share the same religious denomination report higher marital adjustment scores than spouses who report different denominations. For spouses in both first marriages and remarriages, those who report that they are “both religious” have higher marital adjustment scores than spouses where both partners are not religious, or where only the wife is religious. Possible reasons for the within-group similarities and differences are explored, particularly for spouses in remarriages.

Father Involvement, Father–Child Relationship Quality, and Satisfaction With Family Work Actor and Partner Influences on Marital Quality

Using family systems theory and an actor–partner interdependence model, we examine the influence of the division of family work (including fathers’ participation in child rearing) on father–child relationship quality, satisfaction with the family work division, and marital quality. The strongest effect on both spouses’ marital quality is wives’ perception of father–child relationship quality. Following this, wives’ perceptions of father participation in child rearing are positively associated with both spouses’ reports of marital quality. Furthermore, both husbands and wives report higher marital quality when they are more satisfied with the division of labor. When wives report their husbands have greater responsibility for family tasks, both spouses report higher satisfaction with the division of labor. Post hoc analyses revealed that wives are more satisfied with the division of labor when they work with their spouse rather than alone. All findings support a systemic relational orientation to family work, the division of roles, and relationship quality.

Developing Family Relationship Skills to Prevent Substance Abuse among High-Risk Youth.

Although family factors are increasingly recognized in the problem of adolescent substance abuse, prevention programs continue to neglect the family as an important component of prevention programs. Family Connections, a family skills building program to prevent adolescent substance abuse, is described. The importance of basing family life education prevention programs on an empowerment and family strengths approach which is adapted to the unique situation of each family is discussed.

Parenting: Have We Arrived? Or Do We Continue the Journey?

This article challenges the premise that either the content or process of parenting education is fully developed. The authors argue that important developments in educating children and in educating parents challenge any sense of arrival. It is possible that the new answers discovered in recent years only challenge us to ask better questions about how to improve parent effectiveness.

Nutritional Understanding of Preschool Children Taught in the Home or a Child Development Laboratory.

The main conclusion of this research is that preschool children are capable of learning basic concepts of nutrition, including nutritive value, nutrient function, and the impact of nutrition on health. The research design was a before and after experimental model, with 20 children taught nutritional concepts in a child de velopment lab, 20 children taught at home by parents, and 20 children serving as a control group and receiving no instruction. The curriculum was based on nutrient density and used the Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ). Mean compar isons of pre- and posttest scores on a 12-item nutrition test were significant with both the Child Lab and home-taught groups.

After the Honeymoon: The Evolution of Problem Issues in Utah LDS Marriages

The main objective of this study was to extend previous research in the area of longitudinal marital satisfaction by examining how marital issues, including decision-making, activities, affection, conflict, financial matters, stability, and values, changed over the first 5 years of marriage for 242 Utah, Latter-Day-Saint individuals. In addition, this study examined whether change occurs differently for husbands versus wives and for at-risk individuals versus non-risk individuals. The results showed that four marital issues worsened over time (activities, affection, conflict, and stability). Two of the six subscales (activities and affection) were found to differ significantly by gender. In addition, four subscales were significantly different for at-risk couples when compared with non-risk couples (decision-making, activities, conflict, and stability). Limitations and recommendations are discussed.

Marital Quality, Context, and Interaction: A Comparison of Those Currently Receiving Government Assistance with Those Who Are Not

In this study the marital quality of respondents who were currently receiving government assistance was compared with those who were not. Contextual variables (e.g., gender, age, age at first marriage, religiosity, education, etc.) and interactional variables (i.e., escalating negativity, criticism, negative interpretation, withdrawal) were measured as potential correlates with marital quality. Results indicated that those who received government assistance differed significantly from those who did not on all six indicators of marital quality that were measured and on 8 of 11 contextual variables measured. Findings from this study will help policymakers, therapists, and other helping professionals gain an increased awareness of the needs of these two distinct populations and how to target educational programs to best address those needs.